My buddy Jackson

[DoxieMama]

I originally mentioned Jackson in my thread for my baby dog, Visuddha who had Cushing's (Visuddha's thread (https://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7820)). Then earlier this year, I made a formal introduction of him in a thread with Pepper, a short time foster (Jackson and Pepper (https://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8412)). Now, I think he deserves a place of his own.

Copying his introduction from there...


Jackson is a 6.5 year old Australian cattle dog/English coon hound mix... we think. We got him from Colville Animal Sanctuary in January 2011 at about 6 months old. He had been left on their doorstep as a young pup. I have no idea why no one had adopted him in the 4 or 5 months he was there, except that he was waiting for us!

I took Visuddha with me to meet him. Jack was in a kennel, quite honestly jumping straight up and down inside the door, wanting to be let out. Once out, he was inquisitive but not pushy and Visuddha accepted him immediately. (They had another puppy in the kennel and the staff wanted me to consider him as well, so they put Jackson back inside and let this pup out. Visuddha wanted nothing to do with him - growling right away. So they changed places again. )

Visuddha didn't mind Jackson at all, until he got in the truck. Then he was irritated as anything! For the almost 2 hour drive home, I had V tied to the driver's door and in my lap, while Jack was behind the passenger seat of the truck. Once home, the two were just fine again.

Jackson and I went to two different dog parks this weekend. The first I'll call the "state line" dog park. We went there Saturday morning, as the dog park closer to home was empty. State line had quite a few dogs and people. We were met at the gate by a couple of Airedales, who sniffed through the gate and then wandered away with Jackson on their butts. ;) His first few minutes he looked like a ridgeback with his haunches raised, tail tucked, sniffing everyone inquisitively. Airedales, Labs, three German Shepherds and a variety of other mixes, most mid- or large-sized dogs. We wandered through the park, watching, sniffing, occasionally being mounted/mounting others... :p all in all pretty good. Towards the end of our visit, a 14-year old, 3-legged little Papillon and his friend, a 1-eyed similarly aged Dachshund mix who stayed next to me for a while (can't imagine why... ;)). They were both so darn adorable, permanent members of a rescue due to their health issues, ages and ... well, I don't think the lady could part with them. Did I mention they were cute? :)

ANYway, Jackson wasn't as interested in the little ones as he was in wandering around, so we continued to wander. After a while (30? 45? minutes), he walked over to the gate and waited for me to let him out.

We stopped at PetSmart on the way home, sniffed a couple more little dogs there and bought some treats.

Sunday we went back to the state line, saw the German Shepherd and Airedales again but they didn't stay long. There were two Great Danes (one of whom got right in my face to say HELLO!!), a handful of other mid-sized dogs.... and Sam, a larger Lab mix, who was intent on mounting Jackson every time he saw him. Jackson kept going over to Sam and his buddies every time he could. Sam's owners put him on a leash whenever we were around, so we wandered away a few times to let him play. Every time we came back, Sam and Jackson were at it again until they left. Sam and his friends, a smaller Lab and a Beagle puppy (awww) were chasing/retrieving a ball for a while so we spent most of that time in the woods, sniffing and following other dogs around.

After Sam and his buddies left, there was only one other owner with her two dogs. I don't know their breeds... the male was bigger than Jackson, the female quite a bit smaller and fluffier. Neither one was too interested in playing. They'd sniff and be sniffed but didn't really want much more to do with him. She growled at Jackson right at the beginning, lip curled... I called Jackson to me and he turned his butt right in her face. :rolleyes: Such a good boy. :D She was more inquisitive later but not much. Jackson followed the male around a couple times, stopping once to sniff for a loooooong time where he'd peed, and practically running right into his butt another time when he stopped quickly. :D I laughed at them. :D

On our way home, we stopped at the new dog park. There were about half a dozen other dogs when we got there, a few more came, a few left... we played with a 4 month old puppy (lab mix?), Boxer, couple different Pit mixes, Husky mix. Jackson was the oldest one there. Almost all boys. Need I say more? :p;) I'm pretty sure that puppy got smashed to the ground at least 4 times, stuck on his back a couple times (legs waving like a turtle on his shell) and came back up raring to go. It was fun to watch the dogs be dogs. :)

I wish I would have taken some pictures or video but here's a link to Jackson's Photo Album (https://www.k9cushings.com/forum/album.php?albumid=1153). I know I have more pictures of him that I'll add later.

