Jake, Jakey, Jacob, Skeezy, Fatboy, Snacks...

All of the above are titles given to Jake. Jake is Kirk and Andrea's "German Chocolate" (the name we made up for a mixed breed of German Shepherd and Chocolate lab). He is filling in for Allan while I am away from home. He is big, pesty, often irritating, excitable, playful, exhuberant and sweet. He eats everything he can get. I have seen him eat cantaloupe, spinach leaves, candy wrappers, socks, paper, and even a women's forumula multi-vitamin that I dropped on the floor. (I was worried that it might be poisonous for a dog to get a dose of the %100 percent daily value of folic acid, iron, selenium and whatever else is in the tablet, so Andrea pried is mouth open to get it out. He only ate about half of it and seems fine!) If there is popcorn in the house you will have not peace while eating it and my old routine of eating on the couch while watching TV is no longer possible!

He loves to go out on walks, although he hasn't mastered good leash behavior! When Andrea opens the drawer with the sandwich bags he know what is coming and gets really excited. When he walks he gets so excited he spends most of the time nearly strangling himself as he pulls to go faster. He is pretty strong!

This is what he looked like at this time last year. . .

This is what he looks like now! I think those front paws are the same size in both pictures!

His is a big, thrashing thing with a huge tail that whips back and forth when he his happy. (When he is REALLY happy his whole body whips back and forth!) He can play fetch forever. He loves to run in his yard, but he REALLY loves to visit the farm where he can run without a barrier to stop him. He also loves to go to Kirk's parents' farm where he can pester the cattle!

Here is Jake getting down to business and destroying an empty Coke box. I let him rip it to shreds because it was so funny! He will take the opportunity to destroy anything and when the snow melted from the yard this spring many treasures were revealed. Included in the trove was a scattered box of screws! Yes, he scattered a box of screws all over the yard. Such fun!

This was on Easter. I was holding that frisbee preparing to throw it and he was anticipating it!

This was also on Easter. He was swimming with his "cousin" Wallace in the creek! The both just stood there and drank the water and Wal kept dunking his head under! They both love water.


Oh, look, he's just a little baby!

He loves to play and when you watch TV at night he is constantly presenting some toy. His favorites are old socks and his rubber "Kong". Whatever he chooses is always soaked with drool and he likes to place it on your leg and then wait with anticipation until you throw it. Very gross but also kind of endearing. He won't give up until you join the fun!

One Sunday morning this fall when I was visiting I was laying on the couch feeling remorseful about drinking too much the night before, being unemployed and generally feeling bad about my behavior and outlook. "Jakey" decided to be a sweet little pet and slithered onto the couch and situated his 70+ pound body on my back! Suddenly I couldn't stop laughing!

I love this picture! I look it as "Skeezy" was trying to jump on me! Check out those "hybrid" ears that mix the pointy, alert ears of a German Shepherd and the floppy ears of a lab!