A commentary on LOYALTY and our little ones.

A commentary on LOYALTY and our little ones.

True loyalty is a very rare commodity in today's world. A companion who will
always stand by you is a 'pearl of great price' and is of untold value. There
is an ancient bond between mankind and our canine companions that was struck in
the ancient darkness of time immemorial. Many people have forgotten and violate
the pact by ignorance and heartlessness. Some dogs don't take it as seriously
as others. They will run and hide in times of violence or danger to them. But
not the Jack Russell. The old Parson would still be proud of the strain that he
developed from his great lady bitch, Trump.

One of the things I seriously love about Jack Russells is their undying loyalty
and their tenacity. We're always hearing about the ones who go down a hole like
Alice and can't get back. Or they get lost in the woods and have to be found.
There are even unfortunate stories of them attacking other small pets like cats,
ferrets and gerbils. These are true due to the innate nature of this little
rascals, because they were bred to be brave beyond common sense and savage to
their prey.

On the other side of the coin, however, there have been many many true stories
of the little ones standing by their owners/masters/parents to the bloody end.
There's the story of George who won the Victorian Cross for saving a group of
'his' children from attacking dogs. There's the story of the South African JRT
who remained to guard his master's body after he was killed by rebels in that
country's civil insurrection. There was the JRT who in England, saved his
Mistress from a rapist by viciously attacking the man after being kicked
numerous times. Then the story of the JRT who defended 'his' pub from burglars.
These news stories are becoming legendary.

Even television has given them a bow. There were the too perfect versions such
as Eddie and Wishbone. But then on Law and Order there was an episode where a
woman jogger was attacked and killed by an attack dog that had gotten loose in
Central Park. The investigating detective sadly commented on the death of her
little terrier dog who had fought the much larger dog to protect her.

I believe that if Nicole Simpson had possessed a JRT, there would have been
proof of her murderer because he would have sustained injuries. The dog would
not have been found wandering the streets in confusion. A Jack would have saved
her or died with her.

Oh, yes. We know they have their problems and not all human and canine personalities mesh successfully. You can have a JRT who doesn't work out for you. Something in
their background may interfere with the bonding. Or they may be too high energy
for your circumstance. If that happens, all you can do is return or rehome the
dog. They are too strong willed to conquer if the relationship doesn't take.
But we know that when we find them, or they find us, that we have a soul mate
for life. We are blessed with our little hairy Angels. And the loyalty they
give to us can only be returned as fully and as tenaciously as we can.


Debi
Cpl Abbott and Cpl Bridget.
and Scarlet the dependable Horse Marine.

Semper Fideles which means (of course) Always Faithful.