Goodbye, Jack.

I started to write this right after I found out we had to put Jack down. Also, right after I had finally stopped bawling my eyes out and picked myself off of my closet floor. I decided however, it was better to keep myself together at that point than to cry all over this keyboard and to be honest I have very thoughtful things to say about Jack and there wasn't anything comprehendible coming out of me that night. Better late than never, right?

More or less this is my dog's obituary: 

It was the spring before I turned 16 when we brought Jack home. 16 is of those cliche ages that changes you no matter what is actually happening in your world, but literally my whole life dramatically changed that year. Most excitedly we brought home Jack, the most concentrated form of cuteness I'd ever experienced. We carried him around in a cup towel wherever we went. I showed him off like a proud big sister and everything was going perfectly well and then..
My family did a complete 180. My brother flew the coop. He married his wife and they bought a house and took our cat, Petey, with them. I'm 100% positive that Jack was overjoyed to become the only animal in the house, but Jonny leaving meant less love and attention for Jack. This included the fantastic Japanese lessons that Jack was enrolled in to become less frequent. I always bragged that Jack was bilingual. He could sit and lay down (...most of the time) when Jon would command his attention with Japanese phrases, that sounded like nonsense to me and the rest of the family. 
Then both of my parents started new jobs. My mom at the time we got Jack worked her ass off at home (just to clarify she was in management for a technology company and not a stay-at-home mom) and my dad had become miserable after 14 years at Kaiser Permanente and was plotting how to kill his boss, but also still working his ass off. New jobs, however, meant new schedules. Mom went from puppy training and Kate chauffeuring 24/7 to getting out of her pajamas and going to work leaving Jack alone. Dad went from your basic day time shift (which he had had my whole life) to working swing shift and even doing a stint of graveyard. We can be grateful for it now, because my parents are so much happier, but at the time it was a huge adjustment and I can't imagine the abandonment baby Jack must have experienced. 

Mom also got a new car when I got my license. So pretty much we can guesstimate the age of my dog, my brother's marriage, how long my parents have been at their new jobs, how long I've been driving and how long we've had the Toyota Highlander all gauged at the same time. Sprinkle in the first ever (and only) time a boy had broken up with me, going through at least 3 different best friends that year, a crippling lesson on how to lose when you were raised to be highly competitive and you have the year of 2006 in the life of me. Coming home to Jack was a constant in a really unpredictable year. 

There are three things I have to thank Jack for. I know he won't hear me and that's okay.

First of these things is how active he made my parents. All the time people from my hometown tell me that they saw my parents and their dog walking. These were lengthy walks. According to my parents pedometers, we are talking like 6 mile walks spanning multiple zipcodes at times. Unless it was exceedingly hot or pouring down rain my parents and Jack would be out waving at all the cars that gave them the right of way at the intersections. I guarantee Jack marked his territory on more fire hydrants/telephone poles/mailboxes than the average dog. Before mom and dad started taking Jack on walks he would run sprints in the house.. around the pool table into the family room around the coffee table.. into the master bedroom (to check on mom and wrestle dad until he laughed hysterically and mom yelled at dad to stop riling him up) and then he would repeat the loop. He was also just generally naughty. After he really got into the routine of walking he mellowed out and became a much better dog. He stayed at the front door instead of running down the neighborhood and could even spend some time at parks off the leash where he would stay close and try to herd my mom and dad back together. I studied health and biology (which I refer to as death when I'm moody) in college and I can't thank Jack enough for getting my parents who are in their early 50's off the couch. I loved calling the house on a weekend morning and knowing they weren't going to answer because they were out being healthy. I think the Vitamin D helped my California girl mother be more ok with the fact she lives in Oregon and mom and dad always used the walk to catch up. I have to give Jack credit for being a healthy influence.


Secondly, and probably the most important, Jack was my mom's buddy. When I left for college my dad was still working wonky hours. Unfortunately, my mom and dad pretty much never saw each other during the workweek. Mom was a newly empty nester and her hubby wasn't around in the evening either so my mom hung onto her dog. This was the time that he and her formed a very close and unique bond. I was so glad he was always there under foot or sharing her lazyboy so she was never actually alone. She would have been absolutely fine without him, but she is a nurturer by nature and having Jack to love on and spoil became something my whole family could lean on. 
He also was the best security system. Jack would bark at any animate object to come on the property. Most people think this is SO annoying and I think what a lot of people who came to the Parker house didn't realize is that for years he kept my home alone mother safe at night. If anyone had tried to break in he would have immediately woke up and barked his head off (trust me I've tried to sneak in my house) and I know for a fact that he would have torn apart any stranger who attempted to come near my mother. He protected my mom when my dad wasn't there and proved it when he put himself in between an unleashed pitbull and her on one of their regular walks. The same dog who kept her feet warm and licked her face would have died for her. You can't replace that. You can't trust any species besides humans and canines with that kind of responsibility. My mom was the center of Jack's universe and he loved her perfectly. 

We all knew that Jack was sick. We all ignored it and convinced ourselves he was just getting old, but we were having active conversations about what it was going to be like when he left us. I was thankful that he gave us warning, but nothing could have prepared us for losing him. Everything happened so fast and immediately there was a huge hole. The house was too quiet, but we could still hear him. 

[Jack's last photo]

It took a total of 10 days for my mom to find and buy a new puppy appropriately named, Jill. I only had to push her a little. 
The last thing I have to thank Jack for is making my parents "dog people". I had to practically beg my parents to get a dog the first time and drag them to the Pet Store until they finally fell in love. Now, however, they don't want to live without a dog's love and energy in their house. They want to have a dog who is excited to see them when they get home. They want to keep having a reason to walk and go on family beach vacations. Jack completed the picture and we were all so use to having him that when there was an option to fill the hole, however differently, they went for it. 

[new baby Jill]

So many people look at dogs (or pets or kids) as just something to be responsible for. They use excuses like they cost money, get dirty, tie you down, and make messes without thinking first of the everlasting love that dogs give us. I feel sorry for those people. That doesn't mean I don't respect the huge responsibility it is to be a puppy parent, but I feel sorry that they haven't experienced how amazing it is to care for an animal and consider a dog a part of your family. 



Jack wasn't a perfect dog. Some people wouldn't even consider him a good dog. He ate 2 of my retainers. He bit my niece, the gardener, the gas station attendant. I called him a terrorist for years. My dog had an allergist. He tangoed with death on several occasions, including jumping out of a rear seat window of an SUV onto concrete.He peed everywhere and humped the same disgusting stuffed duck for his entire life. I loved him though and we weren't perfect either, but he loved us too.

Miss you buddy.

-that one girl who loved her dog

Hit the Road Jack by Ray Charles

PS. Jack was cremated and is buried under the oak tree in my parents back yard with his girlfriend, the duck.