July 2008

Indy

Indy is a seven month old purebred red and white pup who came into rescue after his own/breeder became ill. Indy was left in a back yard with his sibling Riven with little human contact or opportunity to learn about the world past that small back yard

If you see Indy out in his foster families yard playing with other dogs you would never suspect that this little guy was anything but a regular seven month old puppy. He is playful, loves other dogs and adores cuddling with his foster mom.

But Indy does have a secret. He is trying to overcome many fears of people and the world. On meeting new people he will back away and hide. He is fearful of leaving his crate to go outside and sometimes won't make it outside in time in the morning. Although loving to walk on a leash new noises or experiences can frighten him.

Indy needs an owner who understands his fears and will help him overcome them through patience and exposure. He would do best in a home with another dog that can show him how much fun things can really be but needs a lot of individual time as he could easily fade into the background unless encouraged. The challenge and gratification of helping a dog like Indy to gain his confidence by successful exposure to the world in small doses is a special one. Whoever makes Indy part of their family will have a very loving little guy who though having a way to go is already precious as he is.

Holly

Holly became one of the family after very little time in foster care. She adapted quickly to the house routine and bonded almost instantly. She adores her people and late at night will curl up on the couch next to her person and quite happily cuddle away until she gets sleepy. She's quite a little furnace so it's extra nice on those cold nights! She has continued to get along beautifully with her canine foster siblings and is always up for a rousing game of doggie tug-of-war or wrestling. If a dog isn't available (or is tired out from all the play) she'll happily drop a tennis ball in your lap. She does great retrieving or catching the ball and drops it nicely - and waits patiently for it to be tossed again.....as a matter of fact, I think I just felt a ball drop in my chair! Holly has made alot of progress on walking nicely on a leash and is very proud when she gets to walk down the street wearing her backpack. She loves to train and it helps settle her busy body and mind. A natural athlete, Holly uses her lithe figure (she'sapproximately 18 inches tall at the shoulder and 32 pounds) to full advantage as she races around after a ball or with another dog. She believes she is part kangaroo and can jump over five feet nearly completely vertically. Because a five foot fence is a mere hurdle for this athletic girl, she needs a home with a tall fence. Her athleticism and energy combine to make a dog who'd be a natural at agility (I can just picture her now whipping through the weave poles, scampering over the A frame, and flying over the hurdles in a flash), disc dog, or flyball. Holly is the perfect dog for someone who loves to train with their dog or participate in dog sports. She has found her off button lately and at night will automatically go into her crate when she senses the household
getting ready for bed.

Kate

Kate is a sweet little girl who loves everyone, human and canine. She is 5 months old, she was born at the end of February. She plays very well with all the other dogs we've had her around. She is fine with cats, but might playfully chase them if they run.

She looks like a German shepherd-collie mix, with the dark German shepherd face and head shape. She has white on her feet, legs and chest and gorgeous black tipped sable fur on the rest of her body. She has very soft, fluffy fur, you just can't keep from wanting to pet her. Kate is a happy, playful puppy who is crate trained and house broken (with supervision). She does need to be watched because she will pick things up to chew.

She knows sit, go to bed and leave it. She is not super high energy like some border collies but she is an active puppy. Kate is a happy, silly little girl right now, just wanting to play and eat and explore. She's treat motivated so she learns quickly if she knows there is food involved. Kate will probably be about the same size as her mom, around 50 to 55 pounds.

She has just started a puppy class to learn basic obedience commands and to get used to new places and situations. She has had all her shots, is microchipped, spayed and ready to find her own family to wrap around her little paw.

Rex

Rex is a sleek and agile, one-year-old, smooth-haired Border Collie who came into foster as an owner relinquish. He has classic BC markings and although he was a bit under weight, he is an enthusiastic eater and has been thickening up nicely. He has the high drive/high energy so typical of Border Collies and is an excellent candidate for agility competition. We have started him on Frisbee and he loves it!

We have been working with him on basic obedience and he has mastered basics such as sit etc. (he is both treat and praise motivated). He has excellent recall when off leash and is displaying improved manners while on lead. Rex is crate trained, house broken and is respectful of our property boundaries. He interacts well with our four other dogs and is unconcerned with the neighborhood dogs and children. He has not been around cats so I don’t know how he interacts with them.

This guy wants to be loved and to be part of the family. He has a sweet personality and LOVES to have his belly rubbed. Rex has unlimited potential and will make a wonderful addition to his forever family.

Aspen

Aspen is one fun boy! About a year of age, Aspen was adopted orginally from the Kansas Humane Society, and then his new owner discovered that she didn't have time for him. Aspen came to me with basic obedience commands, crate trained, and a love of life!

