About Danny
Education:
BA Criminal Justice minor in Accounting from USM Masters in Criminal Justice with minor in Public Administration Masters in Public Affairs with concentrations in Law, Economics, Public Policy, and Statistics.
Danny Easterling
I am a cancer survivor. I was diagnosed with the disease on March 19, 1991 and given a 50-50 chance to live or die. It changed my life for the worse and the better. To read more about this read this story.
Check Out How to Train Staffordshire Bull Terriers
Needless to say this experience changed me radically. I had never fulfilled my intellectual potential and after I healed up from the cancer I went after education fast and furious. Before it was over I had completed three degrees. However, disappointment soon set in. I was sold the idea that get that degree and all will be well in the world. Reality crashed in and brought the cruel light of day to bear on this. Jobs were not plentiful, opportunities did not jump up and grab me. I am still profoundly disappointed in this. My American Dream was a bust.
“Searching…”
Therefore, I started searching for a way to make my dream of a better life happen. After searching far and wide, I realized the internet offered a way out. After several months research and planning my partner Monty and I started this golfing website. Doing this, I can put my education and hobby interests together and hopefully make a buck or two. I would much rather sit and work on a business for me than take another job that promises the sky and delivers nothing. My other interests include reading, rebuilding antique cars, building horn speakers, and training dogs.
Right now dogs are my major focus. I have five and enjoy them more each day. The dogs I prefer are Staffordshire Bull Terriers (the nanny dog), Pit Bull Terriers, and Pit Bull Terrier Mixes. Your first impression might be that I fight my dogs. Not so!!! To me that the most repugnant use of these loving and loyal dogs.
Why would I prefer the most politically incorrect breeds out there? First, people have a profound misconception of these dogs. Second, they are very healthy and easily trainable. They are lots of fun (pit bulls are also known as the clown of dogs). Last, and not least they are extremely loyal and loving. If raised from a puppy correctly, they can be among the best dogs one could own. If you understand the breed, getting an older dog can be greatly rewarding too. However, they are not the breed for everyone.
After going through the cancer, I lived about thirteen years not owning a dog. I finally moved to a home where I could have a dog and decided to do so.
I found a women who breeds pits through a person I knew and decided to go have a look at the puppies that were available. There were six puppies and all were brown with some variation of white markings. I watched the dogs for about half an hour before making a decision about which one to pick. What I was looking for was socialableness, intelligence, friskyness, and that elusive combination of confidence, strength, and assertiveness that staffordshires and pits possess.
“Watching the Pups…”
As I watched the pups, one of them caught my eye more and more. In size, she was about the middle of the pack. However, she was the one all the other pups followed and she seemed to be boss without trying. She held her head high and was not afraid to get in a tumble with her much larger brother and put him in his place…lol
I then went into the yard where they were playing to see which one came to me first and it was this little brown and while frisky one. She reared on her back legs and begged to be picked up. Then she just melted into my arms. I picked her and called her Matilda. On the way home, she snuggled into my neck and peacefully slept all the way back.
When I got home, I put food down, she got her nose in the bowl and inhaled it. She explored a bit, found her bed, and sacked out. From then on she was lady and mistress of the manor. Matilda learned how to go outside in just a few days with mininal mess. Training her to command was a joy because she so readily responded and took so few repeats to learn any one command. I swear she understood what I wanted when I wanted it.
When I came home from work was her favorite time. I would drive into the driveway and she was on the top of the couch looking through the window as I pulled up to the house, tail wagging into a blur. I would open the front door, sit down on the porch with my feet on the steps and the ritual of greeting would begin. She would get behind me, rear up, put her paws on my shoulders and then see if she could lick my ears off everyday. It was It was messy, but became something I looked forward too everytime I came home.
When she was old enough, I had her spayed. She came home groggy and out of it. I put her on my bed and after she healed up, she discovered a whole new game. I had been kind while she was healing up and helped her up and down while she was recovering. Then she thought it was my job to help her up and down off the bed from then on. She just refused to get down, and then I would relent and put her down. Matilda had a great time, it just pissed me off. However, I lost Matilda. She got out her yard and was run over in the street at age 11 months. I felt like my heart had been torn out when I found her outside the house. She was truly one in a million and I still miss her.
 |
The Ultimate House Training Guide IS the ultimate resource for ensuring your house training experience is positive and problem-free, from day one. This fully-illustrated, 120-page guide gathers together knowledge and advice from veterinarians and professional dog trainers, as well as years of case studies from clients, bringing you an essential resource for new dog owners. |
After a while though, I decided that I needed another dog. It was sad losing Matilda but she had brought so much happiness, that I thought if I could get just a little of that back, it would be worth the chance of having another dog. With that idea, I started hunting. I looked on petfinder and found a pit bull rescue by boy scouts out of Houston Texas.