Did I mention that Jackson hasn't been to a dog park in years??? I know some people aren't too keen on them but as long as it's kept up and the people and dogs that we meet are friendly and attentive, I think we'll keep going. :)

[Harley PoMMom]

Shana, what a gift you have in telling a story, I found it so fascinating and could visualize everything you wrote!

[molly muffin]

I agree you do have a gift. I could just picture those dog parks, especially state line one and Jackson having a great time with all the other dogs.
Love the pictures of him. He sure was a cute puppy and now an adorable young man. LOL

[DoxieMama]

We went back to the new park again this weekend. Jackson is still a little uncertain at first, but settles in quite quickly. Yesterday morning we took a brief walk then went to the park for about an hour. Last night, I was watching TV and looked over to where he was sleeping.... I think he was worn out. :D

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=1153&pictureid=8754

[labblab]

AWWWWWWWWW!!!! :o :) :D :D :D :D :D

[Harley PoMMom]

AWWW!!!! Such a precious boy! My Harley used to lay like that on my bed.

[Squirt's Mom]

LOL How cute! Bud lays like that a lot, too. They can get in some of the most uncomfortable looking positions and seem to really relax! :p

[judymaggie]

Shana -- I am so glad that you decided to start a thread for Jackson! I love reading about his adventures and the pictures are great. Keep 'em coming! :D

[molly muffin]

hahahha, yep. that is one pooped out doggie I bet he is loving the new adventures though

[DoxieMama]

Just a quick note tonight. We went to the new dog park tonight after work. The 3 dogs there when we arrived left immediately. Two more came right away... Axle is a little over a year old and a bit bigger than Jack. His 'brother' Mojo is 13 and about Jackson's size. These three boys had....so.... much.... fun. You guys. It was amazing and incredible to watch them play. Jackson is very growly when playing which took Axles parents a minute to relax. They went up on their back legs, sometimes colliding so hard that Jackson was spun around. He always went right back though. We did have to watch closely to make sure We didn't get smashed into... they ran and crashed right into our legs occasionally. It was Awesome!!

Another man brought his new year old pup Rudy who Axle did not!! Like at all. They stayed in the small dog area to keep them separated. Jackson and Rudy seemed fine through the fence but Axle wanted nothing to do with him. Maybe another time we will get to play with Rudy.

Jackson fell asleep in the truck on the 10 minute drive home, and is snoozing again now. I'm sure he will sleep well tonight.

Next time maybe I can get video of those pups. It was just so great I didn't even think about it.

[DoxieMama]

Jackson is registered for basic obedience later this spring. He knows most of the commands already, but needs to pass the class so we can take more! :)

I emailed with two of their trainers about Jackson and got some more tricks to help him with his leash reactivity. The last couple of days have been good. No, great. He is catching on and starting to relax more around other dogs on out walks. Cheese is a big hit. :D

He did so well training this morning he got to play at the dog park with two or three others for an hour or so. Naptime now... For me, too.

[molly muffin]

How exciting for you and Jackson! I will definitely do that with my next dog too. I think the socialization and training help them and us a great deal.

[DoxieMama]

Yesterday was the best day ever!!!

I took Jackson for a little longer walk in the morning (typical for the weekend). About halfway through the walk, we saw a cat lounging across the road next to a vehicle. I started giving him treats for walking nicely next to me, which he does when there are no distractions but struggles when other animals are nearby. Treats every few steps (not quite "pez dispenser" fast but close ;)), keeping the same pace, he looked at the cat twice but always turned back to see if there was another treat. He didn't stop. He didn't stare. He didn't lunge. He didn't bark. He glanced and continued on as if the cat wasn't even there. A HUGE WIN!

We walked a few blocks then turned the corner and crossed the street. A short time later, there was a rottweiler across the street, behind a short chain link fence who barked at us, raced down the fence and back, barked again, ad nauseam. The street was between us and I was between Jackson and this other dog. Jackson, in typical fashion, headed across the street as far as his leash would allow. He stopped. He stared. I said "Yes!" as a marker... and he turned around, away from the dog! I almost forgot to give him the treat I was so stunned. :D Not only that, he started walking with me - another treat. He looked again, thought about it... "Yes!"... and on we went. We got just past that dog's fence (again, across the street) and I asked Jackson to sit. He did. JACKPOT!!

