For my very first Blog Post on The Mindful K9 site, I thought I’d take the opportunity to introduce my own personal dogs – the three, lovingly referred to as “The Bak Pack”.  I have learned so much from each of them and you will constantly hear me talk about/refer to them.

In the center of the group is Stella.  She’s the husky/terrier/something mix that I mentioned on the “About” page, the one who pulled me into dog training head first.  Stella was born in May of 2005 – so at the time of this writing, she’s headed towards 10 years of age.  Where has all the time gone?  Stella, who came to us at  5 weeks of age (not our choice) – is the anchor of this group and now my barometer for other dogs.  Once my problem child, Stella is now my Stellar girl.  She is why I’m here.

On the right side is the Beagle/hound mix Farley Granger.  We have absolutely no idea how old he is because he was a foundling.  Nabbed him just wandering down our heavily traveled street; no tags, no ID, no history.  We attempted to turn him in, but on that day  the County Kennel was closed and by the time we made it back home, we decided that if no one claimed him – he could stay.  We soon discovered why his previous owners may have “released the hound” –  Farles G. was/is a dominant, stealthy-sneaky, seductively  manipulative, skittish piece of work!  The “houndy” has been a handful!  With a firm hand and patience Farley Granger has become a integral part of the pack (as you can tell by his compliance in the above photo).

Up top, in all of his copper-toned handsome-ness is Stanley, the inspiration for The Mindful K9’s logo and Farley Granger’s BFF.  We know that Stan the Man’s mother was a GSD-mix, but that’s about it, so your guess is about as good as ours…  He was rescued from a deadly situation by a friend, and I began working with him while he was being fostered.  By 11 months of age, Stanley had lived his entire life outdoors.  He had never been in a house, ridden in a car or been taken for a walk – so EVERYTHING was/is new and frightening to him.  Building confidence and learning new skills has been the paramount focus for this boy.  In the 2+ years he has been with us, Stan has come a long way, but still carries the imprints of his early months.

These are the dogs I live with.  They inspire me, push me and bring me great joy.  It is my fervent hope that what I may have learned from them may be passed on to others who may be experiencing similar issues.  That is why I am here.

How may we help you?