We've had Jake a little over a month now and I can't even remember what life was like without him. He has made himself such a part of our lives and belongs so completely with us. Charlie absolutely loves having another dog to play with and he brings out the best in her. When he's not following Charlie around like an annoying little brother, he's glued to my side. If I leave the room, he gets up to see where I'm going. Most of the time, I try to stay within his line of sight so he doesn't have to constantly get up to see where I am. But I'm one of those people who doesn't sit for long, so I'm always up puttering around the house, and Jake is too.
He had his final vaccine appointment at the vet on Friday. Earlier in the week, I took in a stool sample because he's had trouble with ongoing diarrhea and it was getting worse. Turns out he's got a bacterial infection called Clostridium and has been an antibiotics and probiotics since Monday night. His stool was getting better, but the vaccine set him back again and he vomited up his lunch on Saturday and has loose stool again. We'll keep a watch on his progress to getting his intestinal tract feeling better, but it doesn't seem to be bothering him much.
Jake weighed 31 lbs when we adopted him on 4/12/18, and at yesterday's vet appointment he weighed in at 38.5 lbs, so he's doing good putting on weight and seems to grow taller by the day! Alan and I have made a bet on what Jake's adult weight will be at his 1-1/2 year birthday (4/20/19)... the winner gets a "date night" of their choice, so technically we both win. Alan is guessing Jake will be 60 lbs, but I'm thinking he'll top out at no more than 52 lbs. Jake's Wisdom Panel results will be back in a few days and that will also come with an adult weight estimate based on his breed mix, so I guess we'll have to wait and see who is the closest!
This boy is happy ALL THE TIME! He's an absolute ray of sunshine. He has the cutest little way of picking up a toy - any toy - and shaking his head back and forth kind of slowly as he trots toward you and he looks like he's trying to imitate a giant dinosaur. Then he'll kind of head-butt you with the toy and do the cutest little growl. He's a puppy trying to be a big boy and I can't get enough of it.
I thought it would be a challenge to share my love between the two dogs, but Charlie really isn't much of a snuggler/lover... she's more into playing with toys and will fetch until she drops dead. Jake, on the other hand, is a total lover and snuggler. So when I'm snuggling Jake, Charlie is fine as long as I toss her ball every so often. Jake is a full-body snuggler and will crawl right up into your lap and stick his nose right into your mouth for a kiss. I have to warn strangers about this behavior because there's no stopping him once he decides he wants to give you a hug!
He makes the cutest little sounds when he barks or growls. His bark is completely different than Charlie's - throatier and lower in tone. I could listen to him bark all day, it's that cute.
Jake also gets hiccups a lot! I forgot how much puppies get hiccups. It's just so random, and only lasts for a minute or so and then they're gone.
He loves trying new foods and seems to be a big fan of peanut butter. His first taste was so tentative that I thought he was one of those dogs who might not like it. But now when you open the jar, he comes running.
When we set up the little plastic baby pool in the backyard and started filling it with the hose, he was immediately curious. He watched the sprayer and eventually began biting at the water like Charlie does. He dipped his toes in the water and then went right in, splashing around and playing with the toys floating in it. His favorite game is to remove all the toys from the pool. He also laid down in the water, which Charlie has never done. He's just so easy-going and chill!
He's still got two baby teeth left to lose - his top canines. His big boy canines have come in right next to them so he's got doubled-up canines on top right now... which hurts! He's doing a lot better with his bite inhibition - something Charlie taught him quickly. But he still sometimes catches a hand or toe in his mouth and those sharp little baby teeth are painful! He should be losing them any day now and then he really will be a big boy.
My love for this little boy grows daily. He is so perfect for us and fits in with us on every level. When Alan and I first started discussing getting another dog, both of us were worried that the new addition would disrupt the balance of our perfect life. We were just getting in the groove of being a family of three and everything was going perfectly. Would adding a new dog make things worse? Turns out, the answer was no. Adding Jake to our family has only made things more perfect. I seriously couldn't be happier.
Thank you Rescue Gang for allowing me to be Jake's dog-mom. He is the best puppy ever.