As we got near our home there is a boxer who acts aggressively to anyone he can see through the 'window' in their wooden fence. (They seriously have a window that he can stand and look through - no glass but divided into four sections with metal posts.) This boxer barks and snarls and jumps against the fence with his front paws as we pass. We have been startled up close once or twice, so now we stay across the street in case he is out. Of course, he was out yesterday. As we approached the yard, I saw another heeler with his owner, jogging towards us. They were about a block away when we crossed the street to keep distance from the boxer (and be on opposite sides from the heeler). I gave Jackson a couple treats as we passed the boxer and sped up a little, hoping to get to the intersection before the heeler got too close. We did, just barely. I usually walk a little ways down the street to put distance between us and any other dogs, as immediately across the street is too close for Jackson. We didn't have time to do that yesterday, so Jackson was maybe 4-5' from the curb. He saw the heeler but then looked at me without my even asking!!! Treat, good boy, treat. Jackson, sit. He did! He got right back up again :) but he did it.

WHO IS THIS DOG?!?!! :D :D :D

[DoxieMama]

In the afternoon, we went to our 4th and last basic obedience class.

The first class was owners only, followed by three 90 minute classes once per week with the dogs. There were 7 dogs total, though only 6 showed up for the second and third weeks (not the same 6 each time). Jackson was, of course, the oldest. :rolleyes: The next oldest was a 4 year old lhasa apso former show dog named Jasmine. Everyone else was between 6 and 18 months old... and most of them were what the trainer called "party dogs". :cool: We had lots and lots of portable gates set up with blankets over them to keep eye contact to a minimum. :D

As I had previously spoken with two other trainers at this school, they suggested to have our trainer set us up in a corner with portable gates all around. This is because Jackson has been reactive on leash, lunging and barking like a maniac. We wanted to "set him up for success" and not stress him too much. We arrived early, got situated so he could not see any of the dogs for his first class (week 2). He could smell and hear them, but not see them. That went really well.

For the next class, we had the same setup, though I moved the blanket between us and Jasmine just a little so he could see her. He tried to get closer, jumped onto the gate and almost knocked it over so... the blanket went back up. Mostly. ;) At the end of the class, I moved that gate out of the way so we could go to the kitchen and he got to see her and a couple of the other dogs for a little bit. He was calm and did get closer to Jasmine but everyone headed out so we had no introductions.

Jasmine and Jackson were the ONLY dogs for the last class yesterday! We had an open side to our corner so they could see each other when she arrived. They were both curious and we allowed them a quick sniff, which went great. Fifteen minutes into class, when we decided no one else was coming, we moved out of our enclosure to an open area maybe 10 feet from Jasmine and did our exercises there. She went into our enclosure and got lots of good smells of him :D. They both got to be the "demo dog" and watch the other one working... it was awesome!

Jackson got a nice big biscuit from the trainer for his graduation gift, and I got to choose a treat for me, too. :D

(As for me, yesterday was "day 2" of my vacation. It started with the fantastic walk with Jackson in the morning. I spent a few hours at home then went clothes shopping, which is not my favorite activity ever. :rolleyes: I wanted some shorts and sandals, and needed new lingerie which I abhor shopping for. I found the shorts and sandals, as well as a few other things (no lingerie :(), then had a quick lunch at McD -- it's a treat for me because my husband can't stand them. I got a pedicure, took Jackson to class, came home to a burger my son bought for me, then went for a massage the same son had given me for Mother's Day! After that, I did a little more shopping and got everything else I needed. Today? In two hours, we head to the airport to go to Hawaii for 10 days. Ahhhhhhhhhh.) :D

[labblab]

Oh Shana, I'm so happy for you guys!! You inspire me, because my Luna is really reactive, too, and I've been too lazy to work on it (I just quickly cross the street, as soon as possible! :o). I did obedience classes with both Barkis and Peg, but never with Luna and I've always paid the price. But it's never too late, right??

Your weekend sounds wonderful, as does your vacation. Have an absolutely fabulous time, OK? Bon Voyage!!! :) :) :)

[Joan2517]

Have a great time, Shana!!

[Harley PoMMom]

Oh Shana!!! Have a wonderful time in Hawaii!!!!!!!!! Aloha! :)

So happy to read that Jackson has done so well with his obedience training, he is such a good boy and Congratulations to you both in completing the class...great job!

[molly muffin]

OMG! Hawaii!!!! Have a fabulous time!!! I just know you will.

What a great way to go too with Jackson having such a successful walk on his own and completing school. :)

Smiles all over the place. Enjoy! Have a tropical itch for me!!! (make it 2) hahaha

[Squirt's Mom]

Hawaii! How wonderful! And I'm excited about a trip to the northern realms of Arkansas, my home state. :D I would have to be sedated and wheeled onto the plane if Hawaii were in the plans. LOL Enjoy!

