It's funny — you go off on vacation and expect things will be different when you get back, but fundamentally the same. But sometimes they aren't.
Jake was a regular fixture over at our house, when we were actively gaming. Doyce says it was December 2000 when he joined the family; Kay would have been 6-7 months old at that point, and Jake was never anything more than kind and caring toward her, even when he loomed over her like an elephant would above us grups.
The last time I saw him was a week or so before we headed off to Africa. They were out of town at SDCC, Jackie was watching the dogs, but needed someone to come by at lunchtime to check their water. Both dogs were happy to see me, but Jake in particular, quiet and tired and content and tail-thumping. I gave him a good pet, made sure he got some water without having to get up for it, bade him and Dizzy farewell.
It's sad — though not unexpected — to see him go. That Doyce and family treated him with such love and caring over the extraordinary many years is a tribute to them. My heart goes out to them in their loss.
But it was also a tribute to Jake, who you just always had to love, table leg-snapping and all.
Good dog.
Jake – doyce testerman
I’m going to tell you about a life. Somewhere in the middle of July, 2000, a puppy was born. I didn’t know about him at the time. I wasn’t even thinking about puppies. I had no plans to get a puppy. That’s just as well as, due to a few complications, this particular puppy – who luckily came into …