Goose
A donation was made in memory of Goose by the doctors and staff at Yakima Valley Veterinary Clinic on Apr 28, 2023.
It was the fall of 2012 and I had just transitioned from 9 years of active-duty Army to a civilian job two years before. I was having difficulty with my transition is probably and understatement. I had been to the shelter before but just could not find a dog that was a good fit. On an unusually bad Friday night, I decided that I should visit the shelter the next day.
When I got there one dog stood out. He wasn't going crazy (which is shocking for a Jack Russell) he had no pee or poo in his kneel and when I took him for his walk he didn't pull as much and he had a confidence to him. He didn't just walk he trotted. I brought him back and asked to adopt him. He was a stray, so he had a mandatory 48-hour period to wait. The lady said small dogs like him go fast so come back soon. I took a half day off work to adopt him and zoomed to the shelter to get there exactly when his hold ended. To my luck the shelter was full so he was also my discount dog. We bonded instantly. So of course, I had to name him Goose. And he truly was my best friend and navigator in life. Mind you I knew nothing about Jack Russells.
To say he was a handful is an understatement. He had separation anxiety pretty bad. He wasn't destructive but he would pee inside. I searched the interwebs and found a Facebook group to get advice. With some time, I slowly reduced his anxiety. Was he a perfect dog? Absolutely not. His prey drive was an 11 on a scale of 1 to 10. Occasionally he would still pee inside as he didn't always want his human to leave. I also didn't like to leave him. This dog changed my routines and I tried to bring him everywhere I could. So outside seating was a must. Hotels had to be dog friendly and hiking trails needed to allow dogs.
We had a wonderful life of hiking around the PCT, going to breweries....he didn't get any beer but he would always get pizza bones....enjoying a stroll around town he didn't discriminate and always had to go up to people to see if they would give him some food. When no food was had by humans, he was on the search for sidewalk treats. On the trails always looking for critters.
As far as Jack Russells go his temperament was pretty chill. Of course, it was wild and sometimes going outside he would act like he had never been outside his entire life, other times well behaved. After a bit of "Please throw, no take, only throw" and chase instead of fetch we could relax on the couch. Usually, he was next to me getting warm under his famous blue blanket like Linus. But if I was having a bad day, he was quick to snuggle up against me. At bedtime he would start by going under the blankets and to the corner of the bed. He would usually end up curled up by my head with his bum by my face. He went to dog day once a week and would boss around some dogs and others let him know they were boss.
Goose touched so many people's lives. I honestly didn't know it until after he passed. At the vet's office he would jump on the counter because he couldn't wait for treats. I desensitized him by making weekly trips to the office just to get a treat so he wouldn't fear the vet's office. He would whine when we drove by, and I didn't stop. The Facebook group I joined had hundreds of people following him, some his entire time with me. The people in real life loved his upbeat personality, though hated his insatiable lush for food. He would steal food from unsuspecting people's hands. When people would come over, he wanted to sit in their laps and would ignore me. Just don't sit in his spot on the couch.
Even in his senior days he would try to jump on the counter at the vet usually while I wasn't looking, and he would miss and limp for a bit for attention. On hikes I would have to pick him up and let him rest a bit but once he was better, he would wiggle from my arms to get back to sniffing.
He started having seizures the summer of 2022. They unfortunately caught up to him March 28th, 2023. He will be missed greatly. He saved my life. He got me out of a life that was turning into a deep depression and isolation. His passing left me with a void in my heart and soul, which I intend to fill with another dog in need of a forever home. Hopefully a Jack Russell Terrier. The dogs that aren't dogs. You don't just tell a Jack Russell no or leave it when they get into the pantry and eat a whole loaf of bread, you have to sit down and have a conversation with them. Run free Goose! You will always have a spot in my heart.
When I got there one dog stood out. He wasn't going crazy (which is shocking for a Jack Russell) he had no pee or poo in his kneel and when I took him for his walk he didn't pull as much and he had a confidence to him. He didn't just walk he trotted. I brought him back and asked to adopt him. He was a stray, so he had a mandatory 48-hour period to wait. The lady said small dogs like him go fast so come back soon. I took a half day off work to adopt him and zoomed to the shelter to get there exactly when his hold ended. To my luck the shelter was full so he was also my discount dog. We bonded instantly. So of course, I had to name him Goose. And he truly was my best friend and navigator in life. Mind you I knew nothing about Jack Russells.
To say he was a handful is an understatement. He had separation anxiety pretty bad. He wasn't destructive but he would pee inside. I searched the interwebs and found a Facebook group to get advice. With some time, I slowly reduced his anxiety. Was he a perfect dog? Absolutely not. His prey drive was an 11 on a scale of 1 to 10. Occasionally he would still pee inside as he didn't always want his human to leave. I also didn't like to leave him. This dog changed my routines and I tried to bring him everywhere I could. So outside seating was a must. Hotels had to be dog friendly and hiking trails needed to allow dogs.
We had a wonderful life of hiking around the PCT, going to breweries....he didn't get any beer but he would always get pizza bones....enjoying a stroll around town he didn't discriminate and always had to go up to people to see if they would give him some food. When no food was had by humans, he was on the search for sidewalk treats. On the trails always looking for critters.
As far as Jack Russells go his temperament was pretty chill. Of course, it was wild and sometimes going outside he would act like he had never been outside his entire life, other times well behaved. After a bit of "Please throw, no take, only throw" and chase instead of fetch we could relax on the couch. Usually, he was next to me getting warm under his famous blue blanket like Linus. But if I was having a bad day, he was quick to snuggle up against me. At bedtime he would start by going under the blankets and to the corner of the bed. He would usually end up curled up by my head with his bum by my face. He went to dog day once a week and would boss around some dogs and others let him know they were boss.
Goose touched so many people's lives. I honestly didn't know it until after he passed. At the vet's office he would jump on the counter because he couldn't wait for treats. I desensitized him by making weekly trips to the office just to get a treat so he wouldn't fear the vet's office. He would whine when we drove by, and I didn't stop. The Facebook group I joined had hundreds of people following him, some his entire time with me. The people in real life loved his upbeat personality, though hated his insatiable lush for food. He would steal food from unsuspecting people's hands. When people would come over, he wanted to sit in their laps and would ignore me. Just don't sit in his spot on the couch.
Even in his senior days he would try to jump on the counter at the vet usually while I wasn't looking, and he would miss and limp for a bit for attention. On hikes I would have to pick him up and let him rest a bit but once he was better, he would wiggle from my arms to get back to sniffing.
He started having seizures the summer of 2022. They unfortunately caught up to him March 28th, 2023. He will be missed greatly. He saved my life. He got me out of a life that was turning into a deep depression and isolation. His passing left me with a void in my heart and soul, which I intend to fill with another dog in need of a forever home. Hopefully a Jack Russell Terrier. The dogs that aren't dogs. You don't just tell a Jack Russell no or leave it when they get into the pantry and eat a whole loaf of bread, you have to sit down and have a conversation with them. Run free Goose! You will always have a spot in my heart.
