Goodbye Jack

The first post for 2013 has to be about Jack. Jack was the sweetest dog that ever lived. Everyone who met him said so. He was a rescue dog, meaning that before we got him in 2002 he was in a home that wasn’t right for him.

One afternoon I went to a place in the country just to “take a look.” An hour later he was strapped into the back seat of my car, facing forward like a giant chess piece, upright and dignified. He never once whined or looked back. He was going to be a surprise for my daughter, who was two at the time, but I didn’t want to spill the beans until my wife got home. I had hidden the dog in the mudroom at the back of the house and distracted my daughter with Popsicles on the front porch. The whole time, I was worried that the dog would bark! Everything worked out!

Jack was now a member of our clan, but he was very skittish. For the first few weeks he hid under the kitchen table when we came home. He hated wooden spoons, umbrellas and the UPS driver. Gradually, he mellowed out of these fears and became a very loving companion that melted against my leg wherever I went in the house. He was a fixture in my studio, where he liked to sleep (and snore).

Jack like to run, like the wind. One January Sunday morning, I chased him through the snowy neighborhood in my pajamas. He liked to jump, like the time he cleared our sofa like a gazelle when something spooked him. Jack didn’t play fetch. If you threw a ball he’d look at you with no comprehension of his expected role in this crazy human madness. He did go a little crazy for Milkbones through, lying on the ground with the Milkbone between his paws growling at it, slapping the floor with his paws. Jack was the best dog we would have had for our daughter’s early years. Even as a two year old, she could crawl all over him. He tolerated this with infinite patience.

This fall, it became pretty clear that Jack no longer had the energy that he used to have; his health was failing badly. So, a few days before Christmas we said goodbye.

We love you Jacky!

R.