MaryP

I would stay veryfar away from Indian Summer, speaking from personal experience. ive heard good things about Buckeye.

I just saw this, too I'm very sorry for your loss, Kristine.

I am very sorry for your loss, Linda. That must have been such a shock.

Agreed with what others have said. But, I also wanted to say that you might want to invest in a simple mesh muzzle for times when your dog needs to be examined and might bite. It's more secure and probably less scary than you trying to hold your dog's mouth shut. http://www.petstore.com/coastal-pet-best-fit-adjustable-mesh-dog-muzzle-black-size-5?1=1&utm_source=adwordsfroogle&utm_medium=pscse&utm_campaign=adwordsfroogle&utm_content=CI07608&gclid=COnJw4DDjrYCFQZV4AodvVMAVw

USDAA awards placements up to 4th place, Q or NQ.

Maybe we could just start listing every Q they've ever earned after their name.

I'm a little confused by this question. Do you mean she only needs one more leg to earn her Agility Dog (AD) title? Are you saying that she already has moved up by earning legs in Standard, but is needing legs in the games for her AD, AAD, and MAD titles?

LOL, Kristi. Something else we think alike on. Yep. Especially when I have to go Google them to figure out what they mean!

I adopted Milo from an animal shelter in TN, so there's no way of knowing. But, based on his behavior, I think he was likely a bc mix. He exhibited a lot of bc-like traits, but was not quite as intense and "all business" like my pb border collie. As he got older, he became more and more furry. I'm not sure why. (Perhaps because I am terrible about grooming my dogs). Here are a couple of pictures of him when he was about 2 years old and not so furry. I think he looked even more like your girl when he was younger. The one thing that I can say is that if I were to live 1,000 years, I could never find a dog as perfect and special as Milo. Enjoy every minute with your special, speckled girl.

Yeah, just sounds like your dog has his "working head" on and the petting just adds stress. My bc is not particularly fond of petting/snuggling for more than brief periods. But, at an agility trial, he's even less interested. And, can I just say that your dog could be the twin of my beautiful boy, Milo. My heart skipped a beat when I enlarged your thumbnail.

Adorable!

This is a very good video about vaccinations. It's long, but very interesting and very informative.

Yes, some shelter are better than others. No argument. But, shelters are not the sole reason for high euthanasia rates. As Mark pointed out, there are regional trends, and in some areas, there are simply more unwanted animals than homes can be found for, despite the efforts of shelter personnel, volunteers, and rescues. I get several emails a week from shelters in AL and some areas of FL asking me if I have room for some of their dogs. Most of the time, I have to tell them that I don't have room. And it is the same with many other rescues. We are full all. the. time. No, it's not. It's a pretty standard, first step question to ask. Most shelters are rescue-friendly. A few are not. The ones that are not are usually not because they'd been burned by rescues (usually out-of-state ones) in the past, or they don't need rescue's help because they have good success placing the animals on their own. Who, exactly, are these rescues that are importing dogs from other countries "by the thousands"?

What makes you so sure that the ACO that I referred to was not doing his/her job (or, beyond and above his/her job)? In fact, the reason I found out about this particular community with no shelter was because I was contacted by the ACO and asked if I had room in my rescue for the dog. But, this particular community HAS NO FACILITY FOR HOLDING DOGS. So, you're going to blame that ACO if many of the dogs that get picked up and not reclaimed are euthanized? You can only avoid euthanizing your surplus animals, if they have a place to live and someone to care for them.

Great answer, Laura!