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Hi, I haven't had a puppy in 14 years. Jake is 17 pounds at 12 weeks. Mom and Dad were both Border Collies. Mom was about 40 pounds. Dad was smaller and thinner. This was her first litter. Seven pups. All males and butterball fat. Am I looking at a giant Border? Not that I really care but I had hoped for about 40 pounds.

Hi, Anyone have recommendations for a carpet cleaner. I'm living temporarily in a house with thick carpet virtually everywhere. My 14 year old Border Collie seems to pee, poop or puke in the house on a monthly basis. I'd like to buy a carpet cleaner that is able to clean entire rooms and do spot cleaning when necessary. It needs to get the carpets really, really,dry and not weigh a ton! Thanks!

Hi, I love the puppy!!! Usually the ears of mine were set by six months. But . . . . Years and years ago I had a female Border with airplane ears whose ears became prick at 9 years of age!!!! I have no idea why! Only a Border Collie . I hike a lot with my dogs but I'm very cautious with puppies. I had a co-worker who got a husky from a rescue and took him on a long hike when they got him. He was a year old but was neutered at 4 months. His growth plates weren't closed and the hike damaged the growth plate in his carpus and as he continued to grow the leg became crooked. He has never been sound. At six months with no prior hiking experience I'd start with a mile on soft turf and do that for a few weeks. I'd gradually build up distance and add hills but I wouldn't go over 3 miles, do rough terrain or hard surfaces until her growth plates were closed. I figure, God Willing, I will have my dogs for many, many, years and I want them to be as sound as possible for as long as possible.

I think I will try supplementing his regular food with MCTs instead of changing the food. I'm not a big fan of corn. My other Border Collie is on Hills H/D and on occasion the canned food has whole kernels of corn in it. (I thought it smelled like corn!) She was never an itchy dog but she is now. Not horribly itchy or having skin infections but just a bit itchy. My boss had two of her ancient terrier mixes on Bright Minds but they were also on Anipryl so it was difficult to say what helped. I was hoping someone on the Boards had tried it. My old Border isn't anywhere near as senile as my boss' two terriers were, I was just hoping to delay (or avoid) that.

Hi, Has anyone fed Bright Minds dog food (made by Purina) to their senior dog? Any comments (good and bad.) I'm not sure if it is worth changing my 14 year old dogs food.

I'm sorry about the diagnosis. Spoil away! Enjoy every day!

Merry Christmas everyone!

I agree to having the vet check this out. She could be starting with kidney issues and that is the cause of the "off" appetite.

One of my girl BC's needed to be out for quite a while and squat several times to empty her bladder, then she was good for quite a few hours. Perhaps your girl is the same.

My boy did the same thing at about the same age. I immediately went back to crating when I was at work and only leaving him out for short periods during the day and overnight (with me there.) At age two I started leaving him out when I was at work, but had someone check on them mid-day. He was never a problem again. Just needed to grow up a bit more!

My male pup I picked out at 9 weeks of age. He was crazy. He made me laugh. 14+ years later, he is still crazy and still makes me laugh!!!! My female I also picked out at 9 weeks of age. She was cuddly and needy, at almost 11 she is still cuddly and needy!! Watch the puppies for quite a while and pick the one you think you can live with.

One of my Borders was a digger. A friend told me to put her stool in the hole. It stopped her from digging out the old holes, she did continue to make some new ones but, in time, that quit. (And she went on to other crazy behaviors )

I've had four Borders. My current male, Logan, is a happy barker. Quiet otherwise he would bark during training because he loved it so much and was over the top happy about it. Unfortunately, I tried almost everything any trainer suggested for years until I happened on the solution mentioned above. Give a verbal warning, then stop training. I'm sad I didn't realize this years ago. No one suggested it, I just (eventually) figured it out on my own and it very much improved his barking. Do it now before it becomes a habit that is hard to resolve.

That is soooo cute! They share!

Happy 14th Birthday Logan, I love you! He and Ziva both enjoyed their ice cream cake! I tried to post pictures but it won't let me

Hi, I'm glad to hear Digger needs Vetmedin only. Ziva the border collie, was diagnosed with a heart murmur when she was 7 years old. The cardiologist did an echo and since there wasn't any heart chamber enlargement just recommended a recheck in a year. A year later, there was some heart chamber enlargement and he recommended Vetmedin. He quoted a study that said that dogs on Vetmedin will live an average of two years longer than ones that do not. She was on just Vetmedin for over two years with no problems. She routinely sees the cardiologist and has been fine. February she had an episode of gagging and weakness. She was x-rayed and has fluid around her heart. Now she is in congestive heart failure. Lasix was added along with Benazepril. When we got to see the cardiologist he added spironalactone. Her diet has also been changed (low sodium) and her exercise restricted. So far she is doing well on the medications but sadly, I know this is the beginning of the end. I'm praying to have her until she is 12 (with good quality of life.)

