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Post Your Pet Pic (DON'T QUOTE PHOTOS)
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HeHey all,
I'd like to post a picture story of my dog Jessie who has now been with my family for a year. She was a rescue dog from a breeding farm who was very frightened of humans when we first got her and had been mistreated quite badly and obviously beaten. She would creep and cower past you and even to this day if you move your hand very suddenly she flinches.
It all started when my brother went on holidays over Christmas for 2010. I was asked to mind his pet shih-tzu much to the reluctant acquiescence of my mother who was not a dog person.
But the shih-tzu, Calvin, was a little dote and we all had an enjoyable experience over the Christmas. Calvin was no trouble to look after, I taught him how to stand on his hind legs thanks to some friendly advice on this very forum (thread here with video result) and he would peacefully snooze most of the day away cuddling into my mother when she was sitting down. I was upstairs studying for exams and could hear my mam chatting away to the dog as if he were a baby. I began to suspect that there may perhaps, be a dog residing here in the not too distant future.
About a week after Calvin returned home I commented to my mam that you would miss not having him around after getting used to him and headed off to college. When I returned, with an ever so slightly guilty look on her face, my mam told me that she had gone to a kennel that day to have a look at the dogs. A day or two later, one of her friends told my mother that there was a local kennel that had just picked up some rescue dogs from a breeding farm. My mam asked me to come along "just for a look" after picking my niece, Hannah, up from school. Half an hour later we were driving back to the house with a west highland terrier in our possession.
When we arrived at the kennel she was being kept in a pen with four other westies who all stank of faeces and urine and whose coats were absolutely filthy. There had been a lot of snow that year which was just on the way out, so everywhere was damp, dreary and that horrible shade of grey that snow gets when it has outstayed its welcome. As we approached the pen all the dogs cowered away from us. My mam said to me "How do you pick one?" and I replied "I think it's the other way around, they pick you." As if on cue, one little dog came up to the gate and had a good look at us, almost gesturing to us. She had a scrape all across her nose which looked fairly sore. We exchanged a glance; "Well, that's the one". My mother pointed the dog out to the kennel owner and he opened the gate to get her, immediately causing all the dogs to bolt to the back of the pen, desperately trying to hide behind each other. Hannah my niece could barely contain her excitement, "Oh no, which one is it? she's gone! she's gone!" But very luckily for the dog we identified her by the scrape across her nose.
We stopped off at a pet store on the way home to get a dog cushion and my niece and I stayed in the car thinking of what to name her. My niece started to say that the name Daisy was very nice, but there was no way in hell I was going to shout "Daisy" across a field when walking her in public. Using my executive veto, I named her "Jessie" after a beautiful song by the band "Mother Earth" which had been stuck in my head all day. I held Jessie on my lap in the front seat for the journey home and one of our first bonding experiences was her deciding to vomit on me as we drove. I could tell we were going to have a very close relationship. We got her home and straight into the shower. She wet the floor a few times in fright. The first picture below in the top left corner is immediately after her first shower.
The vet puts her age at somewhere over 2 years of age and she has had at least one litter of pups. Her teeth are a disgrace. She is missing a front tooth on her lower jaw and the rest of her front teeth are quite chipped and jagged. I would never buy a pup from a breeding farm and discourage anyone else whom I speak to from doing so also. The condition and fear in her demeanour was simply despicable. For at least the first fortnight of her stay in her new home, her tail was clamped firmly between her legs and her ears flattened against her head.
But what a difference a year makes. From not understanding any words she now has around 8 or 10 commands which she understands. If you say hello to her she will softly growl back a hello to you
and likes having a howling session with the other family members 
(Our neighbours do worry for our sanity). We first started doing walks with a harness and leash and from there she learnt her first command which was "wait" where she would come to a dead stop. From that, more commands grew as we both got used to each other's ways and now she can walk off the leash and obeys commands so that it is simply a case of having a conversation with her while we're out walking. She is a very gentle and friendly dog, never barking at anyone and loves a bit of whipped egg as a treat, is partial to an oul belly rub, and enjoys sitting on the top of the couch so she can keep an eye on the comings and goings outside.
She has also brought a lot of love and joy into our home. My dad died about 18 months before we got Jessie and she has lifted up the whole atmosphere of the house (I love this picture of the 2 of them), especially with my mother, for whom she has become the apple of her eye. What better way to be greeted in the morning than Jessie running up to you, standing on her hind legs and waving her front paws in the air with excitement? It always brings a smile to your face. She is also a fan of snuggling in beside my mother and keeping her company as well as taking a keen interest in whatever work anyone happens to be doing. She is a very inquisitive dog, keen digger and a good foreman.
Just before Christmas 2011, my brother's dog returned for a visit and this has been the final piece of settling in that she needed. As a result, she has come completely out of her shell. The two dogs love having a bit of a wrestle and a game of chasing as well as tug of war. Of course, the shih tzu fell in love with this beautiful westie and tried to make sweet loving to her relentlessly from the get go. Jessie, being a lady, did not appreciate the lack of courting on Calvin's part and decided that after her life on the farm there was something to this whole celibacy lark which would be forcefully implemented if need be! This was the first time we saw that Jessie was fully capable of handling herself around other dogs. She turned on poor love-struck Calvin with a growl and a snap and well and truly bitch-slapped him into his appropriate place on the love scene. It was quite surprising.
So here's to you Jessie, I certainly hope you have had as much joy in the last year as you have brought into this house and our lives and here's hoping for many, many more.
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Raindog - Such a fabulous story and a lovely post. Jessie is adorable and very lucky to have found such a wonderful home and family.
What a lovely thing to read to start my day, cheered me right up.
Happy Anniversary to you all. Heres to many more! 0 -
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Nushka at the races
please ignore or silly Cork accents and my dodgy little portable
, waiting to gather abit of cash to get a nice flatscreen for the wall
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Ahhh....do it! How could you say no to that face
just got notice of redundancy at work, waiting to hear back on another job interview, but the home situation may not be right just yet. would be nice to get a buddy for Dexter though, they could keep each other amused in the backgarden. Either less digging, or twice as much digging!0 -
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OldmanMondeo wrote: »Does this look like a face that could do anything bold?
Sure he was only helping you sort the recycling 0 -
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A slideshow of pics/vids from the last 3 months - my dog had to get his leg straightened and is now allowed off the lead again!
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brianregan09 wrote: »Heres the lovely Gypsy who strayed into us just before Xmas one of the most affectionate dogs i've ever had, Anyone care to chip in on what breed she might be , Been thinkin Border Collie myself , Poor girl is off to get neutered today
Yeah she has a lot of Border Collie in her. She looks like my in laws (and my!) fella Lowry IMAG0028.jpg
Here is a photo of Tony Tripod...my 3 legged cat!! IMAG0534.jpg
And one more because he is soooooo cute!! IMAG0519.jpg0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43SczJEbq_4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D0bhkFoYv0
This discussion has been closed.
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