That's me above...Berks Jackson. Jackson is my middle name, in case you didn't know. For those of you who don't know me, I'm 1.5 years old, a purebred Gap dog, a graduate of advanced obedience school (but don't let that fool you), and an aspiring investigative reporter. I've also gone back to school to do my graduate work in Focus Studies. Mom said I could write my own blog entry today so I can practice my grammar and journalistic style.
Perhaps the top photo will give you an indication of why I've labeled this season the winter of discontent. It's not so much that I hate wearing those booties...I don't mind that part too much, but I guess I should start at the beginning. Back in September, I started having problems with my paws itching...so I chewed them, which made them itch even more, which made me chew them even more...you get the picture...it's a vicious cycle, really. The first time I went to the vet, he said I was just a little irritated and that it was probably just because it was the height of allergy season. He said hydrocortisone spray should fix me up. Well, it helped, but it didn't fix my paws completely. After a little while, mom noticed that my nails were turning a funny color so back to the vet we went. This time, he said I had yeast on my paws (I wasn't sure if that meant a loaf of bread was growing on my paws, but apparently not...that was a little disappointing). He sent me home with anti-fungal spray (There's a fungus on me??? Ew!!) and instructions to soak my feet in Seltsun Blue every few days. He said it was probably a lingering effect of my food allergy that I had some problems with a while back (I'm allergic to corn products). This all happened to be while I was on winter break from school for a month, and my paws almost totally healed. Then, I went back to school (which is at an outdoor facility at night). As soon as I got home from school, I chewed and chewed and chewed. I really wish I hadn't done that, but I was stuck in that vicious cycle again. Mom told my teacher what happened, and she said it's because I must be very sensitive to the dew on the grass (apparently, I'm not the first dog to ever have this issue.) Then we told the vet what happened, and he agreed and said it's somewhat common in dogs like me who didn't get enough to eat when we were little puppies. Please don't think badly of my doggie mom for that...she did her very best to keep nine puppies alive in the desert all by herself. So, the great paw mystery is solved. The bad news is that I'm right back to square one again with the irritation and yeast. That's why I'm wearing those silly booties on my front paws...it helps me remember not to chew on them. I also have to wear shoes any time I'm going to be in contact with dew or wet grass any more than briefly. It's not so terrible though. Mom got me a really nice set of shoes (with socks!) that fit properly. I think I look pretty cool in them. I think they'll probably be useful to have when I start going to interviews for an investigative reporter job.
Wearing my new shoes:
The winter of discontent hasn't been all bad. Sometimes I'm a little OCD about certain things, and one of those things was that the only way I could sleep at night was locked in my crate. I know it may sound silly, but the door just HAD to be locked or I couldn't sleep. Mom promised that if I could learn to sleep at night without the door being locked (and I could sleep anywhere...it didn't have to be in my crate), then she'd buy me a really special bed. I had a couple of failed attempts in the past, but then we tried again recently...and I did it this time! It was a little hard at first, but mom and I stuck with it, and I can sleep all night like a grown up dog now! So, mom made good on her promise, and the Fedex person delivered my cool new bed yesterday! Here's a picture of me and Emmy testing it out. Emmy and Coco really like it too, so I let them borrow it sometimes...Mom says I'm a very nice boy :).
All in all, I'm very hopeful that spring will be a better season for me. Mom has a job for me starting in a few months, and I can't wait! She says that we're probably getting a special needs sibling in May. She won't tell me who it is, but I think she pretty much knows (I think they're going to move here from Best Friends, just like I did). She told me that our new sibling will have a lot of social challenges, and she's counting on me to be a good brother and help them out with their problems. I'm glad she picked me as her helper...I'm just the boy for the job! Sister Emmy was a troubled, crabby girl when I got here, and now we're best friends...and I taught her how to be silly, and nice, and play with toys. Whatever problems our new sibling has, those problems don't stand a chance with Berks Jackson on the job!
Me, Emmy and Polo after a successful pack hunt:
Here's a super weird photo mom took of Polo:
