NancyJean creative thoughts

It's all about jake now...

Here he is...Jake is home with us now and it is all about Jake!  Monday morning we were in the car at 7:00 am  and we were headed to Iowa to pick up our baby.  If you know anything about me, my being on the road that early is quite a feat.  I do not get up that early for just anyone.  We had our baby in our lap by 10:00 for the ride home.  He did great!  After many licks and kisses he fell asleep in my lap all the way back to Geneva. No car sickness, no potty break...a perfect ride home. 

We had a great first day.  Jake explored his new home, the kitchen and family room anyway.  He was also introduced to the little doggie run.  We are hoping that he always remembers where it is and what to use it for!  Then the night came.  How was he going to sleep?  More importantly, how were we going to sleep?  We put him in his kennel and guess what...he cried and cried.  Then Rick had a great idea.  He took his pillow and blanket and slept on the floor next to Jake's crate.  IT WORKED!  Within a minute, both Jake and Rick were snoring!  Now we know the trick to getting Jake to sleep...what a milestone for us!



Then we learned about another trick from our son and his fiance....the bully stick!  Rawhide is a no no....the bully stick is the answer to teething.  Someone said that it is "crack" for dogs...they are right!  Jake loves it, let me never be without one.  If you want to know what it is, you will have to goggle it and find out for yourself.  But trust me, it is also healthy for that doggie in your life.

Our second day was spent with the trainer and vet.  Our trainer spent two solid hours giving us advice on how to begin training Jake.  By the end of our session I felt completely overwhelmed. How to crate train, how to stop the nipping, how and what to feed this little puppy, what toys were appropriate, how to teach him his name, how to train him to come, to sit, to lay down, and most importantly how to housebreak him!   I had forgotten what a task it was to train a puppy. 

 But by the third day, everything began to flow.  The frequent trips outside to the doggie run became routine, his nap time became regular, the type of food was decided upon and we had time for alittle training.  Jake even took a shopping trip to two doggie stores for some much needed toys!  And i got alittle housework done! 

Wish us luck tomorrow when we go out for the first time and leave Jake alone! 

Hugs and Kisses and Bow Wow Wishes!

NancyJean