A dog’s life, bookended by tragedy and violence
Yorkshire terrier nearing record-breaking longevity succumbs after vicious attack by strange dog
The Yorkshire terrier named Jack was old — in fact, he was thought to be the oldest in Great Britain.
When Jack turned 26 in December, or maybe he turned 24 or 25, the dog had lived a decade beyond the average Yorkshire terrier. He became something of a British animal celebrity. If you convert dog years to human years, as the U.K. media did when celebrating the dog’s jubilee, Jack was the equivalent of 117 people years old.
Jack preferred a diet of sirloin steak or corned beef to kibble. He had arthritis and was occasionally incontinent — but that was small price to pay, perhaps, for 16 years with what his owners, Ray and Mary Bunn, called a smart and funny animal.
“He was brilliant, very intelligent. If he wanted his tea, he would tell you. If he wanted taking out, he would tell you. He was a character — everybody loved him.” RAY BUNN JACK’S OWNER
“He was brilliant, very intelligent. If he wanted his tea he would tell you. If he wanted taking out he would tell you,” Ray Bunn told the Daily Record.
Jack’s life was bookended by tragedy and violence.
More than a decade ago, Bunn’s daughter’s neighbour spotted two people tying Jack to a tree and then leaving the dog to his fate. The Bunn family stepped in when the neighbour was unable to keep the rescued dog. “The first time I saw him, he came running over to me and jumped into my arms,” Bunn said. “I didn’t even hold my arms out — the bond was instant.”
(The unorthodox adoption clouds Jack’s exact age. If Jack was indeed 26, he was nearing record-breaking longevity: The oldest dog confirmed by Guinness World Records lived to 29.)
Abandonment, according to Bunn, was not the worst thing that could have happened to Jack. “He had a brother,” he said, “and we heard that he had been fed to a Rottweiler, so he was facing a horrible future before my daughter’s friend took him.”
Despite Jack’s unusual history and the encroaching ailments of a very long life, his owners hoped he would die in his sleep. It was not to be. On Monday morning, Ray Bunn drove Jack to the marina in Hartlepool, England, where another dog, a black Lakeland terrier, bore down on Jack.
The strange dog tore into Jack’s side. “I began punching it in the face but it wouldn’t let go,” Bunn said to the Independent. The tussle lasted for three minutes, Bunn told the Times of London, until his blows forced the Lakeland terrier away. On the way to the veterinarian, Jack succumbed to his wounds. Bunn located the Lakeland terrier’s owner and reported the incident to the police. The Bunns were devastated. “Jack had me up at 5:45 a.m. and I shouted at him. I feel guilty about that now, but Jack knew he was loved and cared for,” Mary Bunn said in an interview with the Times.