I'm so sorry for your loss. You are in my thoughts. I've lost the first two Borders I owned and my second pair are 10 and 13 years so I dread what I know is coming.

I can't wait until you are Queen of the Universe!!! My buddies are 13 and 10 and I don't want them to be old!!

I've owned four borders from puppy hood. Two had hind dewclaws, two did not. The female's were bony and tightly attached, I doubt they would have been a problem but I work as a Vet Tech and I've seen them catch and tear on things, so when she was spayed, I had them removed. My current male dog had them also and they were horrible. Loose and floppy with the nail pointing in an abnormal direction, when he was neutered, I had them removed. I wouldn't do an anesthetic procedure just to get rid of them (actually, the vet I worked with at the time offered to remove Logan's with local anesthesia but I was squeamish about it), but if you are getting him neutered, I'd get it removed.

Thank you for your reply. Please pray that I have Ziva another two years as she is now, I would still be sad to lose her, but thankful for additional years. Maldwyn is adorable and I love shaggy terriers too! I'll pray that he has more years to go in his new home.

My sympathy on your loss of Vala. My female Border, Ziva had a heart murmur at age 7. By age 8 she was on Vetmedin. This past February she was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. So far she is doing well on the additional medication but no doubt I'll be in your shoes at some point. How long did Vala live after being diagnosed?

I've had Border Collies and cats together. I had a blind cat first. He was very laid back. He and the puppy became friends and remained friends all their lives. After that, I've had three more Border Collies and two more cats. All were gotten young. They have had different attachments. I've never had a timid cat. I've always picked a self confident kitten. I never wanted a cat that would be intimidated by the dogs and hide. So I've always had a cat that intimidated the dogs!!!! If your cat isn't self confident you would probably be better off with an adult dog that is used to cats and either likes them or totally ignores them.

I'm an NCIS fan! My 10 year old female Border Collie is named Ziva. Rarely does anyone ever get it. Usually, I'm stuck spelling her name several times and people end up calling her Diva, Zeba, Viva. Where I work we have a Springer Spaniel who comes in regularly for nail clips and his name is Gibbs. I call him Leroy Jethro Gibbs. His owner loves it but my co workers are confused!

Hi, Thanks for the replies. I rescheduled our cardiologist appointment due to covid-19. It is now for the end of April. Ziva, thankfully, acts totally fine as far as activity level and no cough and a normal respiratory rate. My one concern is for 1-2 days about every two weeks her appetite is off. I had a chem screen done after the first episode (being concerned that she may have a kidney issue) but everything was fine. She has never been a picky dog. I know she hates taking pills so I hand pill her before she eats so she won't have issues with "something" being in her food. She has eaten the same prescription food for years. I've even added cannned prescription food. Every two weeks she just doesn't want it but she looks at the other dog's food and then runs to the treat cupboard when I walk there. I break up a treat or two, add it to her food and she eats without a problem. I'm not sure if I'm being played or if there is a real problem. I've never known of lasix putting a dog off food but I looked up benazepril and it can cause GI problems, but it seems weird that it would only do it every two weeks. Wow! Age 17! I'd be absolutely thrilled if Ziva lived that long a life

I am still working. I'm a Vet Tech and live in Pennsylvania. My rather small/rural county has almost 300 cases and 5 deaths. I'm very concerned where they are coming from. Our small "city"? Nursing homes? The Amish community? No one knows. We are under stay at home orders with only essential travel. Yesterday, it was suggested we wear masks when out in public. Work is very stressful. We no longer allow clients in the building except for euthanasias and one woman to visit her hospitalized cat. People are crazy!!!! Every time we have more restrictions placed on movement, the phone goes nuts! People become convinced their pet needs something ASAP!!!!! It is a lot of running in and out of the building with food/medications and pets!!! Honestly, I think people are just crazy from being stuck at home and it is something they can do. I'm still getting out and walking my dogs but that is concerning also as my hiking area is now getting a lot of attention and the people who are walking dogs have dogs that aren't well mannered at all!! I'm driving farther to find unused areas. It is a very stressful mess.