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Jordan the skateboarding Jack Russell terrier is riding high with recent appearances on "The Late Show with David Letterman," Animal Planet's "Pet Star," and a local commercial. Date published: 4/7/2003
OME DO IT for the sense of adventure. Others for bragging rights in one of the roughest sports around. Jordan the Jack Russell terrier does it for the fish-flavored treats owner Deanne Davenport doles out as rewards. "She's into food," Davenport said of her beloved pet, whose skateboarding skills landed the pair a recent spot on Stupid Pet Tricks, the animal-centered segment on "The Late Show with David Letterman." "Very impressive," Letterman said after the petite 21/2-year-old pooch zoomed down a ramp while balancing on a board with four wheels. Jordan sniffed out the show's bright lights and coiling wires offstage before getting down to business. But fans got to see her half-pipe feat twice, thanks to the "slow-mo cam" that captured the action. The episode also aired the antics of a somersaulting umbrella cockatoo and a beer-fetching Doberman pinscher. Davenport knew Jordan was a talented terrier. But the two were seeing stars last February, when they filmed the Letterman segment in New York, performed for Animal Planet's "Pet Star" in Los Angeles and taped a local commercial--all in less than three weeks. "It was a really big whirlwind, but it was fun," said Davenport, a 36-year-old Web designer who runs Aquarius Design & Marketing from her home in the Chancellor area of Spotsylvania County. Their stint on "Pet Star," a program that showcases critters' quirky talents, debuted last month. Davenport hopes the channel will begin rerunning the episode soon. The commercial, where Jordan wags her tail and lands a bone from a friendly teller at Union Bank & Trust's drive-through window, currently airs on local cable channels. Davenport co-stars, driving the car and delivering a single line. The bank's ads in The Free Lance-Star also are scheduled to feature the pair. The dog-owner connection got off to a slow start, when the purebred pup snubbed her potential owner at their first meeting. Jordan "kind of wandered off and did her own thing," Davenport said of her initial look at the litter reared by Spotsylvania breeder Jessica Westbrooks. "It did actually take a while to develop the relationship I have with her." Davenport, who grew up training neighborhood mutts, preaches the virtues of positive reinforcement instead of punishing unwanted behavior.
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