Conversation with John

On Friday evening, John called me to ask if Jamie had talked to me about adding more breeds. I said yes and I was looking at several breeds for large dogs for mobility and one possibility for PTSD. John said great and I asked if he and his son-in-law were set on a breed. John said no, but they had their preferences.

I asked if he could let me know so that I could have the data for the meeting on June 3. John asked if I would be present and I answered yes. John said that is the reason he made sure I had your telephone number and I continued that Jamie made sure I had your information. Now John was laughing and said that Jamie wanted to be sure we talked before the meeting. I agreed and asked if Jamie had said anything about his plans for the future. John said yes and said he would be a dog breeder and was adding at least two trainers and has agreed to work with my son-in-law, Bert and myself to teach us how to train dogs if we wanted that. John continued that Bert wants to do this.

I asked John what he and Bert had preferences for dog breeds. John said they would be continuing with the Belgian Malinois and possibly adding the Belgian Sheepdog, Welsh Springer Spaniel, or the Airedale Terrier. I suggested that John talk to Jamie to make sure he didn't already have a source for the Welsh Springer Spaniel. John said he would and thanked me for making him aware of this.

I continued asking if they had any interest in the large breed dogs. John asked which breeds or was I talking about the big breeds. I said I will cover the breeds for you - Saint Bernards, Newfoundlands, Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs, Great Pyrenees, and Mastiffs. John said he was not aware of those dogs after the Saint Bernards. He asked which source I was using. I said I will email you three websites and will list them top to bottom in order of importance. He said Jamie even gave you this and I said yes. I added that Jamie uses a computer for records he needs and for emails and then very little else.

After I had sent John an email and he had pulled up the first website and said that the ads were done, I had him click on the “G' and look for the dog breeds. John said wait while he found the information he was looking for and then he would know if they were interested. After John found the information he was looking for, he responded that he doubted they would be interested in the large breeds, but the would talk to Bert before he finalized a no. I said this is fair.

I asked John if he was aware of the dog breeds Jamie was training. John said that he and Jamie had talked about them, but he knew the Shepherds, Collies, and Retrievers. I said he forgot the Boxers, and Jamie is planning on more dogs and breeding some of his own dogs. John said they had discussed this and that was why they wanted to contribute some of the dog breeds.

I said the meeting in June will be important for everyone. Jamie is looking for a veterinary that can work with him and this will have some effect on the timetable. He is set up with the American Kennel Club and is working on learning more about some dog breeds. Right now, he is having some problems in meeting the needs of customers. He now knows the organizations for checking the health problems of most dog breeds and this is helping him as he looks for the dog breeds he wants to raise and train for sale.

We told each other we would call when we had questions. I sent John several emails about different dogs. Jamie called Saturday evening and thanked me for alerting John on the Welsh Springer Spaniel as he was very satisfied with the current dog breeder and would not change. Jamie said he told John that he was looking for different suppliers for the Standard Schnauzers, the Golden Retrievers, and possibly the Collies.

Jamie said he had not had many calls for Collies until this week when he had calls for four for PTSD patients. Then he surprised me when he said he had five calls for German Shepherds for K9 duty, one in Iowa, two in Wisconsin, and two for Missouri. Then Jamie added three more for PTSD patients that were from the military. Two of these were replacements for dogs to be retired.

I congratulated Jamie for this and said It is good to see your business growing. Jamie said it is good and put more urgency on hiring trainers. Jamie thanked me again and said to call if I had more questions.