My Border Collies...

We were blessed with a wonderful BC named Jesse for 14 yrs and a couple months. He could recognize 25 different toys and was a good frisbee catcher. I miss him every day. He took ill and lost all mobility. We tried to nurse him back but no luck. I am convinced he knew what he was at the vet for. A couple months later we got another BC Buddy. Completely different but wonderful in his own way. He prefers to be sprayed w hose more than anything. However, he blew his version of the achilles. Paid a lot of money for emer vet to do surgery and had to deal with pins/splints/bandages he had in from the surgery. But he now has recovered - maybe not to 100% but he has a life.

We also added a rescue BC named Dazee. She has kept Buddy company and they are friends. She likes you to squeek and throw her duck for fetching.

I lost my old boy indecember which was heartbreaking. He was 3 weeks off his 15th birthday but cancer was winning the battle. That left Oxus (our deaf tri colourblue Merle all alone for the first time in 10 1/2 years. Any new dog we brought in to the pack would have to be very special, not only as my best friend but also to be Bodie’s ears. Well yesterday we bought home our new family member, Arrow, a 9 1/2 black and white collie boy. Our house feels chaotic but complete again

My last- and best- dog was a Great Dane. She was 13 when she passed. I won't own another dog again.

a reply to: BlackProjects

You were truly blessed to have had Jesse for all those years, and I'm sure he thought the same of you and your family.

Our cocker spaniel, Lucky, left us around the same age, but we haven't been strong enough to adopt another. If we could, my first choice would be a border collie. They are amazing and so intelligent. I love how their natural instinct makes them want to round-up or organise things by circling, even inanimate objects... bless their souls.

I applaud that you have others and that you recognise each one's individual wants and needs... many insensitive dog owners don't care and force them to do things they don't enjoy.

Finally, Jesse lived to a ripe old age. Popular belief tells us that a dog year is equivalent to seven human ones. However, new studies suggest it can vary depending on your dog's size. Have a look at the following chart for a better gauge.



Source: www.dailypaws.com...

originally posted by: nugget1
My last- and best- dog was a Great Dane. She was 13 when she passed. I won't own another dog again.

I know what you mean. My dog, Moses, an American cocker, died a few years ago and I am not getting another dog. I did not handle his death well. My wife thinks one of our cats is his reincarnation, and I see her point. But Moses was my one and only dog. I can't even say that about women. I hope reality is such that I see him again.

O.k.a reply to: BlackProjects
Posts like this get me all teary eyed, makes me feel exactly how I felt when I lost my boy, he was a Springer spaniel/ chocolate lab mix. It was a long time ago but still feels like it was yesterday. Damn it now I'm crying. So sorry for your loss, I feel it. Be glad you got be with him when he went home, I didn't get the chance it kills me every day. Ok gotta get these eyes dry, gotta stop letting this happen to me can never think about him and not cry.

Peace.

originally posted by: schuyler

originally posted by: nugget1
My last- and best- dog was a Great Dane. She was 13 when she passed. I won't own another dog again.

I know what you mean.

My dog, Moses, an American cocker, died a few years ago and I am not getting another dog. I did not handle his death well. My wife thinks one of our cats is his reincarnation, and I see her point. But Moses was my one and only dog. I can't even say that about women. I hope reality is such that I see him again.

i went through that faze for ten years of denying myself another dog , then a few years ago i got persuaded to try another one from a rescue centre , i took a few months to gel with him but he has a great nature ,quiet and clean and lots of fun .

go on make that call

Melan Collie.

