Snuggles with Jack

Jack is becoming quite the snuggle bug. He loves laying next to me while I watch tv at night. He even let my son snuggle up next to him. I think mostly because he had goldfish crackers. I told my son he could give him just a couple. I wanted to see if he would take them from him. So Jack stretched out his neck ever so slowly, sniffed the cracker, then very gently took just one. Such a polite boy.  We are learning that Jack is afraid of men mostly. He is warming up to my husband and two teenage boys that are probably still men in his eyes since they are tall and have deep voices now.   

Best buddies cheering on the Pack!

 We are also working on hand feeding him so that he knows that not all men are bad. He wouldn't eat from my husbands hand at first or even from the bowl when placed in front of him if my husband was sitting near by. Slowly but surely we are gaining ground. This morning my husband sat next to Jack in his favorite spot by the window and Jack actually ate from the bowl. He is still refusing to eat from his hand.  He has taken some kibble from my son's hand with me right by his side.  It just takes time. So please know that if you are interested in adopting Jack he will most likely shut down all over again. That's what happens with change in a dogs life. Especially for those that are already so scared of everything and everyone.  It will take not only love, but time and patience.  Also persistence and consistency.  

Nap time.

Last night we stayed up late watching the Packer game. Well, Jack and I fell asleep on the couch. My husband tried to wake us up but we were just so comfy we stayed there together. After a few hours I woke up very sore and decided I needed my bed. Not wanting to wake up the entire family I decided to give Jack a test run and let him stay on the couch. Otherwise Jack barks for a while in the kennel.  I put the garbage can in the bathroom so that he wouldn't knock it over again.  Well, I learned my lesson. Even though he is short he can still grab things off the counter and managed to get my prescription sunglasses, box of zip lock bags, and other items. He will get kenneled from now on. It was my fault for thinking that he would just sleep.  Dogs get bored and the house was quiet. Perfect time to see what all those good smells are coming from the kitchen. Don't worry. He didn't eat anything. Just chewed up my glasses and the box containing the bags.  

Besides needing to kennel him when your gone and at night he is a pretty easy dog. He is learning to not be afraid of everything. The more exposure to the world the better. I take him to work with me where he meets new dogs all the time. He's not at the point of playing with anyone yet. My dog Badger has tried so hard by biting him on the neck, well more like chewing and laying down on his back right in front of him. One of these days Jack will feel confident enough to play. I can see the light in his eyes coming back. 

 He is a curious boy and is venturing further and further from me. This is a good thing. If he gets spooked he will come running.  That is happening less and less. I am going out with him for a few reasons. One, that I know he has actually done his business and two for his safety.  I don't want to take the chance that he gets tangled on something and gets loose. We do have an electric fence but even if he was my dog I would wait a while to train him on that. He has to know me and my family and trust in all of us.

Here is a short video of Jack starting to venture off further from me. Such a cutie! 

Jack is such a sweet boy that is potty trained, doesn't mind cats rubbing up on him, and is ok with other dogs. He's not a fan of big dogs but is getting used to them. He will growl a little if a larger dog comes up to his face or if they are sniffing him too long. He is learning how to meet others and will hopefully start to play soon.

Thanks for thinking rescue!

Saving one dog at a time,

Stephanie

Jack's first few days at the Funny Farm

Jack is settling in nicely here.  I really thought I struck gold when he didn't make a peep the first night.  Then the second night came and he barked a few minutes after I went to bed. He barked in his kennel for about 10 minutes. That's the time when the door closes to my bedroom and the noise maker goes on. I thought he did pretty good settling down after 10 minutes. It seems like Theo will bark all night long if kenneled.  They will get used to it and it becomes routine for them.  Morning came and my husband got up at his usual 4:30 am. Guess who was out of his kennel and sleeping on the pillow by the bay window? Jack of course. I thought maybe I didn't secure the kennel and made sure to that night. Well wouldn't you know the same thing happened the next day. What a little escape artist!  I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that it's an older wire crate that doesn't latch well. If fact we were going to throw it away until I decided to foster Jack. He's a smart boy and just loves his window seat.

The good thing is he has not had any accidents. Not a one. Love that. Such a good boy. So in the five days I've had him I'm calling him potty trained.  

Another thing people are curious about is if he gets along with cats. The answer would have to be yes. He gets along with cats. He met the infamous Pumpkin. You should've seen his face. He froze and was like, "What the hell is that thing?"  He just stood really still Sigorney Weaver did in Alien when it was checking her out. He didn't growl or anything when Pumpkin started rubbing up against him. He also didn't run away. He just kind of backed up slowely, turned around, and walked away very slowly. Pumpkin comes in to our bedroom every night and has to pass Jack on the way. Jack doesn't try to chase him. "Respect the cat" is probably what he is thinking. LOL

Finally here are some pictures of Jack getting used to the yard. I will not take the chance to ever let him off leash and neither should you, forever family. It would take lots of time if you were ever thinking of it. Never assume he will come to you. He is a very shy, scared boy.  He is afraid of my husband and we are working on that. I think with time and hand feeding he should feel comfortable soon.  I am also exposing him to life. He comes to the daycare with me and goes out with all the dogs. He will growl a little. Definitely less than before. Here's a tip. If you pet and give attention to another dog he will come up and try to get your attention not caring about the other dog so much. I've done this to get him to meet and smell other dogs and let them smell him as well as at home with my husband. He will start to pet Kinsey and Jack will come over and want pets. Where as if Kinsey weren't around he might stretch to smell and give a quick lick to my husbands hand.