Sounds like real progress with Jackson and I am so happy to hear it. I know that lightens your heart a great deal.

[DoxieMama]

Hawaii was wonderful. :) I still haven't gotten the pictures off our camera but when I do, I'll post a couple here.

As for Jackson, he was ecstatic when we returned. I have never seen him quite so excited. I'll add a picture to his album that I took after we were home about half an hour. He was STILL excited. :D He followed me all weekend, went up to my parent's (and met her two dogs :D) and did not leave my side for 3 days. lol

We started the intermediate obedience class after we returned, so are now halfway through that. There were two other girls signed up but only one of them has come to the classes so far. She is a larger girl, part lab, and just relaxes across the room from us. Jackson stuck his head between the wall and the portable gate during the first class to see her, which brought a chuckle to everyone. I got his attention and he came back to me for the rest of the time. The trainer did not put up the portable gates for the second class and both dogs were just fine. We practically followed her out the door when we left - no issues at all. The trainer used Jackson to demonstrate a couple behaviors - even dropping his leash during one of them. I don't think he noticed, following closely while ignoring the other dog completely. I'm just so happy with how he's doing.

We haven't passed any dogs on the street on our walks lately; the closest have been either behind fences or half a block away. There were two blue heelers that followed us a short distance one morning. Jackson stopped to pee when he noticed them. I had to laugh - he was standing on 3 legs watching them approach. I said "Let's go" and he turned around and came with me. We stopped a few times, auto-sits and treats. He turned to glance at them once or twice but was otherwise unconcerned. We turned the corner, they continued straight and we haven't seen any dogs since.

I have resumed searching for another dog to add to the family. This weekend, we are going for a meet-and-greet. I'm trying not to get my hopes up... which isn't working so well :o... but I'll let you all know how it goes, either way.

[Joan2517]

Good luck, Shana! Jackson sounds like he's really coming along...awww, poor guy missed you.

[Harley PoMMom]

Really looking forward to seeing those Hawaii pics! How was the Hawaiian food and what was the food you liked best?

Awww, Jackson sure did miss his Mommy (we missed ya too)! Sounds like he is still doing very well with the obedience class, he is such a good boy!

I'm so excited that you are looking for another dog, please do keep us updated!!

[DoxieMama]

I think my favorite is the poke or sashimi... nothing like fresh fish. Especially when accompanied by mai tais and the sound of the ocean. :)

Jackson IS a good boy. I love him to pieces.

[molly muffin]

Jackson is really coming into his own. What a guy. Doing so well wth his training and his reactions to other dogs. What an improvement! Yay.

Mai Tais!!! Lol.

[DoxieMama]

Sunday morning Jackson met the next door neighbor's dog, Kona, off leash while her mom was taking groceries out of the car. She is the same size as Jackson, a boxer mix I think, and walked rather nonchalantly over to us while Jackson was totally chill about it. They sniffed and circled, until she realized I had treats and came over to me. My neighbor apologized and came up to get her. They sniffed a little more, then I told Jackson "Let's go" and we left. It was the perfect short introduction.

Later during the walk, he was rather persistent in trying to chase the squirrels through the rest of the neighborhood. :rolleyes:

Then in the afternoon we had our third "prep" class (intermediate obedience). Jackson was the only dog there so we had a 90 minute personal training session. LOL! I let him roam around the room between exercises for the first half of the class, giving him lots of opportunities to sniff where other dogs had been recently. And of course he was the model student. ;)

Our walk this morning though is the real reason I'm posting. We passed a man jogging on the other side of the street right away - Jackson just kept looking to me and getting treats. (He sometimes gets nervous around joggers, especially coming towards us.)

When we turned the corner, he focused on a gray cat walking across the street at the end of the block. I thought for sure this would be a repeat of Sunday's squirrel walk, so I slowed and he turned his head towards me a couple times - click and treat. As we got closer, he was more and more focused when I realized there was a black and white cat sitting next to the tree in the yard. Two cats. Oh great. Jackson was preparing to chase (here we go) but neither one ran, and he was willing to glance at me for more treats as we walked past.

I paused at the other side of the intersection, and he sat. Awesome - Treats!! He glanced back at the cats, then back to me - still sitting. Jackpot! I didn't move and he offered a down. I thought, hmmm... opportunity for a quick training session. So we practiced sit, down, and stand with those distracting cats in the background.

