An Inspiration to Service Dogs--Jesse, the Jack Russell Terrier!

Jesse, the Jack Russell terrier, perhaps the prince of service dogs, provides one very important service for everyone--he makes us giggle and smile.

Seriously. How can anyone see pictures or video of this precious pooch without smiling? Speaking of pictures, you might have seen him on the big screen already. He appeared in three films, including Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2, performing a few of his tricks in the Beverly Hills Dog Show. Jesse's done commercials for Disney, PetSmart, Mighty Dog, Beneful, and others, and he's quite the television star, too, with dozens of gigs. There's a pretty good chance that, if you watch TV at all, you've seen him in action.

Jesse is a purebred, tri-color Jack Russell terrier owned and trained by Heather Brook. She waited quite a while to get her Jack Russell and knew everything about the breed by the time her adorable, new puppy licked her face for the first time. "I got Jesse on my 16th birthday after waiting for over 4 years to get a Jack Russell of my very own. Between that time I did as much research, and read as many books about these wonderful little dogs that I could get my hands on. I first met Jesse when he was 3 weeks old, and visited him every week until he could come home with me at 8 weeks old," Brook recalls.

The wait was beyond worth it! Brook says they were inseparable from the start, but little did she know she had a brilliant bow-wow that would capture the hearts of millions. She began teaching Jesse tricks using bits of yummy lunch meet for motivation. Apparently, he didn't need much motivation--he taught himself how to sit up at only nine weeks old. Using only positive reinforcement and clicker training, Brooks taught Jesse amazing skills, and they eventually performed those tricks at birthday parties and talent shows. Word started to spread about this unique, furry, four-legged phenom.

Brook says, "Jesse just loves to entertain people and is such a ham when performing his tricks. It is so fun seeing Jesse thinking while learning, and the smile on his face when he is trying to figure out how to get me to click is priceless!"

Here are some mega-cool Jesse facts: Jesse's name means "Gift from God" in Hebrew. (We're sure Brook would agree wholeheartedly!) He doesn't like flies that buzz when he's trying to sleep. Jesse's favorite sleeping spot is under the covers with his head on Brook's pillow. His favorite activities are chase games, digging, roller blading, tug-of-war, hide-and-seek, Frisbee, hiking, swimming, playing at the beach, and, of course, car rides.

Jesse has carved out quite the career for himself as an accomplished canine actor, model, performer, entertainer, service dog, therapy dog, and international superstar, thanks to his many YouTube videos. And that's far more than his constant companion ever expected. Brook says, "Even if Jesse couldn’t do a single trick, it wouldn’t matter. I love him for his unique personality, sweet antics, and overall devotion. The unconditional love and joy that he has brought into my life throughout the years is something that I am forever grateful for."

Jesse clearly knows how to celebrate our favorite day of the week! To learn more about Jesse and Heather, visit his web site. Meanwhile, watch the video to see what this astonishing animal can do! What can he do that you'd like a service dog to do for you?

Sources: justjessethejack.com/ zoomroomonline.com/jack-russell-dog-tricks.html thriveinlife.ca Video Source: youtube.com/watch?v=P9Fyey4D5hg Image Sources: justjessethejack.com metro.co.uk taildom.com dogpostdaily.com facebook.com