Rescuing Thunder & Jenkins
- kelly7345
- Jan 12
- 6 min read
Owning Waggs 2 Whiskers and meeting the many amazing pet owners that I am blessed to call family, I am privy to so many amazing stories about their pets and their life along with some awesome stories of rescue. These stories touch my heart the deepest. I believe in my soul that every dog has their person on this earth and when they find it, it’s God’s way of sharing His gifts with us.
Recently, one of our pet owners Diane shared a story of two Jack Russell Terriers that have recently joined her pack at home. The story literally stopped my heart and gave me hope again that these pups were placed in the right place at the right time with their guardian angel!
The new puppies named Thunder & Jenkins who I had already met and loved at first sight were rescued from a JRT (Jack Russell Terrier) Rescue out of Texas called Russell Rescue, Inc that is run by Robyn Reed (aka rescue angel). Diane and her husband Rick used to live in Texas and their love for JRT’s started a long time ago. Robyn had placed JRT’s with Diane & Rick in the past.
Jenkins story started when he was bought as a puppy by a Chinese family for their 14 year old son. The boy’s parents didn’t like dogs but thought their son needed a dog. Jenkins spent his first 2 years of his life in a cage in the garage. Insert heartbreak here... When the family traveled, they took Jenkins to a local doggie daycare in Dallas, TX for boarding, the owner of the daycare Denise (aka guardian angel # 2) fell in LOVE with Jenkins as he clamored for love while he was at the daycare. She discussed with the family that he was lonely and another dog might be the answer. Of course, she had no idea that Thunder was in a cage for most of his days and nights. So, the family bought Thunder who spent his first 2 years in the same garage in a cage with Jenkins.
One day when Thunder & Jenkins were being dropped off at the daycare center, guardian angel # 2/aka Denise noticed that they were being taken out of a cardboard box out of the trunk on arrival. She asked the son what was going on and he told her of the horrible story of his parents hating dogs and dog hair. He also told her that they were being caged on top of each other in the garage. Jenkins has permanent leg deformation due to this. The family, when the son went to college, dropped both Thunder & Jenkins off at a local vet with a check and asked them to euthanize them both. The vet called Denise (guardian angel # 2) and she rushed to their rescue.
Now, let me take you back to Diane & Rick who had at the time had Iris, Skye & Gator. Gator who was also a JRT rescued from Russell Rescue, sadly had just passed away at the time Thunder & Jenkins were rescued but we all believe he had a part of bringing Diane and Rick furry love from the other side of the rainbow bridge. Gator was found by Robyn (guardian angel # 1) tied to a fence bleeding, starving and with a smashed paw. He had suffered greatly at the hands of his “owners”. Robyn reported them to the police and rescued this special boy.
Skye, also rescued by guardian angel # 1, had suffered from a tragic childhood as a Houston street dog. She had been hit by a car and had two legs severely broken at risk of amputation. The first vet that saw Skye recommended euthanization. Robyn stepped in and Russell Rescue financed her extensive surgery including metal leg parts and rehab. This is when Diane & Rick met this sweet furry miracle girl. Myself, I can attest to say that Skye reaches deep down into your soul when you meet her, her eyes tell her story. She is so thankful to be there and makes sure everyone she meets knows. Diane says she is their “bright little light”. She also shared that she is a good sister to the boys and feels they communicate in more ways than they know and often. Skye had a waitlist of 50 people wanting to adopt her but Robyn chose Diane & Rick to be her parents. And, that choice was golden!
Before Skye, Diane & Rick had a little girl named Abby. Abby was brought into their lives also by guardian angel # 1 Robyn. Abby was a senior Jack Russell that had lived the 12 years of her life with horrific pet parents. She was flea ridden, had no hair and eye injuries from her own scratching. L She lived her last 2 years of life in the home of Diane & Rick getting all the love, playing ball every day and growing her hair back. She was a lot like Thunder in size and nature. Robyn told Diane & Rick about Skye the day they called to let her know that Abby had passed of respiratory failure. They then drove 14 hours to Houston to meet Skye with Iris & Gator in tow. They all fell for her instantly.
Now for the story of Iris..Iris is not a JRT but a lab mix. Yes, sometimes even when we least expect it, we are put on a path with a dog that we had no idea we needed. Rick, who Diane calls the dog whisperer, and her were walking in a park in Houston with Gator and Memphis - their first JRT after they were married. They turned around and found a happy 10 month old lab puppy following them. Memphis and Gator frolicked with her and enjoyed getting to know her. Diane & Rick saw no owners around. They walked home and this cute puppy followed them. She immediately jumped into their pool when they got into their yard and Memphis joined her for a dip. They ran multiple ads to try to find her owners but nobody came forward. They took her to a local humane society, she stayed for 7 days and nobody came forward to retrieve her. Rick & Diane asked at that time if they could be her new parents. Iris was blessed to have her forever home. Almost one year later, Rick was walking in the same park with Iris and a woman there recognized Iris as her dog. Diane explained that Iris was clearly in recognition of her- but became a “shrinking violet in that moment”. Rick asked the woman what had happened and she said Iris kept digging out of her yard and escaping, she also called Iris a “stupid dog”. Rick kindly asked the woman if she wanted to visit Iris, he wasn’t about to offer Iris back to her. The woman declined saying she looked better with him and she didn’t have time for a dog anyway. Iris chose her new family, especially Rick as her papa.
Now that you know the story of Rick & Diane’s current pups, you can see what amazing pet parents they are. Robyn from Russell Rescue had known Rick & Diane for 20 years, she knew they would be the perfect puppy parents for Thunder & Jenkins. Diane had just called Robyn the week before to share the sad news of Gator’s passing. Diane & Rick love Robyn and all she has done to connect these souls to them over the years. The next step after that phone call from Robyn was a flight to Dallas and a long sweet car ride home with their two rescued furry boys Thunder & Jenkins. In their new home, these boys are learning they are safe, loved and get all of the cuddles they crave. Diane & Rick truly believe “God brought their precious souls to them at a time when their hearts were grieving Gator and they immediately added a light back to Iris & Skye”.
Robyn truly is a guardian angel for all of the JRT’s in her care and obviously they search her out as well. In Diane’s words, “Robyn always knows she has a gift – a matchmaker from heaven for sure.” Robyn Reed and her sister retired as school teachers years back, each of them have owned Jack Russell Terriers. When Robyn lost her boy after 20 years, she started Russell Rescue in his honor. Her sister joined her 2 years later and together, they have been finding homes for JRT’s across the USA. Since this breed is tough and can be temperamental, the best pet owner needs to have a lot of patience. They do a lot of education for their Jack Russell parents and are very picky about who they give these furry children to as adoptive parents. Her organization again is named Russell Rescue. Here is the link to her organization if you would like to be matched up with your next BFF/JRT:
Thank you for reading! A special thank you to Diane (JRT mama) for sharing these amazing stories with me and agreeing to let me use them for this blog. I’m forever grateful to her for sharing her furry babies with Waggs 2 Whiskers!
Kelly Catlett
Proud Owner
Waggs 2 Whiskers, LLC
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