Turner

It was March 2001. I was in 7th grade, and one Sunday afternoon my dad informed me who knew of someone who had a litter of Jack Russell Terriers. Two of my close friends had Jack Russells. They were so much fun. One was calmer than the other, but they were small and playful. Two things I wanted in a dog. My dad told me that if I wanted a dog, I had to make the necessary phone calls to the owner and would have to pay for a portion of the costs. I called the couple that was selling the dogs. There was no answer. I left a message, but for the remainder of the afternoon I did not hear back from them. Some friends had invited me to their youth group that evening. I usually hoped I was the last one picked up from similar events, but this time I could not wait to get home to hear if we had heard back from the people selling the dogs. When I got home, my parents informed me that the couple had called back and we could go over to look at the puppies.

I was so excited. We had one dog, Midnight, a beautiful black lab. She was the sweetest dog ever, too. She was a surprise Christmas present when I was 4 and Morgan was 7. However, she was an outdoor dog and had to stay that way because of her size. I wanted a dog that could come inside, sit on the couch, and go anywhere in the house.

We went to the couple's house, which was only a street away from our house. We had found out this couple had Jack Russells and fell in love with their original two because they would constantly get out of the house and would wind up in our yard. The couple showed me to the backyard where the puppies were. I would pick one up and play with it. Throughout the evening, though, this fat puppy who could only waddle for a walk stayed at my feet. He would not leave me. I knew this was the dog I wanted.

We took him home and found an old mail crate to put him in. It was a whim decision so we did not have the necessary items for him yet, such as his own crate. He slept in my room the first night and kept me up for much of it. I didn't mind, though; I had a dog.

A few days later, I got really sad because I thought I was leaving Midnight out. Midnight would come in at night to our sunroom, so I closed the doors and let her out and just let her have some time with just me, not the "other dog." Midnight and Turner quickly became the best of friends. Midnight took on a motherly role with Turner, and Turner was completely in awe of her. When we had to put her down, Turner seemed very sad even.

My whole family has come to love this crazy dog. He's sometimes like a person trapped in a dog's body. When he's ready to go to bed, he puts himself to bed. He always finds a blanket or pillow to make in the perfect pallet for him to cuddle up in. He thinks he's way bigger than his physique tells any onlooker. He is full of energy but never turns away a nap on the couch.