Jack next to Kinsey and the hole she dug.

Getting to know the yard.

Chill'n 

Yoga anyone?

Theo and Jack 

The beginning of Jack's journey.

Jack is learning to be social with other dogs. This is the starting point. There always has to be a before and after. You might view this as him being scared and in the corner. He met a lot of dogs and growled at first when they came up to sniff him. Here he is actually a little more relaxed. After five minutes of being in the kennel he was actually letting other dogs approach him without growling. That is a huge baby step. He even got some sniffs in himself. Every day he learns something new and gets exposed to different things. He is gaining confidence little by little. One day soon he will not live in fear because that is no way to live.  We could all learn a thing or two from Jack. Get out there. Take risks. Do not be afraid. Live!

Thanks for thinking rescue!

Saving one dog at a time,

Stephanie

Welcome Jack Daniels!

The moment I met this dog I felt a connection. I wanted to help this dog to first of all come out of his kennel on his own and second walk to the back on his own. I am not an expert by any means. I just love dogs.  

When Jack D. first arrived here in Wisconsin he was so scared and full of fleas.  He just completely shut down.  I knew that with the help and love from Lisa, Rylee and me we could help get his confidence back.  We had to drag, pull and carry him to the back to go out for potties for the first 24 hours.  This was not an easy task as he was and still is overweight at 46 lbs.  Yes, it was a great reminder that I need to really start using my gym membership one of these days.

After the first 24 hours we saw a glimmer of who this dog could be. He started wagging his tail, still very low but still a wag none the less. He would kind of slink his way to the back like a cat. He was starting to trust us and get used to the routine.  He even started to lick our hands from a distance and run around us in circles.

We had him a week at the daycare with us until a foster home opened up. We packed him all up that morning. His foster family came to meet him later that morning and took him to their house.  He was having a good time playing with their two dogs for a while. When they stood up and decided to go in the house with him he got very scared and took off. They were able to surround him and were trying not to scare him more.  He was just so overwhelmed and bolted.  They live in a very wooded area which is beautiful but not easy when searching for a black dog that seems to blend in very well.  

Long story short with the help, support and guidance from Lost Dogs of Wisconsin, brats and hot dogs and four hours sitting in the woods during a Packer game we were able to capture him.(My kids tried to send me back out to the woods so the Packers would win again. LOL) He spent 8 long days outside near the fosters house in the hottest weather of the year and terrible rain storms. It was truly 8 days of hell for all who loved Jack.

He went back to the daycare where he was the most safe...inside four walls and 8 ft. fencing. Everyday I fought the need to take this dog home with me. I kept telling myself that my dogs would have a field day with him because he's so scared.  That they would pick up on that energy and not tolerate it.  Still, I couldn't let it go.  I just wanted to help this dog in the worst way.  

I've been taking my dogs to a training class in Muskego for a few months now and absolutely love it. My dogs get real world experience like learning to sit and stay or walk past a running vacuum.  Badger, my Catahoula hates vacuums and will attack it if I'm vacuuming for a long time which would be more than 10 minutes.  I have been wanting to take Jack to our training classes to get him out of his shell. I finally made the decision to just do it after talking to Frank the trainer to make sure it was ok to bring him.  Dana met him first and fell instantly in love.  She helped me to build my confidence as did Frank.  He did pretty good his first time and even stayed for some extra socialization with lots of bigger dogs. I had to ask Frank if he thought it would be ok to foster him. He looked at me and with a laugh said, "Your asking the wrong guy. I have 40 dogs." I said how I was nervous that my dogs would attack him because he's so scared. Here is my "AHA" moment.  He said, "Don't let your dogs dictate what to do." Wow! I've been doing this for some time now.  In fact I think we all do this. It's great to love dogs but they need boundaries and discipline just like kids.  

It took a lot to get him here mainly because I'm a stubborn Sicilian girl just wanting what's best for Jack for now. So he's here in my home learning what it means to be a dog and a pack member waiting for his forever family.  

Thanks for thinking rescue!

Saving one dog at a time,
Stephanie

Usher Goes Home

Usher got adopted today! Yeah! So excited for him to start his new life with his family.  Usher has a sister named Molly now and I hear they look very similar.  

Congratulations Usher!

This is what it's all about folks. 

Thanks for thinking rescue!

Stephanie