Jake was surendered to me Sunday afternoon, June 8 , 2003. He is a 6 year old neutered male, current on shots, nice looking, and very well behaved.

Jake is a very nice boy, very friendly with people and gets along peacefully with all my other dogs. ( Pixel of course is bitch-whipping him into proper male to female deference and subservience.) This is a very well cared for and loved dog. He arrived with two big beds, a sack of his food and some treats, a rope toy , 2 giant Kongs , a 500 sized crate, various leashes and collars, some shampoo etc. His owners did obey my instructions to make sure he was current on his shots, and when they checked their records he was a bit over due so they got that done by their vet before bringing him. He is not current on heartworm and they did not get that checked, so I will have to do so. (He is from a low risk area, and had previously been on prevention, so it would be a nasty surprise if he came up positive). He was freshly groomed, clipped down for summer with attractive face furnishings left in place. His only apparent problem is that he is about 20 pounds or more overweight, but I know how to cure that and have already started dieting and excercising him. His owners got him as a puppy in WA. Breeders had bred their Bouv bitch to a Bouv but there was also possibility of a male GSD getting into the act. Jake does look as if he could be Bouv x GSD : longer back, and GSD type hind legs and front feet. (see standing photo below) But he is a very nice dog and should be very very adoptable.

Reason for surrender is that his people are about to leave for several years living abroad : they are going as missionaires to Peru. (Pity that they don't recognize that service to God should begin at home by taking care of Her favorite creation , the one whose name is God-spelled-backwards.) They are fairly responsible people -- as I said they did live up to my request for bringing his shots current. And they did respond to my request for a donation with a check for $100 (a drop in the bucket considering that our average deficit has been running about $500 per dog, but most surrendering owners don't contribute anything even when encouraged to do so). And they said good bye to him with some real sorrow.

UPDATE (7/8/03) : Jake has been doing very well here. He is a happy and mildly exhuberant dog, but is also very well behaved in home, car , and in public. He loves his toys, especially his Kongs which he will chew and carry around for extended periods. He also likes stuffed toys to massage and carry around. He is a very affectionate dog , quick to take advantage of oppertunities to be petted. (You'll never be alone in the bathroom , unless you are quick to shut the door. ) However he is also very well able to settle and amuse himself when I am otherwise occupied. In other words, he likes to interact and be petted, but he is not a pest about it. He is settles down well indoors, but is quite enthusiastic about walks. He does not get hyper if we have to skip a few days of walks. His social test at the Farmers' Market (chaos of humanity, music, food, other dogs) showed him to be sociable and unrattled and well behaved as I would have expected. And, yes, his heartworm test was negative and he is now on monthly prevention. He has lost 10 pounds of the 25 or so that he was initially overweight, and he now has a bit of a waistline. Still needs to slim down more. He is really enjoying our walks and is getting a decent recall. In short this is a very nice dog and would especially fit well in a home that offered some activity and especially some playful activity. I find him to be quite amusing, as well as affectionate and well behaved. For an appointment to meet Jake, please phone me at (530) 756-2997 between 10 am and 7 pm , California time.