Painted1

I'm glad you can still deposit it!! That was an expensive snack for Toby! (Let him know to eat off the $1 menu next time!!)

Is this dog still available? I have a friend who owns BC's in Australia, and if she is still available, I'll contact him and see if he's interested.

By Elisabeth Rose? Yeah, I finished it a few weeks ago. I liked it and it kept me amused... although I thought it was amazing all they went through for their dog. Some of the things that their dog did was like deja vu with my Adria. Have you read "A Good Dog?" by Jon Katz? How about "Marley & Me?" I forget who wrote that right now... but it's about a yellow lab. And I really enjoyed it! I'm pretty laid up from some horseback riding injuries, so I've been reading a lot. Let me know what kind of books you like, and I'll recommend some really good ones!! Another book I have yet to read is "From Baghdad With Love". It's about a soldier's struggle to bring home a puppy he fell in love with while over there. Oprah's talked about it, so it should probably be pretty good. I saw an interview on tv with the author and if he can write as well as he talks about the book, then it should be really a nice read!!

I just read a book recently, an autobiography about this man's experience with his border collies. He rescued the one dog who's name was Devon. The dog was very disobedient and upset every time the man said the name, and his trainer suggested changing the dog's name - which made a world of difference. The dog associated bad things with the word Devon. I have to be very careful that I don't ask my 2 yo to sit for too long, although we're working on "stay" too and eventually have to increase the time. If I ask her to sit and I have her sitting for a bit too long, she plops into the "down" position whenever I speak to her - she's itching for another command. Patience and happy treats, but don't over do it. Like Julie said, keep it to a minimum. My pup doesn't like long instructions and tends to grow ADD, not really anxious. I've learned I get a quicker response if I don't ask for her to "hold that command" for too long. (I do of course make sure that when I ask her to sit, that she sits - and doesn't hover her bum an inch or so off the ground. Same with down, I make sure she makes contact on all legs and does a complete "down" position before rewarding her.) Maybe if you use the words "hold it" instead of stay? Possibly your puppy doesn't like what he's associated with that word? Then, you can retrain him to enjoy staying without even knowing it. Hope you get it worked out, this breed sure can be finicky!!

Happy Birthday!! I love the pictures!! They're all so beautiful - and colorful!

Hehe - my Dirt Devil is bagless! I believe our heat is hot air, but I honestly don't know the difference. I'll ask when the significant other comes home from work!

I think it's set on like high 60's-low 70's right now. Although this is a year round thing.

Adria has the split face, Shep's the larger dog.

We just switched the dogs from Pedigree, to Pedigree Lamb & Rice. I supplement occasionally with an egg mixed in. However, I can't really supplement Shep without him getting an upset bowel (we claim he has a sensitive digestive tract!). No, the dogs aren't itchy and they do have a clean bill of health.... Well, one issue we do have with Adria often is round worms. The vet's amazed that although we've tried several different worming strategies, they go away and almost always come back every few months. She's very active on the farm and I don't monitor her every second, so I don't know what she gets into. She has just recently had worms, but is free of them again. The hair issue has always been a problem, and I have had Shep for quite a few years now. Shep has a beautiful shiny coat. It's long and silky. You can tell if it's a Shep hair because it's a few inches long. He's not shedding as noticeably right now as Adria is. Although a lot of the hair is from him, don't get me wrong. (Teamwork I guess!) Adria is still kind of fluffy, but has lost the majority of her puppy "down" hair. Her coat is of a medium length. I sure hope it keeps growing because it's a little gangly looking, hehe. The body of her coat is shiny, although the wispy ends on her tush (she only has a few stray hairs here and there) are kind of dull. They don't seem to have dry skin and I don't bath them too often, only as needed really. But like I said, their groomed daily.

One of my favorite games is frisbee, and my dogs agree!! It's convenient, a great toy to use as a reward too. I can pretty much play with my dogs any where, so that's always good. Let me know if you'd like some suggestions of how to teach your pup to play it!

