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Success Story: Half In, Half Out
Days after losing Katie, their 13-year-old dog, Barbara and Steve Smith visited Spokane’s SpokAnimal care and control facility just to feel what it was like to be near dogs again. Little did they know they would encounter Jack, a handsome five-week-old puppy found wandering alone in a nearby parking lot. “Jack, like us, looked very sad and lonely,” recalls Barbara. “He was sitting at the back of his cage, afraid of all the barking.”
After cuddling and playing together, the Smiths could not leave the shelter without this bundle of love—and indeed, it seemed meant to be. “The second we got in the car Jack became a loving lap dog,” smiles Barbara, “and the moment we walked into the house, he started playing with our cat.”
The little pup turned out to be a quick study, too. “Within half an hour, he had mastered the art of sitting on command,” says Barbara. He was also housebroken within a week, though he was a little confused when first learning where the potty was. “Jack was introduced to his doggie door, which led to the fenced backyard,” says Barbara. “When he had to go, he ran to the door, stuck his head and front legs out and lifted his leg—not realizing his back end was still in the house,” she laughs.
Now that Jack gets his whole body out the door, this little wonder pooch finds other ways to make his humans laugh. The word “no” sets him jumping around and barking like it’s time to play, and he runs 100 miles an hour right up into his parents’ laps with a smile on his face. “We may have saved Jack,” Barbara says, “but he’s already returned the favor—over and over again.”
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