Who is Jerri?
This is Jerri! Jerri is a reoccurring character in my original work and children’s books.
When was Jerri created? Where did he come from?
Jerri was created all the way back in 2018 during my first courses of community college. Around this time in my life, I knew I wanted to go to art school and make children’s books. However, I had a more specific idea in mind regarding my books; I wanted to create books with good life lessons and morals. That’s when I made Jerri!
While there wasn’t much cartoon inspiration for Jerri’s design, there is a bit of backstory on why I chose his breed and accessory. Jerri is an Australian shepherd with a purple bandana. When Hotel for Dogs (2009) got their promotional Happy Meal toys at McDonalds, the first and only toy I ever got was the Australian shepherd, which had a green bandana around its neck. I loved that toy for a long time until I later gave it to my dog Jackson to play with. For some reason, that specific toy’s image stayed in my mind. When deciding on Jerri’s design, I thought back to that little toy and decided to design Jerri off of it!
Fun fact! Jerri’s bandana was originally green, but changed to purple when a professor brought the green color to my attention. She informed me that the green bandana may blend in too much with any grassy scenes Jerri would be placed into.
All About Jerri
Jerri strives to be healthy and fit. A strong advocate for healthy activities and eating, this shepherd knows all the dos and don’ts for an excellent diet. Jerri is always sure to eat enough fruits, vegetables, and other foods fit for a healthy and happy lifestyle. Jerri lives on a farm with his friends and family, all who also follow the rules of eating right and staying fit. He’s fun loving, friendly, and always knows how to make his friends happy. It’s no surprise that Jerri can find fun in everything he does.
Who is Moose?
Moose is Jerri’s wife and mother of three precious puppies; Jackson, Charcoal, and Chrissi. She’s also a reoccurring character in my original work.
When was Moose created? Where did she come from?
Moose was created on a whim in 2021 during my first children’s book illustration course. A conversation took place between me and my professor originally discussing Jerri. She had asked me if I ever planned to extend Jerri’s origins and bring in potential family, or even puppies. I fell in love with the idea of Jerri having pups. That’s when I knew Jerri would need to have a partner before I could make the pups. Enter Moose!
Moose wasn’t canonically introduced until 2022, followed by the pups. The first time Moose and the pups are seen is in the “A Day at the Carnival” (2022) piece. Fun fact! Moose was originally going to be named “Twix.” I decided against the name due to fears of copyright issues. So, I named her Moose instead for two reasons. Reason one was to keep a candy related name for her. Reason two; Moose just sounds like a funny name for a dog.
All About Moose
As previously mentioned, Moose is the wife of Jerri, and proud mother of three puppies. Moose is a chocolate brown German shepherd who doesn’t stop or slow down for anything or anyone. She’s strong, fierce, and actively competitive. Moose aims to be number one, but is always a good sport if things don’t go her way. Much like Jerri, Moose sees the value and importance of staying active and eating the right foods.
Who are Jackson, Chrissi, and Charcoal?
Jackson, Chrissi, and Charcoal are the three pups of Jerri and Moose. These three are reoccrruing characters in my original work.
When were the pups created? Where did they come from?
Much like Moose, the pups were a concept thought up in 2021, but not officially introduced as canon characters until 2022 in the carnival piece. During Moose’s concept creation, I thought about making three pups in total. When I began making the carnival piece, I initially came up with the pup’s designs and names.
All About the puppies
Jackson, who was almost named Jerri junior, is designed to look like Jerri’s original style with the green bandana before it was changed to purple. Taking after his mom and dad, Jackson loves to eat healthy and exercise when possible. Jackson is also compassionate and caring, much like Jerri. Chrissi takes on the looks and personality of her mom. Chrissi looks up to Jerri and Moose as her key role models, wanting to be just as strong as them when she grows up. However, Chrissi is more than just bronze. She’s analytical and smart, and serves as the voice of reason between her two brothers. Charcoal is the quieter baby brother of the pups. Charcoal’s physical appearance is the most mixed between Jerri and Moose, and wears a bandana similar to Jerri and Jackson. Charcoal is kind, caring, and very compassionate of others. His overall strength and health are very important to him, but he tends to focus more on less strenuous activities. Charcoal likes to take things slow and remain more on the careful side in order to pace himself.