I swear I can empty out my vacuum cleaner daily and fill one of those big pumpkin looking trash bags that people fill with leaves and use as lawn ornaments! I was vacuuming again today and noticed the telltale signs of the dying Dirt Devil. It was loud and really sounded like it was gasping for its last breath it sounded so pitiful. In the last year, this will be my second heavy duty Dirt Devil vacuum. I swear, the quantity of dog hair is sucking the life out of any vacuum it comes in contact with! What can I do?? Shep has a gorgeously long coat, Adria's in a stage right now - where her adult coat is growing in, but it's different lengths throughout her body. I brush these two daily and try my best to vacuum each day, if not, then every other day. Adria, recently, has been shedding unbelieveably. You stroke her once with the brush, and hair flies every where! I remember when Adria was growing out of her fluffy puppy hair and it would literally "float" on air drafts around the home. That was a terrible, tiresome time. I have hair in the kitchen, sticking to any surface possible. I have hair along the crevices of the heater vents, hair coating the floor, the couch, the bed, anything or any where that the dogs have come in contact with - or not necessarily. The hair may just happen to "float" there. I try to keep a semi-clean house, but it never seems to get any more manageable. Any tips? I'm really pooped right now - in early December I had a fall off my horse and suffered a fractured pelvis and two broken backbones. So, it's even more tiresome then usual. Any tips that may help to keep the hair more manageable would be appreciated greatly! Possibly anything extra I can add to their diet that helps shedding? Different grooming techniques? I try only brushing them outside, but with the cold weather, I've had to suck it up and do it inside. Any really good heavy duty vacuums? I have supposedly the best - but two in one year?? I love my dogs, but right now, I just need help!!!!

My older BC, Shep, has filed canines, upper and lower. Filing canines is a practice that used to be believed in that would "calm" a dog, especially male, and would make them less aggressive. I don't really believe in this practice, don't know much about it, and I didn't know it was still done. I read about it some where...... Shep's canines have been filed and his original owner was a vet, who must have done this... I know, I know.... This has nothing to do with broken teeth... It's just my only experience with anything done with canines!

"Steve" - such a serious name! Hehe - it's cute! Can't wait to see pictures!

Shep will soon be a "patient" of Dr. Acland. The professor returned my letter immediately, saying that he's very interested in seeing and assessing Shep. So, we'll see where this takes off to... I'm already planning the novel I'll base on it... "Dear Doctor - What About Shep?" Ha. And, I do have a younger dog, Adria, but she's not cutting her brother any breaks!! She'd just as soon stay with him as I am to be president (and I'm not in government...at all, no where near it, haha!). They play all the time, but she doesn't mind leaving him in the dust as a joke. She hasn't stepped up to be an aide of any kind to Shep's disability, but she does keep him entertained - especially when she runs loops around him and he can't tell what direction she'll be coming from next! They're both wonderful dogs. I understand completely how you remember Josh. It doesn't matter what their ailments (just like people) it really matters only who they were individually. Shep's retinal disorder has only made him into a more beautiful soul... It seems that quite a few border collie fans have experienced a time or two with the dreaded eye disorders... I didn't realize it's so common, although CEA is one of the most common. Thanks again, everyone, for your wonderful input and especially for the advice to contact Dr. Acland.

I just finished a lengthy letter to Dr. Acland himself. I was going to mail it but was too eager to hear a response, so I e-mailed him. I think I came off sounding very informed... haha! Maybe he'll want to hire me.... Any way, I'll keep it posted on any changes in Shep's diagnosis or any interest Dr. Acland himself takes in my dog's condition. Good luck with the treatment of your dog with FMAR, which I did discuss in my letter as a possibility (since it is often mistaken for PRA, just as SAR is also - Sector Acquired Retinopathy). Best of luck to you and your dog and I would love to be kept updated on any progress shown in your treatment.