Altho I had met this week’s innerview-ee a few years back, while workin’ on another story, our schedules didn’t work out to do a COLL-um at the time. So, now that he’s back in town, we finally got together.
Jackson McLaughlin is a hansome middle-size white Poo, but, he egg-splained, “I i-DENNI-fy as a Golden Doodle.”
We met at his work, James Arthur Court, a real pretty place with a long, tidy line of uh-PART-mutts ’speshully for humans who are what’s called VETS. But not the kind who take care of us pooches when we’re sick or something. Jackson explained that THESE vets are humans who have been in the MILL-uh-terry, and helped pruh-tect our entire country. And sometimes they even had to FIGHT, and even sometimes got HURT.
So Jackson an his Mom an Dad rebuilt this place so it’s Totally Cool Kibbles, with porches and flowers, an lotsa grass and trees an liddle gardens. An NOW, Jackson’s here with his Mom every day makin’ sure the VETS are okey-dokey an, Guess What? some of the VETS have pooches, an Jackson makes sure THEY are also okey-dokey.
So, Jackson had Woof-mailed me, very X-cited about a new project at the uh-PART-mutts he wanted to show me. When me an my assistant drove up, I saw there was a white-fenced-in area on the grass in the front yard, with a liddle gate.
Jackson came runnin’ up for the Wag-n’ Sniff, his Mom right buh-hind. “Hey there, Bonz! Great seein’ you again! It’s been a minute! You remember my Mom, Sandy, right? My Dad Art’ll probly be here soon. Come’on!”
“You’re lookin’ great, Jax,” I told him as we entered the fenced-in area.
“Welcome to our neighborhood Dog Park,” he said proudly. “Whaddya think?”
It was TRAY Crispy Biscuits! Sunny with shady areas, also. There’s a big wader bowl set-up, with its own faw-sit, onna liddle framed platform with smooth pebbles, very neat-an-tidy. There’s also a table anna coupla chairs for the humans. An plenty of room to run around an play.
“Woof! Jax! This is grrreat!” I exclaimed.
“I KNOW! Lotsa humans helped. Lemme see: Lowes helped with the fence, an Consignment Gallery donated the table an chairs, an Steve’s Irrigation did the wader bowl.
“Crispy Biscuits! So, you have pooch pals livin’ here?”
“Oh, yes! They’ll be comin’ out a liddle later. Lemme see, there’s Angel, she’s a terrier, an her human, Roger; umm, Hunter an his mom, Tina; an then Rudy, his human’s Linda; an Tessy an her human, Victor. Oh, an come look!”
He trotted over to the front gate, an pointed proudly to the liddle sign on it: ‘Friendly Neighborhood Dogs Welcome.’
“See, lotsa neighborhood pooches leash walk, an we say hi an stuff, but I thought we’d invite ’em to come play in our little dog park! An GUESS WHAT? We’ve already had our first neighborhood pooch visit! OLIVE! She’s a BEE-gull! I’m SO excited!”
“Totally PAW-some Jax! Congrats!! You know,” I continued, “I’d love to hear your story: how you met your Furever Famly, stuff like that.”
“Sure! It’s ackshully pretty cool Kibbles.”
“Ready when you are!”
“So, I was born at a breeder’s in a state called Ken-TUCK-ee. Mom an Dad were livin’ in LOO-ee-ville. Anyway, they were goin’ to this big fancy event called, umm, a GAH-luh (also called a FUN-razer). See, humans get all dressed up an go to a big nice place with foodstuffs an adult BEV-ridges, an it’s all to help Good CAW-ziz. This GAH-luh was for the Susan G. Komen Foundation, to help humans who have a Very Bad duh-ZEEZ.
“Durin’ the GAH-luh there was what’s called an AWK-shun, where humans say how much munny they’ll give (BIDDING) for all sorts of Cool Kibbles items: trips, whine, froot baskets, fancy JOOL-ree an stuff. An the person who’s left when everybody else has quit BIDDING gets whatever it is. Well, one of the items was – ME! I was Super Adorable back then, a liddle fluffmuffin with a big pink bow tie, sittin’ puhlitely on a speshull table.
“Well, Mom took one look at me an buh-came what she calls SMITTEN! Everybody really wanted me cuzza my cute-ness (an that New Puppy Smell, probly). Well, Mom was NOT gonna let anybody else have me.
“I was a $4,000 Impulse Buy, Mom says. The AWK-shun person gently plopped me onto Mom an Dad’s table, an just like that I got my Furever Famly. AN helped a Good Cawz.”
“THAT’S an uh-MAZE-ing an kinda huh-LARRY-us story, Jax. How was your new life at first?”
“Mom an Dad had a pooch already: Tommy, a rescue hound. I Totally loved him even tho he was kinda uh-LOOF. An Odd Duck, Mom says. Anyhow, right away I turned into a Mama’s Boy. Still Am. Whenever Mom goes somewhere without me, I get one of her shoes an put it in my bed for comfort. I don’t chew it or anything, tho. I play Tennis Ball Catch with Dad, an I havva liddle lamm stuffy called Lammy for when I go to the Dog Sitter. I also like CHIGGEN, an BEEF, an hot dogs. (Except the name. They should change the name, doncha think?)”
I nodded vigorously.
“Oh an I’m great at twirlin’. WATCH!”
While his Dad bounced the ball, Jax twirled around an around on his back feet, an didn’t topple over even one time.
“PAW-some!” I exclaimed. “Any human frens?”
“YES! Mom an her frens play something called ma-JONG (which I totally don’t GET). It’s atta place called THE ELKS, an I am the Monday Mascot. Me, Mom, Christina, Karen, Chris an Ellen sit at The Table Nex To The Wall. I can’t figure it out but it’s still Tray Fun! Plus when they do Tile Shuffle, it’s Cookie Time!”
“Do you travel much?”
“YES! I’ve been to Mexico, an some other places, an last year we flew to Colorado for the EEE-clips. I really like FLYin’, speshly that sorta hummin’ sound of the EN-gin. I sit right in front an jus chill.”
I couldda hung out with Jackson the whole afternoon. Headin’ home, I felt glad he’d shared his story, and super proud of him for takin’ the opportunity to help fellow pooches, an their humans, too.
Till next time,
