Goodbye Jack

Jack passed away today. He had been going downhill for a while now, and was totally blind and crippled. I know he's been in a lot of pain for a long time. I think he broke his leg on Thursday night while going down the wet step out of the barn. He got himself back in the house okay, but couldn't move since. I think that pushed him over the edge. I know he had been having strokes for some time. We had to carry him up the stairs every night at the last place we lived. Jack hated to be carried, but he would bark at the bottom of the stairs until we came to get him, then try to bite us while we ran him up the stairs as fast as we could. He hated to sleep alone. He was very loyal to his pack and never, ever ran away. We'll miss Jack. He was given to us by Eric and Annie after Hannah was born. They had adopted him from the Louisville, Ky, animal shelter to celebrate their engagement. Jack was very feisty and stubborn and had some bad habits. He loved to jump up and pull all the magnets and papers off the refrigerator door. Eric had him very well trained otherwise. He was not allowed to beg at the table. I remember eating dinner in the kitchen in Louisville, with Jack sitting just outside the door of the room. He had gotten a piece of kibble out of his dish and dropped it in front of him on the floor, as if he was wanting to share his dinner with us. Jack's favorite pastime was waiting for the mailman to come up to the door and put the mail in the box. He would shoot through the doggie door and chase the mailman out of the yard. Jack loved food more than anything in these last years and I have been feeding him all his favorite things the last couple of days. I know he went out with a full belly. It's been a tough year, losing so many of my dog children. First Jasper, then Bodie, then Jack. The others are younger, thankfully, and I hope to have them a while. They just don't live long enough...or maybe we live too long.