WHERE ARE THEY NOW DDR Dog Alum Spotlight : JACKSON (and PEEZU)!
Jackson meeting the DDR Dog Pack!
JACKSON by Megan Finley
In 2006 I convinced my boyfriend (now husband) to get me a dog for Christmas. I had my heart set on adopting a the often misunderstood pit bull. While I was researching the dog adoption process I couldn’t help but stumble upon a statistic that stated black, male dogs were the most commonly euthanized dog. It’s so common that this phenomenon even has a name- the “Black Dog Syndrome.” Black coated dogs so rarely get adopted that most no-kill shelters don’t even try to save them because over the years they’ve realized that it’s pointless battle. Right then I knew exactly what I wanted for Christmas. I ran a search on Petfinder.com and ran a for pit bulls and and found this guy…
(Jackson’s actual adoption picture)
Jackson was everything I wanted — a black, male, pit bull mix, and with his one broken ear he was the cutest dog I had ever seen! Fortunately for me Lori Weise the head of Downtown Dog Rescue — and now one of my favorite people — rescued him when he was five months old from the North Central Animal Shelter before he was to be put to sleep. Four months later I came along and adopted him.And at first it wasn’t easy. Within minutes of being in our apartment for the first time Jackson destroyed a table as he tried to attack the cat. And that dog and cat battle raged on for the entire first year (and then some). But with some nerves of steal and a few incidents of projectile pooping (I kid you not — flying cat poop) my husband and I finally got them to come together. Now they can often be found snoozing on the couch together!
(Diego the cat and Jackson)
In the last few years Jackson has grown up from a crazy and troublesome puppy to an highly intelligent and super sweet member of our family. He accompanies us on almost all our family vacations — He’s explored meteor craters in Texas, hiked the Sandstone Bluffs of New Mexico, went housboating on Lake Mead, ran through corn fields in Illinois and, of course, enjoyed our fabulous California beaches.
He’s also picked up a few more family members over the years. A few months after adopting Jackson, my best friend (and neighbor) adopted another pit-mix from DDR, Maybelle.
(Me with Jack and Maybelle at the beach)
And then a year later he got himself a bratty little sister — also a DDR rescue…
(Peezu humping Jackson)
Clearly Jackson is a good (and super accepting) big brother. Peezu (previously named Izzy) came into our lives almost exactly a year after we got Jackson. Peezu is a tiny terrier mix who thinks she’s a pit bull. She started as a foster dog, DDR was out of room and she was living in a cage at their vets office, so we took her in and, of course, EVERYONE fell in love with her… including Jackson — no matter how often she humps him when he just trying to enjoy a good chew toy.
Today we’re all one big happy family living in an apartment in West Hollywood and I couldn’t imagine my life without these crazy DDR dogs. And if I had the room, I’d keep adopting more!
Finley family enjoying their first snow together in Texas!
Jackson meeting the DDR Dog Pack!
(Me with Jack and Maybelle at the beach)
(Peezu humping Jackson)