I can't resist this thread. lol.
LOVE my Border Collies...
Suzie, my 9 yr old, was diagnosed with Bone Cancer in March 2021 and given 3-4 months to live. We went to an oncologist and I opted to give her daily low dose chemo pills, and a treatment at the oncologist once a month that helps with the pain and strength of her bones. 1 1/2 years later, she's still catching frisbee and doing barn things with me. She has good and bad days, and I know her days are numbered now, but she brought me out of my funk/daze a few years after my husband died and there is no repayment for what she did for me then.
And last summer I acquired Pippi the puppy. She's still a work in progress, but we're working towards an agility class, she will really enjoy that I think.
Both dogs are super smart and understand full sentences even. Really remarkable pets and great company.

a reply to: nugget1
I am sharing a similar mindset, if I picked that up correct. I love dogs but besides the time I can not spend and medical issues currently, work and raising a child, I just don't want to dilute these memories I have.

We had many dogs in our family over the years, but this one was special to me. In a way I pay tribute to her, doing that.

a reply to: horseplay

How do you put in jpeg?

a reply to: BlackProjects

Convert to jpg or png.

a reply to: Encia22

a reply to: BlackProjects

Beautiful creatures!

Thank you
The one in back is Buddy who had the extensive surgery on his back left leg. Dazee is in the front she is the rescue who is always hungry. Learned how to upload pictures. Now if I could get one of a UFO..

a reply to: TDDAgain

My avatar has my current- and most likely last pet. Persians have an average 10-13 year life span. Vet care has drastically increased along with everything else, and just routine annual care for Smoosh cuts into savings; God forbid something serious should come up! Vet bills for a Dane would be awfully high, and I don't want an animal I can't to take proper care of.

A starving cat adopted us four years ago, and then she invited a starving friend. lol They're our 'Welfare Cats' aka 'porch kitties'.
Two years ago, one got a growth on his side that kept growing; thinking it might be cancer and not wanting him to suffer, we took him to our vet. oops
It turned out to be huge abscess, which required a drain tube and antibiotics. The bill totaled $500.00; talk about sticker shock! hahaha.
Not having owed cats before Smoosh and his predecessor ( for 3 years) I had no idea this was pretty common in cats. Learning curves can be quite expensive!

a reply to: nugget1

Yes, medical and food costs have to be considered before getting a pet. Unfortunately, it's often overlooked and probably, the number one reasons animals are abandoned. It's all too easy to be swayed by "cuteness" and temption increases tenfold over the Christmas period and Birthdays. Many treat them as mere objects, with zero maintenance; when they realise it is not the case, then they throw them out like ordinary trash.

Antibiotics and other sundry medication is priced much too high. Often they are the same medicines used for humans, but that cost much less. If you can get the right information, normal medicines can be dosed for animals, but it needs expert advice to avoid poisoning your best friend or not curing their ailments.

Food-wise, when our Lucky developed a food intolerance, we could only give him boiled rice and steamed chicken breast. Otherwise, a special canned dog food was the only other thing he could eat. Each can cost us 5 euro, five times more than the ordinary stuff.

Writing this post reminded me of a TV ad that ran in Italy in 1988 to highlight the abandoment of pets, especially in summer when people did it because they couldn't take them on vacation. It became quite popular and I think it delivered a potent message, the music "Luglio" (July) helped as it was very popular song dating back to 1968. I grew up with that song... I've been told it was all I would sing. The ad was so successful, It ran every summer for many years.

a reply to: Encia22

I love that ad! I live not too far from a few larger cities, and every spring- like clockwork- our town gets flooded with young kittens, about three months old. I'm guessing people who don't get their animals fixed and can't find homes for their cats just bring them out here.

Every fall we get a TON of adult cats- lots of intact males- and nobody in town gets much sleep.

About three years ago a Trap/Neuter/Release program was started, which has helped immensely with the local feral population, but we still have to deal with all the irresponsible pet owners dumping their cast-offs.

I tried to find barn cat homes for my porch kitties since they were so wild, but by the end of the first month they had quit running away when feeding them. It only took 3/4 months for the young one to let us begin petting him, but well over a year for the other one. I don't trust anyone else to accept and care for them on their terms, so here we are. lol

a reply to: BlackProjects

I see you got it, I had to look up how to do it because I hardly upload pics here.
Your dogs are beautiful ! They look like my Suzie !