Aspen is a Border Collie mix, and loves playing with my own Border Collies. He ignores my cats(I do believe he is afraid of them...this is a smart puppy!) He will play ball by himself, rolling it with his nose, and then chasing after it.

Aspen is very active, and would do well with older children.

Reno

Hi I’m Reno and I’m one busy Border Collie. I think I’m one Q-Tee-Pie to boot. My birthday is just around the corner on June 29th and I will be a year old. Life at foster Mom’s is great. I have 2 foster brothers to play with and I really love to wrestle and run run run. I probably need younger dogs to hang out with, because I like to play pretty hard and I don’t’ think my foster brothers appreciate all my energy. There are also some very pretty cats that live in my foster home. I think they are neat, but I don’t bother them.

My very favorite thing at my foster home are the kids!! I just adore them. They have taught me how to sit, shake and lay down. I get treats for doing all that fun stuff, but I’m very careful taking them, so not to get anyone’s fingers. I love to play soccer and I must say I’m pretty good at it. Mainly I just love all toys and can make a toy out of just about anything. So foster Mom has to make sure I have the appropriate things to play with or I could get into trouble. I love to sleep in my kennel; it’s a safe place to be. I also just had my first bath, wow, was that fun!! I don’t know why I had one of those; I thought I smelled just fine. I also love riding in the car, there are a lot of cool things to see on the road and I don’t want to miss anything.

Foster Mom says I need to go to an experienced Border Collie home that will have a lot of time to spend with me, giving me a lot of exercise and basic obedience training. I think I would be really good at agility or any kind of dog sport. As I mentioned before I have a lot of energy, and I’m no couch potato. So if you’re looking for a great dog to have fun with either running, doing agility or fly ball ask to talk to foster Mom.

Skyler

Skylar is about 10 weeks old and already wants to run with the big dogs! It's so hard to imagine how anyone could walk away from those sky blue eyes and that adorable face, but she was relinquished by her owners to a shelter in southwest MO.

Skylar is not a cuddly little lap puppy but a busy and determined ball of fur. It's hard to believe so much personality can come in such a small package but she is absolutely full of it. She is not afraid of anything, including bigger dogs, fireworks, storms or a grumpy old cat bigger than she is! Although she did not care for being confined in a crate at first, she is now very good and sleeps all night quietly and naps during the day in her crate.

She is starting to grasp housebreaking, but we have a ways to go on that yet. She learned the sit command in less than a minute and we are already working on down.

Watch for more updates on Skylar as she continues to wow us with her combination of looks, brains and charm!

John

John arrived at his current foster home in June where he lives with his foster mom and two border collie foster sisters. He is approximately 1.5 years old, about 23 inches tall and weighs around 50 lbs.

In the time that he's been here, he has been to some obedience classes and played in agility. He is picking up on the obedience stuff but he gets distracted with all the other dogs. More classes and he'll be doing great! He picked up agility like a pro and proves to be a great outlet for that puppy energy. Being a typical border collie, John does try to herd other dogs. Especially his sisters when they get to rowdy. John loves soccer balls and has learned to play frisbee (he can catch it in the air), and he will play with a tennis ball. His first love is still the soccer ball. John is housetrained and sleeps in a crate at night, but he would like to sleep with mom and sisters, but the girls are a bit selfish with their bed. John is a big cuddler; if he is not playing he wants to cuddle.

John's ideal forever home should plan to incorporate obedience classes so he has plenty of brain food, and some type of plan for a lot of exercise. He is NO couch potato. He would excel in agility and shows potential for herding. Because of his herding instincts it would be best to have a fenced yard to keep John safe as he has an interest in cars.

Chance

Chance is a special, beautiful dog with striking blue eyes. He is a youngster, one to two years old, and still has much of the puppy in his personality.

He is completely housetrained, and wonderfully easy to train, he is smart and wants to please. After a period of one week he was mostly crate trained, learnt to walk nicely on leash, and is doing well with most basic training commands. He sits nicely at door when its time to go out, or indeed time to come back in. Current top priority is working on a tendency to be over possessive of balls etc.

Everything is of interest to him – new things never appear to faze him. He has a very warm and loving personality, he loves being around people. If he is not playing with our older dog, he will most likely curl up at our feet. Chance is untried around children but is probably fine – though any potential owner should note he is a very playful and very strong dog who could inadvertently hurt a small child.

Chance mixes well with other dogs, seems to have very good manners, and within a couple of days our two other BC’s completely accepted him.

He is an active border collie, though by no means anywhere near the hyperactive end of the spectrum – he will get bored easily and should be in a home where his owners can give him the stimulating environment he deserves.

In summary Chance will be a very special dog for the right owner. The owner must be willing to continue his training and to keep him in a loving and stimulating environment. In return for the undoubted effort required, they will get a wonderful companion who will return his owners investment of effort and affection many times over.