JD

JD is our beloved Shepard mix that we "inherited" from our old neigbhors who were neglecting him. He's a great dog with just a few flaws-

1. He likes roaming free. A habit he picked up from living with the neigbhors who left him out all the time. Can we blame him? No! Who doesn't like roaming free? The thing is that he has taken to breaking the fence to get out and apparently pee in another neigbhor's garden and wander the center line on the main road.

2. He occasionally tries to "herd" people. He does this by nipping at your ankles if you're moving in a direction other than the one he's determined is the correct one.

3. He's almost constantly underfoot or in the way. On the leash he circles you so you get tangled or trip. In the house if you step over him when he's laying on the floor in your path you can be certain that 9 times out of 10, he'll jump to his feet mid step and send you flying!

4. He's got a THICK coat of fur that constantly sheds! This is the reason for this post. I have 4 dogs living in a small house and keeping up with the shedding is difficult. I have recently aquired a vaccum cleaner that I LOVE but brushing is needed in order for me to maintain some sort of sanity.

I prefer to brush JD (and our other dogs) on our deck because I can duck back in the house to check on the kiddos when needed. Of course when I'm done it looks like I've sacrificed several small animals. Matt hates having fur on the deck (understandable) and complains everytime I do it. So last week I told Matt I'd brush him in the yard next time. His response was something like "then they'll be a mess in YARD". UGH! I am TRYING to keep the hair out of the house and couldn't care less about hair in the yard... Now how do I explain this to hubby? :)