Sad Farewell to Jack

Sadly, we no longer have Jack. He's ok, but not living with us. We knew when we got him that there was a fine line between being able to give him all he needed or not, and unfortunately we couldnt. Jacks unknown parentage meant that it was impossible to know how big or fast he would grow, and he grew big. Our working lives would not allow us sufficient time to give him the exercise he needed, and he didnt take to living outside. For a couple of weeks we tried everything we could, but in the end we had to make the decision for him to be rehomed. This turned out to be one of the hardest, most heartbreaking decisions we've had to make. Julie was very upset, I didnt think i was bothered by it, until my first day off work on my own, and not having Jack there felt horrible. Just a few months and he had become so much a part of our lives, everything felt strange without him. Even now, a couple of weeks since he went to his new home, im still upset writing about it. We loved him and he loved us in return, watching him grow from a clumsy puppy into a strong, alert, happy young dog. Sam is the least affected by his going away. Sam is at an age where every question is 'why?', so I told him that Jack is now a big doggie and has gone away to work helping other people. This answer seems to be satisfactory to Sam, he still mentions Jack, but doesnt ask where he is now. Occasionally he will ask if he is coming home soon, and i have to try not to cry. Jacks new family have a couple of teenage kids to take him for walks, and were assured that there is always someone in the house, so he won't be left.

Parts of Jacks enclosure have been recycled, in particular the gate which has become the gate of the chicken run. I can't bring myself to do anything with his kennel. A lot of care, effort, time and love went into building it for him, and its like its my last link to him. Eventually i will dismantle it i suppose, but i cant let anyone else have it as is. I will probably convert it into planters or bird boxes or hedgehog boxes, im sure Jack would approve of that.