P's Real Time (Jessie), 11/21/98 - 03/04/13

[GreyPoopon]

Jessie was a good little girl who lived for attention. She enjoyed a long and mostly good life until kidney disease caught up with her.

 

This is about Jessie.

 

How Jessie Ended Up Here

 

P's Real Time (Timer) raced until she was about 4 1/2. Her record on greyhound-data is incomplete--only the first and last parts are included. In the spring of 2003, she retired and was moved to GRA Canada. I suspect she was adopted quite quickly. Her first family renamed her Jessie. She lived with them for almost 4 1/2 years. I believe she enjoyed her home very much. She was returned to GRA in October of 2007. I heard two similar versions of the reason: their 2 year old didn't like her, and she didn't get along with their son. She was just a month short of 9.

 

It happened that she was returned just after Hinsdale had gone seasonal, and GRA had agreed to take a lot of retiring hounds. The kennel was almost full and more dogs were expected. There wasn't going to be enough room. A few dogs had to be placed in foster homes. Bill of GRA called to ask me if I would take a foster. At first I refused, because I knew that a foster might never leave. But when he explained the reason, I relented. I thought I might be able to talk a neighbour into adopting her; there were a lot of dog lovers around here who no longer had animals and might be convinced to take one in. My best prospect was a couple that had lost their grey to OS a few months previously. I hoped that the kennel would soon have room so that I could take her back if I couldn't drum up any interest.

 

On October 24, 2007, I drove to GRA and picked her up.

 

She fit in well here. But I still didn't want to add another dog. Plus it was clear from her behaviour that Jessie would be happier in a home with more people and fewer dogs. I started introducing her to those I thought might be interested. People suggested other prospects. One by one, most demurred. She spent a couple of hours with the best prospects, and they were going to take her. But as we were discussing it, the deal fell apart. The stated reasons were unimportant; they simply weren't ready. Jessie celebrated her 9th birthday here.

 

On December 14, Bill called to see how Jessie was doing, and to ask if I were interested in yet another 9 year old return. I said No to the return. Jessie was doing fine. I said I had a couple of prospects who hadn't yet answered. Since the kennel was still full, I promised that if the prospects didn't want her, I would keep her. I certainly wasn't about to return her to a full kennel when there was another 9 year old return awaiting a home. I then checked with one of my prospects, who said no. I realized that I would have heard from the other if she had any interest. So I called back the same day and left a message that Jessie had her new home. [When I later met the other 9 year old, I regretted refusing her. But fortunately she was soon fostered--and eventually adopted--by a kennel volunteer who provided her with the perfect home.]

 

So Jessie stayed. When Tally joined us in late January of '08, I had two walking groups: The Core Four (Perry, Minnie, Betsy, and Edie), and The Four More (Piper, Cora, Jessie, and Tally). The family was complete.

 

About Jessie

 

Jessie was a very good little girl. She rarely made a mistake of any kind. She knew the bathroom rules. She walked well on leash. She didn't try to turn for home when the conditions were miserable (cold, snowy, driving rain). She was polite when she met other dogs and people. She was never destructive. She didn't steal toys from the others. She took treats politely, and yielded her bone when chew time was up. She snuggled well with the others. She didn't worry about thunder or fireworks. She was calm in the car. She was pretty much perfect.

 

Perhaps because she was such a good girl, her nicknames were all minor variations of her name: Jess, Jessaroo, Jessieroo, Jazzy, and so on.

 

As good a girl as Jessie was, her defining characteristic was her love of attention. She liked nothing better than to have her head stroked by whomever was willing. If the person stopped, she'd snap her head back against them. If they stepped back, she'd move up with them. If they got too far away, she'd go to the next closest person. Sometimes, when the attention ended, she'd look back at me in frustration. That usually caused me to exclaim, "She stopped?!?!?" The other person would laugh, and sometimes start stroking her again. If not, Jessie would return to me.

 

There were several women who enjoyed her almost as much as she loved them. For a while, my standing joke was that she had about 6 Moms: 3 neighbours, one of the trainers at school, the groomer's wife, and me. Jessie's world narrowed quite a lot as she got older and she didn't see her other Moms, but during the last year she was able to turn her vet into a Mom.

 

The drawback to her need for attention was that she was a bit of a user. She loved affection, but didn't return it. It's a little hard to identify why I thought this--perhaps it was the lack of eye contact, or maybe it was her willingness to switch from one person to another based on proximity--but she clearly had less interest in the person than in what that person could do for her.

