My Sweet Jessie Girl

Into every life some rain must fall.  This is my Jessie girl you've seen on and off over the years.  She was approximately five when I adopted her, a Jack Russell Terrier.  They are generally one person dogs, so it took almost a year before she would sit on the couch next to me.

She was not a "pet me" kind of dog.  Very standoffish, but sweet none the less.  As terriers go, she was one of the best at catching gophers.  She could smell and hear them going through the tunnels, then jump up, dig like crazy and come up with a trophy.  

Little did she know she was NOT supposed to chase horses the way she chased kitties.  She got stepped on, breaking her foot in several places.  She was tough though ... that bandage last about two hours before it was found on the floor.

This was the second day when we tried the splint again.  It didn't take long for it to be completely gone.  She chewed it off and I gave up.

Not the hyperactive terrier that most are, she was happy to sleep on the couch most of the day, whether in the motorhome or the real home.

We did have our problems since she hated dogs.  If there was one anywhere in sight, the AAARRRHHH came out in her as she imitated the pirates of the Caribbean.  This girl could growl with the best of them.  The problem was, she would make a run at them, hitting the end of the leash with me trying to hold on to Cooper and rein her in.  

That is what got us on the early morning "chicken" schedule.  I started getting up at 4:00 am to take both pups outside while all the other dogs were sleeping.  Not such a great solution because I truly liked to sleep in late, but it worked.  

She has been around the world, this little Miss Jessie Bell.  Her original name was Jezebel, but I slightly changed it to Jessie Bell.  She, Cooper and I traveled all over Alaska and from the West Coast to the East Coast, Bangor Maine and back.  What troopers they both have been to let me drag them all around.  

I don't have lots of pictures of them on the road.  As you can imagine, handling two dogs just getting in and out of the RV door was a challenge.  With her not being dog friendly, I carried her quite often.  She did get in a spat or two when people would walk their dogs right up to her in spite of my warnings to please stay away ... "oh my dog is friendly" they would say.  

That's nice, but mine is NOT.  It took three times for the people at one park tie their dog up (like the rules say) because it kept coming over where Jessie could attack it.  Some people don't follow the rules until you scream at them ... your dog may be friendly, but MY dog will kill it if it comes over here!!!

Sadly, she acquired cancer which grew in her leg until it almost burst open, along with no hearing and little eyesight, not a bad thing when we were battling the skunks.  She thought they were just another kitty cat she needed to rouse out of the back yard.  Yes, she got sprayed, not a full blown event, but enough to make me throw up as I scrubbed her in the bathtub.  

Like all us old folks, her arthritis got the best of her too.   She could jump with the best of them when it came to food ... as high as the countertop.  Sadly too, doggy dementia settled in and she walked the edge of whatever room I was in.  It was a hard thing to see.

 So yesterday my sweet girl passed on at 16 years of age, to meet up with my black schnauzer Mandy in Heaven.  I'm sad she's gone, but happy she's no longer in pain.  Until we meet again Jessie Bell.