I dropped them an email and had them send me some pictures of dogs they had available for adoption. The sent many and I finally liked one they called “Casey.” Casey was brindle and just about the right size. They said she was 29lbs and loved being with people. What I found out was that she had been adopted as a puppy and then returned after a couple of months. She was 1 year old and spent most of her life in a wire cage spelled only by a weekly outing that a kind partner of the adoption network gave her.
“Grinning…”
What got me was the picture they sent of her sitting, grinning, and obviously enjoying the attention she was getting. Its the one I posted below. I drove down to Houston on adoption day and looked up the vet office where they would have the adoption event. They brought her in to me on a leash and she immediately seemed to take to me.
One of the ways I check out a dog is that I hold a treat in my hand and observe how they go after it. If they bite my hand, I see that as bad sign. “Casey” just nibbled at my hand then started to lick it trying to get to the treat. I sat down on the floor as I let her have the treat and she just crawled up in my lap and made herself at home. On the way home, she spent most of the trip curled up in my lap asleep. I think she knew she had found a home. I have had her nearly three years now and more fun with her all the time. I renamed “Casey” to “Mattie” in honor of Matilida.
Danny's Dog Mattie after a run and a hamburger "click on photo for a larger image"
Lilly came home next. I had decided to get a male companion for Mattie and had been looking on petfinder again. Wylie, Tx had a male pit bull up for adoption that was only about 25lbs. I made the trip up to Wylie on a weekend looking to adopt that male dog, but when I arrived he had been adopted earlier that day. I was quite disappointed. The lady at the pound said she had another small pit that was looking for a home.
She brought out this little girl that was about28lbs. She was black with some white on her. She seemed a bit skid-dish, but what do you expect from a dog that had just been scooped up and sent to the pound? She took treats and passed the hand test with no problem. I took her home and over the first week I had her Mattie and she became fast friends.
I have a favorite aunt that passed who was named Lillian and I named Lilly in her honor. Lilly did turn out to have some problems. I guessed that she was about 2 years old it was obvious she had at least one litter of puppies. She had been abused and would cringe when I reached down to pet her. She would come when called, but slink on her belly while doing so. I have had her about 2 1/2 years now and am proud of the changes that I have been able to encourage in Lilly. She is still somewhat of a scared little dog–loud noises and thunderstorms don’t do her nerves any good. But, now she delights in getting petted and loves to sit in my chair with me and take naps. When I first got her, she was so afraid of anyone touching her, she would cringe before you petted her. Now she puts her head under your hand and bumps her head up and down to get her affection.
“Talk To Me, Baby….”
She also has a trait that makes me believe she is a staffordshire bull terrier from an English line. She has this odd habit of talking to you. Its not a bark or a growl. She purses her lips and makes a rrrrrr sound and acts like she is tellling you something of great significance. And she will keep on telling you till you acknowledge her performance. She loves to play chase and clowns endlessly when you pay her the least attention. She also does these jumping spins that are a testament to her athleticism. She will bark, jump up and spin all the way around and land where she started.
Now I felt as if I was a professional dog person. I had two pit bulls living under the same roof and they were housebroke. Despite dour warnings of impending combat, they were the best of friends. I have many pictures of them crashed on each other taking a nap.
Danny's Dog Lilly contemplating a nap "click on image to see larger photo"
Jezebel is my wonder dog. Jezebel came next. It was one of those situations that just tugs at your heart. I was headed home one afternoon with a friend and had just passed under a red light and was accelerating. I noticed this little black puppy in the road ahead that nearly got run over a couple of times before I made it there. I pulled over, jumped out, and stopped traffic.
I scooped the little puppy up and realized it was in bad shape. It had a distended belly from no food and was covered head to toe in fleas. I handed her to my friend and he held her up the rest of the way home. As soon as I got her home, i put her in the sink and gave her a bath. She objected strenuously, but had a bath anyway! So many fleas came off her that the bottom of the sink was black and I spent several minutes crushing them and washing them down the drain.
