Jake started as a foster dog. He was found abandoned by the side of the road and at first he was just going to stay for a couple of days. He was a big, Great Dane-Boxer-ish kind of mix, with floppy jowls that always made him look sad in pictures, which was hilarious, because he was one of the happiest dogs I have ever seen. He once giddy-wagged so hard that he smacked his tail against a door and made it bleed. His joy made my kitchen look like a scene out of Dexter.
My vet checked him out and discovered that, in addition to the obvious malnourishment, some fuckhead had shot him full of buckshot at some point. It was embedded under his skin and there was nothing they could do but leave it in. Amazingly enough, it didn’t seem to bother him. He also was not at all skittish or cautious, like you might expect from a dog that was quite literally shot, abused, and dumped by the side of the road.
“Foster” turned into “forever” after having him for a few days. I didn’t just pick him, but he picked me. I was his person. His quickly developed a ritual in which he would sit right beside my chair every night at dinner time, and would place either a giant paw or his beautiful head on my thigh. Not obtrusively or obnoxiously. Just like, “Hey. I’m right here. If you want to give me a bite of your steak, that would be awesome.”
And yeah. I always wanted to.
When I was on a night owl schedule, he refused to go to sleep before I did. It didn’t matter if I was writing or just watching movies or playing video games until 3 AM, Jake had to be faithfully by my side.
Recently his back legs and his hips gave out. Apparently this is not-at-all shocking with dogs his size. He remained happy. He still nuzzled me and wagged with joy every time I pet him.
Then the front legs started to go. Along with his appetite. He couldn’t go outside without help. At the end, he could barely lift himself up from his dog bed.
But he remained sweet and joyful until the very end, which was today. We took care of it on my lunch break, and I was essentially a useless wreck back at work for the rest of the afternoon. Thankfully, no important stories came my way.
Except this one, which I had to write. RIP, my sweet boy. I loved you so much.
I am so sorry you had to say goodbye for now to your dear friend Jake.
😔💔