22 March 2012

I (heart) Dogs Week 5!

Welcome in for Week 5 of the I <3 Dogs blogfest, hosted by the awesome blog, Small Town Rescue.

In case you want to join the fun, here are the weekly themes:

Week 1 (2/20-2/26) – Favorite animal organization/rescue

Week 2 (2/27-3/4) – Favorite pet story (Tell us about your favorite pet! Doesn’t have to be a dog).

Week 3 (3/5-3/11) – Favorite animal-related book, movie, song, etc.

Week 4 (3/12-3/18) – What I know about dog rescues organizations?

Week 5 (3/19-3/25) – The gorgeous, the active, and the unique. Tell us your favorite dog breed.

Week 6 (3/26-4/1) – Favorite Dog/Pet Stores in your area.

Week 7 (4/2-4/8) – Favorite dog parks and dog-friendly attractions in your area.

Week 8 (4/9-4/15) – If I had a dream… What would you do for rescue dogs if you could?

I love dogs of all kinds, all breeds, all shapes and sizes and colors. I am the proud mother of two mutts who own my heart. But since "mutt" isn't a breed (that I know of), I have to go with my old standby to answer today's question.

My first dog (and by "my" I mean, the one who chose me) was a black lab we named Jack. He mutinied against my neighbors when he saw we had a girl dog, and I loved him with everything I had. Jack was my best friend. I told him all my secrets, and he'd stare at me with nothing but love in his honey-colored eyes. 

I have a lot of stories about Jack. We had him for yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeears. There was the time when he and Mollie (above-mentioned girl dog) had a litter of puppies and he consistently ran to the top of the hill where they couldn't get to him. There's the many excursions he and Mollie took with my sis and me. There's the time I watched him and Mollie tag team a possum (it was totally bad ass, too--she ran it under a building and when it came out the other side, he grabbed it and killed it). 

However, my favorite Jack story is this:

We often joked about how Jack had claimed me. Mostly it was because he monopolized my time, which I had no issue with. He always sought me out, and while he didn't intentionally ignore anyone since he was a belly rub addict, it was obvious I was his pick.

One day, my sister and I took Jack and Mollie for a walk out the road and back. It was a nice, warm summer day. The dogs were getting a little heated, so we took a break. I sat on a log at the fork in the road, and Jack took his usual spot beside me. In the midst of a conversation with Sis, she burst out laughing and I couldn't figure out what was so funny. Then I looked at my left side. Jack had PEED on me. 

I don't mean that he'd meant to pee on something else and hit me a little. He straight up PEED ON ME. 

I couldn't be mad. After all, we joked about how he'd claimed me. I guess he just wanted to make it official.

He's the reason I love Labradors. If ever there was an advocate for a breed, it was him, and I'm grateful that Jasper got some of great-great-great-great-great grampa Jack's sweet attributes, including an absolute love of belly rubs. 

Don't forget to check out the other entries. Stop by the Small Town Rescue blog for a chance to win some great prizes!

1 comment:

Phoenix Sullivan said...

Awww, Jack. He sounds like every girl's best friend. We all need a Jack!

I'm sure he was marking you. It's different for dogs. My male dobie would have been mortified if anyone called his marking in the house peeing. He was house-trained, dammit, and proud of it!

Now please give Jasper a belly rub from me in memory of Jack.