 

She was also a wannabe princess. Only certain beds would do, and she would pace until she found one that suited her. I could point out an empty spot, but it was never good enough. And if she wanted to take a toy into her crate and another dog had borrowed it for a nap, she would stand--holding the toy--in front of the crate door until the other dog moved out. I'm sure that if she'd been in a home that was more tolerant of princesses, she would have owned the place.

 

Her one major "flaw" was the very thing that got her turfed from her first home: when she was subjected to a surprising or uncomfortable touch, especially on the ears or side, she would go forward into the problem, and might poke or snap. She nailed me a couple of times--a warning, not a bite--but very very clear. It took a long time to convince her that she could be less dramatic, that she could yelp or pull back, and I would get the point.

 

She was also incredibly sensitive. The clearest example is from school. She did very well at first, and had a great time in Grade 1. Grade 2 was awful; she just didn't want to work for me. It wasn't until late in the course that I realized I had made a mistake at the end of Grade 1: when I was sure she knew the skills, I started insisting. I was just a tiny bit too firm, and that put her off. Once identified, the problem was easily resolved, and she started enjoying school again. She completed Grades 3 and 4, repeated the second half of Grade 3 when Tally dropped out (giardia), and most of Grade 4 again when Tally retired from school (OS).

 

Although I didn't realize it until much later, the sensitivity was in evidence right from the start. The loss of her first home hit her hard. She didn't really start to come into her own here until late Spring of '08, when she'd been in residence for about 7 months. Oddly enough, Cora (an 8 year old broodie who had joined us in September '07 but who had been laid up with a serious hip injury and two bouts of infected anals), Tally (another 9 year old return who arrived in late January '08), and Jessie (almost 9 when she arrived in late October '07) all settled in and became much happier within a few weeks of each other.

 

Her sensitivity was apparent again when we lost the other members of The Four More, all roughly 10 1/2, in 5 months: Cora to OS in October '09, Piper to probable intestinal cancer in January '10, and Tally to OS in March '10. Jessie lost her spark. It was months before she started to recover. She didn't start chattering again until the fall of '11. Her sensitivity may also have been behind a couple of the bad periods she had during the past year: one occurred as Edie's undiagnosed OS was worsening, the other when Dixie's OS was confirmed.

 

Why She's Gone

 

As of February of last year, Jessie had not been eating well for almost a year. She had lost a bit of weight, and the rate of loss seemed to be accelerating. We decided to do her annual bloodwork a few months early, and discovered that she was in the early stages of kidney disease. My vet believes in using all possible support for kidney dogs right from the beginning, so she was started on meds and supplements, a special diet, and fluids. During the course of the year, we made only three changes: we dropped the special diet (she stopped enjoying it) to feed her whatever she would eat, increased the frequency of fluids (from weekly to every 6 days to every second day to--during the last few weeks--daily), and added anabolic steroids to increase her appetite (we increased the frequency and upped the dosage a couple of times); the steroids helped with her back-end weakness as well.

 

We were able to keep her going for more than a year. Although there were a few very bad periods, she always rallied. She proved to be a very tough little girl. But there were more and more falls. It was harder to find things that she would eat. While she still wanted to go for walks, she didn't seem to enjoy them that much, and sometimes didn't even move forward to get attention from those we met. She still loved her visits to the clinic, but she stopped dancing in anticipation and just followed me to the door. She needed more trips out, and sometimes couldn't hang on. Perhaps most difficult for her, she had to accept help more and more often.

 

During the last week, there were multiple falls and some bad periods during walks, and I knew that when she stopped eating the latest favourite food I was totally out of options. I decided not to wait until she was constantly miserable. She was fairly bright the last morning, but did us the favour of going flat that afternoon--she still wanted to go to the clinic, but didn't seem to care that much when staff members greeted her. She did enjoy her final few minutes of gentle stroking.

 

Jessie had a pretty good life, I think, divided roughly into thirds: 1/3 racing, 1/3 in her first home, and a slightly longer 1/3 here.

 

Jessie was a good little girl who lived for attention. We miss her.