I dried her off, put her down, and she made a bee-line for the food bowl that always stays full and has not taken her nose out much since then. She is about 2 years old now and is happy and loves playing with her buddies Mattie and Lilly. I think she is a mix of lab and maybe boxer. She weighs in at 65lbs and loves to sit in my lap and take naps too. So many dogs, so little time for good naps!
Danny's Dog Jezebel after spending afternoon digging in the dirt "click photo for a larger image"
Now, here i was with three female dogs and thought it was time to balance all that estrogen with some testosterone. I went on a search for a male dog. At this time I was on a staffordshire bull terrier rescue email list. A breeder in Ashville North Carolina was advertising a male stray that had been picked up and was trying to place.
The dog looked a little rough around the edges, but after talking to the breeder I decided to have him flown into Houston. The dog’s name was “Mr. Bones.” He had been known to hang around a BBQ joint and beg food and bones from the patrons. He weighed in at 45lbs and had the classic, big head, short muzzle, and massive muscles of a pit. The breeder said he was he was calm and easy to take on walks.
I thought he must have sent me the wrong dog to begin with. I picked his flight cage up on the dock at Houston. Two guys brought him on wheeled cart and he was rocking the cage, growling, snarling, and barking wanting out in a bad way. They pushed the cage off the cart, told me they would not help any further, ran off, and locked the door behind them.
Here I was, Mr. Bones was agitated, the shipper guys had seemed to piss him off further, and there I sat: him in the cage snarling, growling and barking; me sitting outside of it, wondering what I had got myself into. I noticed the two guys were watching through the little glass window in the door and pointing, so I had to muster up my courage and open the cage. Mr. Bones had a heavy collar on him, so when I opened the door, I reached in and got a grip on his collar. Amazingly, this seemed to calm him down and he came out of the cage with no problem and I hooked the leash on him.
“Losing an Arm????”
I don’t think the two guys watching could believe I had him out of the cage without losing an arm. I just decided that if he bit me, I was going to bite back in no uncertain terms. I guess he took the hint that day and neither of us came out with any battle scars. I walked him around the parking lot, got to know him a little better and decided to head home. He was a challenge coming home. I broke the travel cage down and put it in the trunk.
I put Mr. Bones in the back seat of the car and took off home. It did not take him very long to figure that he was a front seat type of guy and he crawled over into the front seat between my girlfriend and I. He took a shine to us both and proceeded to lick us during the whole two and a half hour trip home from Houston. He would crawl up on us, put his paws on our shoulders and start licking.
I am a big guy but this 45lbs dog had worn me down to a nub by the time we made it home. My hair was pointing in ways I did not think possible, my shirt was wet down to my underwear and boy i was glad to get home and get out of the car and away from him and that long, wet tongue. I didn’t like the name Mr. Bones so I changed it to Jake. He just looks like a Jake to me.
Danny's Dog Jake with that "What you talkin' bout Willis look" "click on photo for larger image
Last but least came Roxy, who is a dear. She was a puppy when I got her and has been a delight to own and train. When I got her she was only six weeks old. The breeder told me she is 7/8 pit bull and 1/8 boxer. She was very healthy and very energetic. I fed her a special puppy food and several other nutrients. She grew fast, strong, and smart. Now she weighs about 42lbs and is all muscle.
She has the big head of the pit, but is a clown and loves to play. All my dogs are housebroke and live inside with me. When it is treat time, they line up, wait their turn, and take the treat without bugging any of the other dogs. Its amazing to watch over 300lbs of pit bulls act sweet and shake hands for their daily treat.
Danny's Dog Roxy as a puppy "click on image for larger photo"
Danny's Dog Roxy Grown Up
“Naps, Naps, Naps….”
I have a big recliner, called a chair and a half. All of my dogs get up in the chair with me and take a nap. I am a big guy but I figure with all the dogs the chair has to hold up at least 500lbs when we take a nap together. Needless to say, the chair has had several repairs at this point. Just taking the chair from home to store to be repaired has been a pain.
Danny Taking Dog Nap
"Do You Know Your 10 Commandments of Golf Etiquette? You'll Look Like A Pro With These Hot Golf Tips!"
Comments on this entry are closed.