Jack Is Adopted!
Jack came from a backyard breeder and had never been exposed to life outside of his compound. Jack was afraid of EVERYTHING!! Grass, buses, leashes, you name it and Jack was fearful. Jack spent the first 3 years of his life living outside, eating kibble off the ground and much of his time being in a crate.
Jack, however, was a super gentle boy and we knew he just needed someone who could show him how to live rather than just survive.
Victoria and Kevin and applied to the rescue for a dog that would be a playmate and friend to their GSP/Weim mix, Rufus, after the recent loss of their other GSP to Cancer. They were not particular over sex or age of the dog, and being experienced GSP owners, they were very much aware how to manage the breed.
Realizing what kind and compassionate people they were, we introduced them to Jack……………
“So - I finally had some quiet time on a flight to write a blurb for “a year of Jack.” The problem is… I love to write, and I love this dog. So it turned from a few short paragraphs to a novel. I will try to pare it back for the actual article/post, but I felt that you’d appreciate the piece in its entirety”.
“Here goes -
In July 2024, we were navigating the loss of our first GSP, Floyd, to osteosarcoma, just 3 months post-diagnosis and 1 month post-leg amputation. His calmer, gentler counterpart, Rufus, carried us through every stage of grief.
My husband, Kevin, and I agreed after Floyd passed that we wouldn’t get another dog for awhile - maybe several years after having a few human babies of our own. Rufus was leaning into being an only child, and we were adjusting to a home with a little less chaos. The peace was necessary as our hearts began to heal, but in January 2025, I found myself checking the GSP Rescue page…. Obsessively. I’d refresh 5x a day to see if any new dogs were looking for a home, and every time I’d take the photos to Kevin and cry, “but look at him!!!! He needs a home!!!”
We went back and forth for a few weeks and finally he gave me the OK to reach out to the rescue to see if we could meet a few dogs - JUST to meet. Mind you, by this point, I’d already had my first conversation with Mariann and had 3 dogs picked out and set a date for us to come out. God bless my poor husband.
Mariann told me about one very special boy - Jack. I think I knew in my heart the second she described him to me that he was the one. I told all my girlfriends about him after that first phone call, and it was quite literally all I could talk about much less think about. Kevin warned me not to set my heart set on him too early. He knows my impulsiveness better than anyone (again - bless him).
When we showed up at the rescue, Greg educated us on the realities of adoption - the unknowns, the challenges, all of it. He told us more about Jack and the type of commitment we would be making if we took him home. It would not be a cake walk training a 3 year old dog to walk on a leash, potty outside, and follow house rules. We would have to be slow, careful, and attentive to engaging with Rufus, other dogs, other people. But Greg also explained whoever was willing to put in the work with Jack would get back what they put in tenfold; he was certain Jack had such a capacity for love and loyalty.
1 week later, we were back at the rescue to adopt Jack. On the car ride home, the reality of our decision started to set in a little bit more. Jack was so nervous and shy, and I just couldn’t read him. When we did get home, Rufus was immediately skeptical. I thought - oh no, we’ve made a huge mistake and Rufus is going to hate his life with a new little brother!
We planned to keep them in separate rooms for a few days to give them time to warm up. Well… it took about 30 minutes before both dogs were on either side of the makeshift room divider, tails wagging, begging to romp around. Their special little bond was already starting to develop.
I spent the first few nights sleeping in our guest room with Jack in the crate. He was a perfect angel - sleeping through the night without a peep! On the 4th night though, he let out the teeniest little cries, and my heart couldn’t take it. I unlocked his crate and awaited his next move. He sat for a minute, then gently nudged the door open, stood up, and slowly crept out in the darkness. He stood completely still for what felt like forever (this is one of his “Jack-isms” we’ve discovered - he seriously falls asleep standing up) and finally made his way over to the bed and rest his sweet little head next to me. C’mon, how could I not invite him to cuddle? I patted the bed and encouraged him to jump up and he did. He slept like a tiny donut right next time me all night. Boy was I in love with this pup already!
It wasn’t long before Jack was crawling up into our bed with us every night. 2 humans + 2 large dogs + 1 queen bed = a whole lotta back pain, but worth every snuggle.
Seeing Jack experience life for the first time was incredible. Everything was new to him - our home, our yard, the neighborhood - and he explored every inch of it with so much curiosity and excitement. He would jump out of his skin when an ambulance went by, tip toe when he saw another dog across the street, rub himself in the bushes we passed in the neighborhood… Every little movement and reaction brought smiles to our faces.
