Dog Freights
One morning I was watching the news and a special about disciplining dogs came on. It enrolled four dogs in the Washington DC dog training to try and reform them. They worked with each dog individually until it had mastered a skill. Dog clicker training was a main focus of the program A command would be followed by a click, and if the dog obeyed it received a treat. Eventually, if the dog heard a click it would do the command. These dogs were making such progress I was amazed. Each went in a miscreant and came out a jewel.
Had they held auditions for the program, my dog would have been a shoe-in. Jesse, my dog, and I have a very complex relationship. As it seems, he is the king of the castle. I didn’t think dogs could wear pants, but Jesse has showed me differently. Jesse is a diva by all standards. I have spent countless nights sleeping on the couch because Jesse wouldn’t share the bed. Any pillow I have must be tested and approved by him first, and if he likes it, he might choose to take it for himself. Jesse takes it upon himself to taste-test every meal, whether or not I allow it.
I feel like I’ve done all I can to try and reform Jesse. I tried using tips from a book from my brother-in-law; called Good Masters make Good Dogs. I followed this book to the t, child-locking my kitchen, putting shock systems on things, but it did absolutely nothing. Jesse just out-smarted it all. I was at a loss. I then asked my veterinarian. The vet taught me tricks to correct misbehavior in animals that was “fool-proof”. Well, obviously, my dog is either a genius or a dunce because it didn’t work. Jesse seemed to repel any type of constructive reformation.
The expo seemed like my last hope. If it could turn dogs that bit people, barked viciously and ate furniture around I was confident it could help Jesse. After all, Jesse was harmless at heart, he would never hurt anyone. All he needed was a little tough love, or a lot. After watching the news special, I ran to the internet to see if I could get Jesse into the program. The news station website was actually running a contest where ten people can win the chance to take there dogs to D.C. for training. I am usually pessimistic about contests, but I pushed my reservations aside for this one.
Three weeks later, I got a message on my cell phone from the dog expo in DC. I had almost forgotten that I even entered the contest, so it was a huge shock. I had to have Jesse in DC in two weeks. In anticipation, I had Jesse groomed and checked by the Vet, for posterities sake. Now that he was presentable, Jesse and I got in my car, him in the front seat of course, and set off. By the end of the workshop, Jesse was a new dog. Since that time, I haven’t slept on the couch or had my food taken.
