Special for The Republic | azcentral.com Wed Nov 27, 2013 9:42 AM
From rescue pup to dog star, Baran’s Jolly Boy is the star of the new PetSmart print and Internet ads.
The 6-year-old Bernese mountain dog, known to family and friends as JB, graces PetSmart.com.
He’s pictured sitting in snow, interacting with a young female actor. The snow was manufactured for the July shoot, which took place on a warm day in Flagstaff.
The long-haired breed, which originated in Bern, Switzerland, is well-acclimated to snow, so JB was in his element.
JB was adopted by Ahwatukee residents Bill and Lesley Baran when he was a gangly 8-month-old pup, weighing a mere 105 pounds.
The couple, who helped establish the Arizona Bernese Mountain Dog Rescue, heard that the pup was in need of a home after not working out well with his previous family.
“He was having trouble with their small male boxer, and though we tried to help them correct it, the boxer was just too much pressure on him,” Bill Baran said. “It was decided he wasn’t going to do OK so we brought him home, where we had a Bernese mountain female named Gypsy, and his problem was corrected in about a day.”
Gypsy and JB remained a happy team until Gypsy’s death last year at age 12. She, too, had been a rescued dog.
As with most of the Bernese mountain breed, JB proved to be a fast and enthusiastic learner, and his owners started training him in various competitive events like sheep herding, working dog and draft dog, the latter requiring pulling a draft sled or cart.
This year, JB, an American Kennel Club member, earned his Advanced Novice Draft Dog and Master Draft Dog degrees. He and his owners travel to competitions throughout Arizona, California, Utah and Texas.
But there’s more to JB than the mountain of blue ribbons and accolades, his owners say.
“We do a lot of therapy work with our dog,” Bill Baran said, explaining how JB and his 9-foot cart recently visited a senior-care home, distributing pumpkins and candy from room to room.
“He also delivers Christmas gifts to friends in the neighborhood,” Lesley Baran said.
JB, like others of his breed, is mellow and friendly. He earned his AKC Canine Good Citizen Award when he was just 2, advancing through the ranks to earn others like Novice Draft Dog in 2012, Junior Herding Dog–Sheep, Companion Dog and Working Dog that year.
The large, muscular dog is known for its distinctive tri-color coat of black, white and rust touches around the eyes. At more than 120 pounds, JB is on the large end of the scale for male Bernese mountain dogs, and his owners work to keep him active and watch his diet.
“We do feed him diet dog food, and he eats about four cups of food a day, which really isn’t that much,” Lesley Baran said. “He loves his liver treats. They’re his favorite.”
It was those treats that helped JB manage the long day of shooting at the Coconino County Fairgrounds at Fort Tuthill County Park in Flagstaff.
“It was warm, but he was remarkably calm. He’s not used to being around little kids, and the model was only 3, but he never had a meltdown,” Lesley said.
JB came to be the PetSmart ad star after he was discovered during a sheep-herding competition by Arizona Animal Actor’s Kama Rueschenberg, who owns the company with her mother, Jubie.
Information: ArizonaBerneseMountainDogRescue.com.
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