Jack: the dog, the underbite, the legend

I love all dogs I meet, but would you be surprised to know that at one point in time, I was AFRAID of DOGS? Well, it’s all true. When I was a little baby, I loved them. I went through a phase where I didn’t like dogs. I had a couple of situations with dogs that scared me when I was little, and I became afraid of them.  My older sister was also afraid, and we fueled that fear in each other.  I WANTED to like them, but I was scared.  When my sister died in 2007, I became more eager to have a dog because I wanted the companionship.  However, I was scared.

In Spring 2008 (when I was seven), my cousins who lived overseas and were moving, needed someone to watch their dog.  He was a 3-year-old rat terrier/Jack Russell mix named Jack who belonged to my cousin, Rachel. Jack was born with an underbite, which made the runt of his litter. He’s the SWEETEST dog, despite the underbite.  From what we were told, Jack and Rachel were inseparable.

The plan was that we would watch Jack for two days and then take Jack to my aunt’s sister’s house where they would keep him for six weeks.  My parents were worried about these two days, since I was still afraid of dogs, but this was the only option that would work for Jack and all of the family.  

The plan was that my dad would pick Jack up at the airport in the evening and bring Jack to our house. I would be in my mom’s bed with her so that she could protect me if I got scared, and then I could gradually get used to having Jack around.  My parents were nervous about what was going to happen and I was even MORE nervous. My dad and Jack got to the house and Dad let Jack loose.  We imagined Jack timidly looking around the house and eventually coming to the bed where he would wait calmly for me to touch him.  Instead, Jack ran into the house as fast as he could, found us in the bed immediately, jumped up there and started licking my face!  

My parents were horrified thinking I would go nuts, but I just started laughing.  Then, I was hugging him and he was kissing me all over! From that night, Jack slept with me in the bed.  Mom quickly picked up her phone, called her parents, and said “Jack is sleeping on the bed with Claudia, and she is loving it”. I had overcome that fear and absolutely loved him. My love for him grew during the next couple of days. It was clear that the past was in the past!  

By this time, Jack was supposed to go stay with my Aunt’s sister’s family.  So, my mom called my Aunt and asked if her sister’s family wanted to keep Jack or if they were just doing them a favor.  My aunt said it was a favor, so Mom called and got it all settled. Jack would stay with us for the next six weeks.  

I absolutely loved having Jack for those six weeks.  He is such a happy dog and he really loved me.  We all started dreading the day when Jack would leave and go back to his family. So, we started making preparations to get a dog of our own. Our wants for the possible new family member, consisted of one that was easy to live with, didn’t make much noise, didn’t shed, and was good with kids.  I was also still a little afraid of large dogs, so we wanted something small.  A couple of our friends had Shih-tzus, and we thought that might work.  That was when she found the Yappity-Yap Kennels’ website and found some adorable Shih-tzu puppies in White, Georgia. They had a litter that was born that January. Little did we know, that in that litter, there was a life-changer.

Enter the CUTEST Shih-Tzu puppy ever! On April 5^th, my mom and I went to Yappity-Yap kennels which was about an hour and a half from where we lived. They had 2 Shih-Tzu puppies ready for homes. They brought out a white, sable, and black female and a solid darker male. The personalities were different in the two: the brother was very barky and feisty, and the little girl just looked at us and climbed into my mom’s lap.   

At that point, my mom determined that she was the ONE! Not only that, but we also decided to name her Rosie! At that point, a 2-month old-Rosie was officially ours. They had a large parrot that I was afraid of, so I waited outside while mom finished up the paperwork. After the paperwork, it was time to take Rosie to her new home. I held her the whole way and was truly smitten with her. I couldn’t wait for dad to meet her. 

She was a ball of adorableness, with fur. We stopped at Target on our way home from getting Rosie to buy some supplies.  What did my mom and I do with our new Rosie? Here’s a hint, we took her in with us. We found everything we needed. A lot of people asked us if our little one was real. Our answer: yes she was real. Luckily, she was very quiet through the whole experience.  Now I finally had the company of my own dog – all because of Jack!

Now-a days, Rosie and Jack are still going strong. Rosie turned 11 this January, and loves her naps and for us to bow to her will. She also claims any pillow and feels that she has self-rights to laps. She is TERRFIED of any kind of construction, even painting and the tape measure.  She still doesn’t bark or shed, and she’s still good with kids.

Jack is still as sweet as he was when he first got in bed with me. Even at 14, (at the time of this writing), he loves to snuggle and loves laps – when Rosie doesn’t get them first. Jack also loves my little sis, and there’s NO GETTING him out of her bed when we visit my grandparents.  

Coming up on CNA: Its time to get on the WILD side!