Jackster

Updated 9/28/10

Updated 7/19/10

Jake is a handsome, bright-eyed, middle-size red boy. He has lovely color “accents” on his face and around his eyes that make him look so expressive: Is he considering something serious? Maybe contemplating some fun outside? Its quite clear when he’s happy, as he has a great smile and his eyes light up.

He was a little shy and uncertain the first few days, but then warmed up and made himself at home. Now and then he needs a little encouragement to come through a door, or needs to be reassured with some scratching and kind words.  He loves being petted and brushed and told what a handsome boy he is. And he is getting more handsome by the day! When he came to GRR he had skin issues from severe flea allergies; the problem was so bad that there were bare spots where he had chewed and scratched through his coat.  A couple of weeks of meds have stopped the itching, and his coat is returning.

Jake is good with my three other dogs: he respects my 15-year-old  Golden, plays with my 8-year-old and is polite and deferential with my sometimes snooty flat coat retriever. He generally ignores my cat Scooter, though he sometimes he tries to get him to play—but he backs off promptly when Scooter says “no thanks.”

When I come home, Jake does his “happy dance,” jumping up and almost balancing on his back legs. He may bark and talk, too, but if he barks too much, simply turning your back and facing away from him will make him stop. If you are on the other side of a door, he may bark once or twice to let you know you forgot him, but then he stops. He does have a very authoritative bark that makes him sound bigger than he is.

Jakester is housebroken and trustworthy when I’m gone; he doesn’t chew on anything except bones and dog toys. He takes treats gently and loves his food. I can move his food bowl while he’s eating and he doesn’t get upset, just follows the bowl. Strangely enough, it’s his WATER bowl he may “guard” a bit – not from me, but if he’s drinking and another dog comes up, he may give a low grumble. In any case, the guarding doesn’t bother my other dogs, who accept it with an “oh, whatever!” attitude.

He is good on a leash. Like many Goldens, he will tend to lead for the first block or two, then be right with you the rest of the way. If he does forget to heel, gently taking the slack out of the leash and giving a verbal command to heel will bring him back.

Jake loves tennis balls. He will chase other toys, but he really, really goes for tennis balls. He jumps in the air, twists around and is very agile trying to snag them. He will bring them back, mouth them for a minute or so, then drop them for another throw. He’s very light on his feet and has a walk like an Irish Setter. And you should see how fast he can wag his tail back and forth!