In the early days, he was starting to become a pretty good counter surfer and dumpster diver. We eventually got child locks for the trash so that habit sort of died. His counter surfing days is another story…
We were preparing for a group camping trip and I was responsible for bringing breakfast burritos. It was 6am, our bedroom door was closed with the dogs fast asleep, and I was making 6 lbs of potatoes obrien for the burritos. I was letting the potatoes cool on the counter when I stepped away for a quick work call in my office. Imagine my shock, re-entering the kitchen 10 minutes later to see the potatoes gone, baking trays on the ground, and Jack still choking down the final bites of his plunder. I was equal parts infuriated (making 6 lbs of potatoes AGAIN) and impressed (he consumed 15% of his body weight in potatoes in less than 1 minute). We monitored him for a bit before packing the car but he seemed good to go by the time we were leaving. That was until we hit the base of the San Bernardino Mountains and potatoes Obrien (in reverse) were covering our backseat. We cleaned everything up and thought surely there couldn’t be more potatoes in that little belly. Nope! He continued to get sick the whole way up the mountain to our campsite in Big Bear. Of course by the time we got there, he had completely forgotten about his upset tummy and was ready to explore his forest home for the weekend with his brother and other doggy friends. But never again did Jack counter surf after the Great Potato Fiasco of ‘25.
Over the past year with Jack, we’ve come to learn and love so much about this quirky little guy. He is big on his routines and he will let you know if you are straying from it. There’s no sleeping in at the Love household anymore - Jack is up at 5am ready for potty & breakfast. Jack knows that when Mom puts her shoes on, there’s a 50% chance he’s going with her so if he sits really nice, maybe just maybe, I’ll put his leash on. Jack knows that when Dad gets home, it’s park time and he will NOT let Kevin skip a day.
Jack eats like a feral animal - he continues eating through choking down his food. It can be quite concerning so we have to give him a slow feeder and supervise his meals! And although we try not to give him human food, he certainly follows Rufus’s lead in sitting pretty right next to Mom at dinner time. He also loves to accompany me in the kitchen while I cook. He has his little corner where he sits very properly and politely, waiting for any scraps that may fall.
We learned at last year’s Splish Splash event that he is utterly obsessed with fountains and hoses. He must’ve ingested 5 gallons of water at the event. We had to pull over, no joke, 5 times for a full 5-minute pee each time on our hour long drive home.
Jack is a bird dog through and through. With our other GSP’s, we never trained them as hunting dogs. Although they’re fascinated by critters and love to chase, they have no idea how to be graceful pointers. Jack, on the other hand, will sit completely still for 10+ minutes, inching ever so slowly toward a bird on the sand or a lizard on the fence, until eventually Rufus catches on and lunges and the critter runs away. Maybe this is a case study in nature versus nurture…
He is the world’s biggest snuggle bug and DEMANDS to be under the blanket with you at all times. He will nudge and pry until you let him in. Even if you are laying down without a blanket, he still nudges as if you have one. Years ago, a friend of mine was watching Floyd and told me how his snuggling felt like he wanted to burrow into her skin (in the best way). I think when Floyd sent us Jack, he knew his momma needed a pup who would comfort and cuddle her the same exact way. And does he ever!
It’s hard to recall the challenges we faced acclimating Jack to his new home and welcoming him into our life. It certainly was not easy and it took patience and determination and love. The sentiment about “the missing piece that completed us” seems so overused and perhaps inauthentic, but the reality is this: He helped heal the raw edges of our hearts where the Floyd chamber used to be - the part we lost when he passed. But Jack didn’t “fill” that chamber. He grew a new one - a Jack chamber, holding a totally unique and beautiful kind of love, loyalty, and companionship.
I can’t believe it’s only been a year, yet at the same time I can’t believe it’s already been a year. Each day of the Jack and Rufus chronicles promises another laugh, another adventure, a new memory to put into our memory doggy bank. There are never enough memories in our doggy banks when it’s time to “cash out,” but boy are we lucky that these dogs give absolutely every ounce of their energy, love, and soul to us in the time we have with them.
We can’t wait to continue collecting memories in the Jack bank for years to come. We are forever indebted and grateful to CA GSP Rescue, who brought Jack into our lives and supported us every step of the way. Thank you Mariann, Greg, and the entire CA GSP Rescue team who volunteer their time and energy tirelessly and sometimes thanklessly to saving lives and making families whole. You are making a difference. We hit the Jack-Pot”!
