Wow, we won the dog lottery! When we adopted Bos’n we were told that he was coming from a home where his owner had worked extended hours and didn’t have time for him. We expected to get a very rambunctious, unruly 66 pound 8 month old puppy that would need a lot of work to fit into our family, and we were ready to deal with that challenge.

We couldn’t have been more wrong about the level of effort required to integrate Bos’n into our family. Bos’n was a little rough around the edges at first, but learned the rules of our family really quickly with very mild corrections. He only had to be shown a couple of times what was his to chew and what was not, not to jump up on people, that he needed to eliminate outside and not in the dining room or on the stair landing, etcetera. I consider myself a fairly experienced dog parent after 25 years of having 4 terrific Akitas, but nothing compares with how smart and eager to please Bos’n is. After 8 weeks he has learned basic commands, has the run of our home and is completely trustworthy alone or with my very active six year old son. He is happy to go on long hikes with me, play with our six year old, or quietly hang out with my wife while she reads. He’s playful, affectionate and has great manners. Watch dog – not so much. He’ll “watch” complete strangers (St. Vincent de Paul charity pickup) walk out with a big TV, but he won’t do anything about it! For us, Bos’n is perfect.

We’re very grateful to have the opportunity to make Bos’n a part of our family.