Jackson update

Well, it has been more than 48 hours. Two whole days that Jackson has been without his family. I feel an overwhelming amount of guilt when he looks at me inquisitively, like, “Who is this lady? Did she steal me from my family?” I wonder if he’s sad or if he is looking for his family when he’s running from room to room in a huff. He has jumped up on the bed with me the last two nights. Before he wedges himself against me and settles in for the night, we literally stare at each other for a few seconds. He doesn’t blink. His little Star Wars Ewok face looks so pensive. I imagine he’s wondering, “How did I get here? How do I let this strange lady know what my favorite breakfast meal its? When I wake up tomorrow, will I be home again??” It breaks my heart.

There is a part of me that feels so sad for a little child out there who may be crying for his or her lost pet doggie. But, there is an even larger part of me that is so ANGRY at Jackson’s family. I realize that not everyone is a pet person so not everyone would consider this a priority, but in my opinion it is downright irresponsible and negligent to have a pet and not have it micro-chipped. Even though it doesn’t cost very much to microchip a pet (the Humane Society does it for a nominal donation), I know that people have financial priorities. I completely understand that. Then, AT THE VERY FUCKING LEAST please put a simple collar and an ID tag on your pet. I got a cheesy, cheap little set for Jackson for less than $10 at Petco. Although, it does make me wonder how someone would get such an expensive dog and then not bother to microchip him, but let me get off that topic before I explode with frustration.

Well, maybe not just yet. I have one more thing to say. You have to know your pet. You have to know your home. If you know there are possible escapes to the outside world from your home and you know your pet is curious and energetic, then it is incumbent upon you to have identification information on your pet. It is absolutely imperative for your pet’s safety. If this is not the least pet owners can do, then I don’t believe they should be allowed to have pets. This will anger my non-animal lover friends, but pets are like the children you have, except that they never grow up and become independent. Pets are wholly dependent on their owners for everything: food, exercise, affection, discipline, training, stimulation, medical maintenance, and most importantly, SAFETY!!!

Can you tell I’m pissed off? Ha ha! Yeah, I know, I need to calm down a bit. I just had to vent since it’s been quite a dramatic couple of days. I feel so sorry for Jackson. He is certainly not unhappy in his temporary home, but I just know deep down he’s wondering what the hell is going on here? Achilles and Milo have been wonderful, patient hosts (or as I call them, “guest welcomers”). They don’t hesitate to let Jackson know when he’s being too much of a puppy, especially when he tries to jump around in their faces for play time. A & M are not down with that. Other than that, Jackson eats with them, naps with them, and goes on walks with them.

I turned around from the sink this morning to find Achilles, Jackson and Milo sitting next to each other in a little arc behind me. Jackson looked so tiny sitting between my golden babies. I wish I had my camera! Mom cooked a TON of chicken for me this weekend and she told me to give some to Jackson. Well, all three of the four-legged ones were interested in Mom’s chicken. Milo loooooves chicken, so I snuck him a little bit more. Ok, maybe a lot more. Hey, he’s a recovering injured patient who needs to rebuild his strength!!! J

Like I’ve said before, someone loved Jackson enough to teach him ‘sit’ and ‘down’, to housetrain him to wait at the door when he needs to be let out for pee & poo, to groom him, and to feed him well. But that someone did not love him enough to tag this poor boy. Grrr!!! Now I just have to make sure that I don’t fall in love with Jackson. Ladies and gentlemen, it is not an easy task for me. I have to keep reminding myself that his family may turn up any day now and I must be careful. Come to think of it, it’s probably best that Jackson finds his family ASAP because I nearly punt kicked him on Sunday after the Bears lost to the Giants. I was so pissed off that I wanted to kick or punch something, anything. For the briefest second I thought Jackson was a pillow and I nearly sent him flying through the wall. It was a close call and it would not have been pretty. Whew!

I’ve got an ad running this week in the north county newspapers, I’ve notified the Humane Society, Jackson’s picture is up on the Petco bulletin board by Mom’s house, notified neighbors, posters are up around Mom’s house, and I’ve been checking Craig’s List religiously. I’m also on all the lost dog/found dog websites looking for clues. I’ve received some seriously nutty phone calls inquiring about Jackson. One wanted him for a Christmas gift, one caller repeatedly referred to Jackson as “she”, as in “she is an important part of our family and we miss her terribly, and another caller asked when he could come by to pick up “the dog” because he was missed. *Sigh* These calls scare the hell out of us. What is Jackson had been found by one of these creeps?!!?

Dave and Eric at the Petco are sick of me calling every hour to see if anyone has come around asking about Jackson. I’ve also talked to one of the sweetest women ever at the Shih Tzu rescue up by Palm Springs, Sheila Gordon. When I spoke to her she was busy manning her 3 foster kids, 3 grandchildren, one adopted child, her own pets and several foster pets. She’s in the process of adopting her grandkids because her daughter-in-law can’t stay off drugs. And I thought my house was turning into a bleepin’ zoo. Good grief. Sheila said that Jackson’s coloring would have made him one very expensive puppy. She’ll use Jackson’s photo in case anyone contacts her about a lost dog from our area.

We’ve done pretty much everything we can do to help Jackson find his family. It’s been more than 2 days already. Where is Jackson’s family?