Welcome Skipper!

Skipper was at another foster home but developed a pack order issue with one of the resident dogs, a lab, which was causing problems with the 3 dogs at the home. So as of yesterday he joined our pack of fostered terriers and is proving to be a great dog.

This guy was on New Rattitude's urgent list as a Jack-Rat mix but when he was rescued and his paperwork was looked at we discovered he is actually a purebred Jack Russell Terrier. Now, I'll admit that typically I'm not especially fond of the JRT breed. To me they are a bit like rat terriers on crack cocaine - SOOOOO intense! And while Skippy is intense, he's also 7 years old so he's moved past his insane stage and mellowed out to an energetic and athletic, loveable guy.

So many pluses about this boy: extremely well house-trained, absolutely adores kids and every human that he's met, loves to play, walks well on a leash, and amazingly for his breed, he's not a barker.

Down sides: He loves cats and thinks they taste like chicken, and he has that combo of distractability and hyper-prey drive that is common in Jacks.

He loves snuggling and is doing well with his gradual introduction to our pack. So far he and Tilly and Madeline have met and all are tolerating each other well. Skippy would love to play with him but they are kind of overwhelmed by his size and excitement about playing. Frodo and he had a short intro tonight in the back yard that was positive so we'll keep working on getting them together. He does enjoy other small dogs, however his intense style of play can be a little much for them.

The fact is that at 7 years old this guy is acting and looking like a youngster. He weighs 28 pounds but could stand to lose about 3-4 pounds to get to a healthy weight. We are starting to get him out on daily walks and have cut his kibble back a bit so he's headed in the right direction. This would be the perfect hiking partner for someone (as long as he was kept on leash) or a great jogging/walking partner as well. If you know anyone who would love a Jack Russell but isn't up to those early years of Jack-style mayhem, then this smart, goofy, beautiful dog may be just the right guy for them.