** Earlier this week I wrote about Melvin, here are few fun facts about Jake…

I do not follow boxing (I’m allergic to all forms of hitting) but I do know that Jake is a Raging Bull – thus his nickname Jake LaMotta.

The other day, while on the couch in the loft, Jake belly-flopped from couch to floor.  He landed, on his stomach, and didn’t move.  I 100% thought he was dead.  It turns out he was just asleep.  That’s Jake.  He does nothing half-ass.

Jake will go, and go, and go and then he’ll stop.  There is no slow down, no transition.  One minute he is zooming the house or making love to the carpet and the next minute he is frozen still. In regards to his stillness, it might be laying or sitting.  He can sit, and stare at a wall or a door or a window for as long as you are willing to watch.  My guess is, his previous family was not home much, so he sat and waited for them. A lot.  He has tremendous patience, except when he doesn’t, and then he has absolutely none.

His goal in life seems to be — being the opposite of himself.

Behaviorally, we have a few things to work on.  Jake has a wicked prey drive.  At first I thought he was just leash reactive but I’ve come to realize it goes much deeper than that.  If he sees something, say Monkey the cat, he cannot let it go.  He will tug and pull to get at Monkey.  He will back flip over his leash and harness in an attempt to break free.  If you call his name, nothing.  If you wave raw steak in front of him, it just makes him want Monkey more.  If you are able to get him to move ‘forward’, he will face and walk backwards (so that he can continue on the walk, but watch for Monkey).  Once Monkey is out of his visual, Jake will join the walk again but the moment you come back around to that area, he remembers Monkey was there.  And he starts the obsession all over.  Walking him is wonderfully delightful and I wish I could do it all day long!  Not.

He cranks out poop.  I’m not kidding, he stomps his foot and a poop shoots out.  He stomps his foot again and, well you get it.

If you put Jake on an AC vent blowing 68 degrees he will shiver.  If you walk him from vent to a 75 degrees back yard, he will overheat, pant and honk.  I have never seen a dog (or any other living creature) live a life of such tight extremes.

But all these things aside, the key to knowing and loving and understanding Jake lies in his googly eyes.  Those eyes look at me and I know for certain I will keep giving him rugs to love on.  I will be sure his body temperature never falls outside of his threshold.  I will create soft surfaces for him to belly flop onto. Those eyes, are magic.

Belly flopped.

Does this sweater make my neck look smaller?