From the  Beginning.....

One winter night, my Dad was on his way home for his lunch break. On the way home, he looked over towards the sidewalk. There he found a little ball of fur cuddled up by a fire hydrant laying by about 3 feet of shoveled up snow. Dad didn't know whose dog it was or even where he was from.  Dad came home and told mom about it and he said that if it was still there when he came back home, he was going to bring it home.

When Dad went by again after work, the little puppy was still there.  So he picked the poor thing up and took it home.  Mom had just fixed supper; steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, and biscuits.  Since they didn't have any dog food, he got the same dinner that they did.  He ate everything that was left till there was nothing else to feed him.   He was feed and washed clean; he was so tired, he just fell right asleep.

Both knew that he looked special, not just a run of the mill mut dog. They knew he belonged to somebody  So they kept an eye in the paper about a lost puppy. Within the next few days, the dog was quickly housebroken and never seemed to get completely full.   Needless to say, they fell in love with him!  Finally, the dreaded newspaper ad was printed about a lost pup. So they had to call to see if it was theirs. Since they loved it so much, they wanted to make sure it was going to the right place. The breeder brought two other dogs to their house so Dad and Mom could know for sure.  This is where they found out that the puppy was only 5 weeks old and it was a Norwegian Elkhound.   They asked how much they were selling them for; it was $150 (a lot of money back in 1975). Sadly, with them being newlyweds and one laid off, money was tight and they couldn't afford it.

A few days went by and the breeders called and said they would sell him for $50 to them because they knew how Dad and Mom bonded with it.  They told them that they would try there best to come up with the money. They scrapped and skimped, cashed in pop bottles, to earn the money to buy him.

When they went there to go buy him, he was with about 6 other puppies. They knew it would be hard to figure out which one he was.They looked them all over and decided which one they thought was their Fat Jack (from  feeding him so much). Their selection was confirmed when the moment he entered the house, he ran straight to his dog dish in the kitchen.

For 4 years, he was their child that they couldn't have. They could not have had a dog that they loved more. He ate out with them every friday, a bathe every week, because he was inside, was very smart, would obey at the very order, and protected the home.  He was very spoiled.

In 1980, SURPRISE.....Here I Was!!! They wanted a puppy to grow up with me. Therefore, they bought a female puppy from Kokomo; they named her Miss Jillian.

I grew up with these precious puppies.They were the best babysitters.   When I would try to leave the yard, the dogs would block my way and not let me out.  In 1982, Jack and Jill had their first litter of 10 puppies, 2 died.  Two in the litter were pure black ones, very rare.  One Dad and Mom sold, the other one died shortly after birth.   Jack and Jill's next litter had 8 puppies.   After this litter, they had her spaded.

In 1985, our babies, Jack and Jill were stolen and sold in the blackmarket.  Believe us, WE KNOW WHO DID IT AND SO DOES GOD!!!! In Elwood, we had a crooked dogcatcher who would go around and steal purebred dogs and sell them out of state. This is who stole our puppies; His evilness didn't stop there.  When he found out Jill was spaded, he tied her to a tree out in the woods and shot her dead!  Instead of bringing her back, no questions asked, he killed our little baby! Our neighbors found her in the woods when they were hunting.

We have always told everyone we ever sold puppies to that if they had to get rid of it or if they just didn't want it, to bring the dog back. We don't want them to go to a pound or shelter.  We would gladly take any of them back for any reason. This is how we acquired Jobi. Jobi was brought back after about 6 months because the 16 year old just didn't want him anymore; he just outgrew him he said.  We welcomed him back into the family.  So he wouldn't be lonely, we bought another 2 year old Elkhound from Anderson, Jasper.

In the summer of 1996, Jobi painlessly died in his sleep, he was 14. In the summer of 1999, we had to put Jasper to sleep because of cancer. He was 15 years old. We all woke up one morning and he wouldn't move, he couldn't.  The vet said he was dying and he was in so much pain.  So, I just held him, crying and kissing him  until he went to Heaven.

After years of begging my parents to raise and breed dogs again, Dad and Mom surprised me with Jada Tata Gregg on January 13, 2000.  Mom and Dad met the breeders halfway from 5 states away.  Ironically, on January 13, 2001 (we did not plan it) we all drove out of state again to buy Jetto Farto Gregg.

On September 18, 2001, Jada and Jett had their first litter of 2 puppies!! One was named J.J. (a boy) and the other was named Jewel (a girl).

On May 7, 2002, the second litter of 6 was born.  One puppy, Hope, died after 72 hours.  She was very small and we hand fed her every hour, kept her warm, cuddled with her, and prayed for her.   But, God just had other plans. There other 5 were chunky, energetic, loving, and healthy.  There were 4 boys, and 1 girl left.  We know that one was named Moses and another was named Izzy Lucky.  My 9 year old cousin begged his parents for Lucky.

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