 

The Photographs

 

What Jessie Loved

 

She loved attention. She didn't often look at me when receiving it, though, so this is a special photo (November '09):

 

She also loved toys. She'd select one, circle the main floor, and then stash it, usually in her crate. Then she'd get another. Eventually she'd settle, often with her collection. I chose this photo of her on the beds because it's a bit happier than one of her in her crate (November '09):

 

Jessie loved school. Here she is demonstrating her sit as she graduated from Grade 1 (March '08):

 

She loved treats. Here she is anticipating a Burpdog. It was her second one that day so she knew what to expect. I tried to get more before she left, but it didn't work out (February '10):

 

Cuddling

 

Jessie was very good at sharing beds. Here she is in August '08 with Edie plus her original walking group The Four More. From left, Edie, Jessie (back), Piper, Tally (back), Cora. They're all gone now--we lost the other members of The Four More between October '09 and March '10 and Edie in October '12:

 

Graham arrived just before we lost the third member of The Four More, and Jessie bonded with him. They were often close to each other. Graham and Jessie behind, Edie in front (November '10):

 

Running

 

When she first arrived, Jessie didn't seem to remember how to play with other greys. Cora, who was able to adjust her play style to suit her companion, got her started again, and also helped Tally tone down her style. Eventually, Tally (green muzzle) and Jessie learned to play with each other (November '08):

 

Once Graham was finally comfortable in the yard, he and Jessie learned to play. They did so well together that eventually I stopped using muzzles (July '11):

 

Jessie loved to run on her own. Here she is celebrating her 13th birthday (November '11):

 

Last fall, about a month before her 14th birthday, despite the kidney disease and weak back end, she was still playing (October '12):

 

Portraits

 

A full body pic. She was classed as a dark brindle, but I thought she was a black brindle. She was fine boned and well proportioned and always looked sleek (May '08):

 

One of my favourite portraits. She was almost 12 (September '10):

 

Last summer, at 13 1/2 (Graham in the background) (July '12):

 

About a week before the end. She looks a little tired, but she always did in serious photos, even those from years ago (February '13):

 

My favourite portrait, taken a couple of months before her 13th birthday (September '11):

 

 

P's Real Time

Jessie

Racer. Return. Retiree.

November 21, 1998 - March 4, 2013

 

Godspeed Jessie

[Batmom]

You kept her in beautiful condition.

 

And she kept you (and those toys ) on your toes, I'll bet.

 

Godspeed, sweetheart.

[schultzlc]

What a lovely tribute to your Jessie. I'm so sorry for your loss.

[linda]

What a beautiful girl!

[Guest hannahmom]

Such a lucky girl to end her days surrounded by so much love and with so many sisters and brothers. The only one luckier was you, as you got to enjoy her.

Godspeed sweet Jessie - you are missed.

[KahluasMagic]

She was lucky to find you. I'm so sorry.

[Houndtime]

Thank you for sharing Jessie's story. I am so very sorry for your loss.

[Yamaha_gurl]

I'm very sorry to hear, but my gosh...what a great life you have given her!

[robinw]

Oh no! I'm so very sorry.

[Guest june]

What a wonderful celebration of her life.

Godspeed Jessie!

[TheFullHouse]

She was such a beautiful girl. I'm so sorry for your loss. Godspeed Jessie.

[galgrey]

A lovely tribute to a lovely girl. Rest well, Jessie.

 

[beledi]

What a wonderful tribute to Jessie. Thank you for telling us her story. I am so sad she had to leave you.

Edited March 19, 2013 by beledi

[queenwinniesmom]

You understood her so well, and loved her unconditionally. Your pics are truly beautiful. I would say that another thing Jessie did well was have her picture taken.

I'm so sorry you lost your precious lady.

[Cully]

Run free sweet baby.

[spottydog]

What a sweet little character. You were both lucky to find each other. Godspeed Jessie.

[Guest PiagetsMom]

Jesse was a beautiful girl, and you loved her well.....I'm so very sorry

[FiveRoooooers]

A beautiful tribute to your sweet friend. What wonderful lives you shared together.

 

Godspeed Jessie

[Guest greybookends]

[Guest undergreysspell]

That was a beautiful tribute to a special girl. Godspeed Jessie.

[Time4ANap]

I'm very sorry for the loss of your sweet girl.

 

Run free Jessie.

[Hubcitypam]

Fly free Jessie Girl.

[Guest grey_dreams]

Godspeed sweet Jessie girl.

[Guest OPointyDog]

What a gorgeous, special girl. So sorry she had to leave you.

[Remolacha]

I am so sorry she was a beautiful princess