He did it all so well that neither one of us realized that we had an audience approaching behind him. Slowly, curious, the black and white cat was crossing the intersection towards us! Jackson noticed shortly after I did, and turned around to WALK that way. :cool: The cat stopped and sat down, and Jackson reached the end of his leash. He was curious, but calm. Hmm. I said his name. He turned his head toward me - YES! Good boy. I gave him a treat, which meant there was a bit more slack to the leash. He walked a little closer to the cat, and was stopped by the leash. About this time, the gray cat started to walk across the street, away from us, but Jackson was much more focused on the black and white who was maybe 8-10 feet away, just watching us.

I said Jackson's name again. With barely an ear twitch in response, I could tell we were a little too close. That's ok. He was still calm so I gave him a treat, which he took. I knew he wouldn't respond if I asked him to sit, so I lured him there. That worked!! GOOD BOY (which is really fun to say, exciting, calm and quietly all at the same time - LOL)! He got a little jackpot for that and then remembered --- Oooh mom has treats - and he turned his head toward me. YES!! Another little jackpot, during which I said "Let's go"...

And he walked away from the cat.

WOO HOO!!!

[Joan2517]

Woo Hoo is right! Excellent!

[DoxieMama]

I'm so glad I posted about our walk a month ago. That's a great memory. Jackson has been doing FANTASTIC on our walks lately.

Tomorrow will be 3 weeks since we brought Kira home. My husband and I walked the dogs together for about a week, until we passed other dogs on the street. I couldn't walk Kira until I got her a Gentle Leader and she stopped trying to pull my shoulder out of the socket :p, and we had no idea how she was going to behave near other dogs.

There is a black dog that previously lunged and barked at Jackson (while he lunged and barked back) that was the first one we saw with both dogs together. I immediately scattered treats on the ground and said "Find It!" in a cheery voice. Jackson did exactly that, sniffing the ground and finding the treats. The sniffing is calming for him and any other dogs around, and the food helps with counter-conditioning to change his reaction to other dogs from scary/dangerous things to yay-food! good things. (In my not so eloquent explanation. :p) Whatever... it worked. Both of my dogs got food, the black dog and his owner walked past us, curious but quiet.

Once I got the Gentle Leader for Kira, I started taking them by myself. The blue heelers we saw a month ago were the first dogs we encountered. They turned the corner on our street when we were in the middle of the block. I crossed the street and hustled into a neighbor's driveway. As they got closer, Jackson started to focus and stare. I dropped treats and called out "Find It!" and he turned away from them for the food. One of the heelers was pulling towards us but Jackson ignored them for the treats on the ground. Kira ignored them for the squirrels in the trees. :rolleyes:

Since then, we've had people walk past us on the opposite side of the street, with one or two dogs, and he has not barked or lunged at all. He notices them and looks at me, then as they get close, I scatter a handful of treats on the ground and say "Find it!" Kira doesn't seem bothered by the dogs or the people which is helpful too.

On a walk earlier this week, a man with two dogs came around the corner on our side of the street, just before we reached the intersection. Jackson was a little nervous so I asked the man to please not come any closer. He gave me an odd look but started across the street with his dogs. Jackson wasn't interested in playing Find It! so I stuck food in front of his nose as they were crossing the street. He took the food and I moved to block his view of them. He stuck his head between my knees :p so he could keep watching until they passed, finally turning away. No barking or lunging! I'll take it.

Kira has her own issues for us to work through, including a bit of fear towards strangers (low growls at about 6 to 8 feet, barks if closer). She has also showed some resource guarding of high value chew toys, both toward me and Jackson. Nothing major, but definitely something to address. I described the situation to our trainer yesterday, and he was very encouraged that we could work on these, and provided specific exercises to help.

Otherwise, we have really been doing well. The dogs get individual and shared attention from my husband and I both, running in a nearby field most mornings during our walk, with lots of rewards for good behavior ... or just because ... :D

[molly muffin]

This is great to hear. Jackson has really made a lot of progress and it's great that Kira doesn't show the same issues as jackson.. I'm sure that you will figure out how to address Kiras fears in no time at all too.
Good JOB!!!

[DoxieMama]

Happy Gotcha Day, Jackson!!


My buddy for the past 7 years, shown here with Kira. :)


http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=8191&d=1515524194

[Squirt's Mom]

awwww HAPPY GOTCHA DAY, JACKSON!!

[Joan2517]

Great picture, Shana!

[labblab]

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!

Best wishes to the whole family! :-)))))))))))))))

[molly muffin]

oh wow, look how great they are together now! Totally awesome picture Shana!

Happy Gotcha Day Jackson!!!!

[Harley PoMMom]

AWWWW, so adorable!!! Happy Gotcha Day, Jackson!!