Jackson Goes to Boot Camp

We''ve been realizing over the last few weeks that in dealing with Jake's issues our "fourth child" has gotten a little out of control. Jackson is a puppy but I think we were in denial that Jackson is actually not a good puppy. He jumps on people. He barks. He nips at kids in the house. He runs into the street. He bugs you incessantly with the ball. He thinks he is a lap dog and doesn't take "no" for an answer. He chews the kids toys. He even ate a pizza off our kitchen counter. No, Jackson is not a "good puppy".

Now that things have calmed down some in the Alan household we decided that something must be done. Enter the "Sit Means Sit" people. They came for an hour last night to meet Jackson and give us some options for training. They ended up taking our boy away in the "paddy wagon". We decided to bite the bullet and pay for the training camp. 10 days of training at the owner's house, then four follow up lessons in our home with lifetime follow up as needed. It's an investment for sure (mom actually gasped at the price) but we figure if we are going to have a dog for the long haul (possibly until Jake leaves home) we want it to be one that is well behaved and one that adds fun and love to our household not more chaos. So, Jackson is at bootcamp. We will be getting videos of his progress every day or two from the owner and trainers.

The house feels empty today but we hope that when Jackson returns we will be able to have guests over without fear of embarrassment. We hope the kids will once again be able to play outside on the swings and with their balls in peace. We hope that we will be able to have Jackson out front with us to enjoy the summer weather. So, good luck to our puppy. Sorry for the tough love, Buddy, but it's for your own good!

PS. As the person who formats and posts this to the blog, I have ad hoc final editorial say, and would like to rebutt. Jackson is a good puppy, it just that he's just a puppy and a puppy with no training to boot. I spent a lot of money to get Milo trained as well for the same reasons (I didn't have time) and it still ranks as some of the best money I have ever spent. Unlike Marisa I have bonded with Jax and miss him and will be happy when he comes home.