JETHRO... MY WONDERFUL DOG

There's no better dog in the whole wide world than my boy Jethro. I got him six years ago from a shelter in Kennebunk, Maine - one cold, rainy, June morning. His birthday is an easy one to remember: 3/03/2003. I was told that he came from down south - living in a small, overcrowded pen full of neglected Black and Tan Coonhounds of all ages and temperaments. He was 4 months old when I got him, and had completely missed out on that small, but important socialization window; as a result he's a bit of a scaredy-cat, and overcompensates by overreacting to other dogs with a show of off-the-charts barking, lunging, and acting the fool. He knew nothing of apartment-living etiquette when we first got together: sounding his bellowing hound alarm most every night at most every little noise, chewing through electrical cords, falling up and down stairs, peeing on my bed and artwork; within the first several months of owning him, he had ingested and thrown up darn near my entire apartment's contents. The outside world was an even greater challenge; he felt the sky was falling with every step he took. We've come a long way since that morning in June - he and I both. We spend 24 hours a day together, and I have to say I love him more than anything. We've been working on "play dead" this past week; he's picking it up pretty quickly - though I'm having a hard time convincing him that "dead dogs" don't wag their tails. He's perfect at "bow," "wave," "shake," "jump," "touch," and your basic "sit," "stay," "wait," "heel," and "come." We have a little dance routine going - albeit a rough one; Jethro likes Willie Nelson and Junior Brown - must be his southern roots. 

* This is a 5'x6' painting I did for a dog training facility in Portland, Maine called "My Wonderful Dog." I used Jethro (as a pup) for my model, and painted it to look like he's sitting on their logo... "good sit Jethro."