How I Met My Pet: Jaxon Johnson – The Valentine’s Doggie

Editor’s Note: While our annual How I Met My Mate feature celebrates love stories that bring people together, this Valentine’s issue also makes room for a different kind of soulmate. Here’s a reader-submitted story of a beloved pet whose arrival was just as unexpected and life-changing — a reminder that some of our greatest loves come with fur and four legs.

Rockwall, TX (February 5, 2026) – Jaxon is an 11-year-old Shih Tzu that we rescued nine years ago, in February 2017. Rick and I had lost our Shih Tzu two years earlier, and our other dog, Eddie, was so depressed and clearly needed a friend.

We found this little cutie on the Tzu Zoo Rescue website, a volunteer rescue and foster care organization. His name at the time was Frosty, and he had been found wandering the streets as a stray before being placed in a foster home. We looked at Frosty’s photo over and over before finally deciding to adopt him.

We drove to Italy, Texas, to pick him up — and he was quite a mess. He needed grooming and ran around our house like a madman for the first couple of days. We decided to change his name to Jaxon, because Frosty just didn’t match his spirit.

It’s been nine years since we adopted him, and he has changed our lives in so many ways. He loves car rides and, of course, sleeps in bed with us. We call him our “Valentine” because we got him in February.

Submitted by Dianna Johnson of Rockwall. Courtesy photo.

  Blue Ribbon News, feature, How I Met My Pet, Rockwall