Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Sunday, January 4, 2015
Pet Blogger Gift Exchange
We joined the Pet Blogger Gift Exchange, and we were lucky enough to be paired with Sue, writer of "The Golden Life" blog. This year is the third annual Pet Bloggers Gift Exchange, hosted by Pamela at Something Wagging This Way Comes.
Now the collies always enjoy visiting blogging friends, but I was especially excited to be paired with Sue, as I have a soft spot in my heart for Goldens. I wanted to post this sooner, but my computer died, and posting to Blogger on a mobile device has proven to be a real challenge. (Which is why we haven't been posting at all in the last few weeks.). But Sue's blog is so special, I wanted to make sure to post this for the Gift exchange, which thankfully, I was reminded is ending soon.
Now the collies always enjoy visiting blogging friends, but I was especially excited to be paired with Sue, as I have a soft spot in my heart for Goldens. I wanted to post this sooner, but my computer died, and posting to Blogger on a mobile device has proven to be a real challenge. (Which is why we haven't been posting at all in the last few weeks.). But Sue's blog is so special, I wanted to make sure to post this for the Gift exchange, which thankfully, I was reminded is ending soon.
Sue has three dogs, two senior Golden retrievers named Callie and Shadow, and then there is Ducky, a funny and endearing shelter dog that will steal your heart. Callie and Shadow have those sweet, white faces, that all senior Goldens develop as they age, and which my own golden, Chloe, developed in her later years. I think the white fur that graces a golden's face just serves to remind us that each day with those gentle souls is a gift.
I actually began following this blog awhile ago, as I was missing my golden, Chloe, and couldn't resist stopping by to read her posts and see her pictures. So I can highly recommend this blog, because the love Sue has for her dogs is evident in all her posts. The link for her blog is found below, so head over, sit, and stay for awhile....you won't be sorry that you did!
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Tis the season...
Some of us have been a bit…naughty, and some of us have been extra nice. So Mom said we better be careful, because Santa Paws is always watching. She said if we aren’t good, we won’t be getting anything in our stockings but coal!
Since we don’t want that to happen, we are setting our paws on the straight and narrow, and will be minding our doggie P’s and Q’s! And just to make sure we do get some goodies in our stockings, we paid Santa Paws a visit. We were on our best behavior, and are pretty sure we impressed Santa.
What are kind of gifts are you hoping for this Christmas season? Are you being extra good?
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Friday, November 21, 2014
Dogs in poems...
Thorns may hurt you, men desert you, sunlight turn to fog;
but you're never friendless ever, if you have a dog.
~ Douglas Mallock
My sunshine doesn't come from the skies,
It comes from the love in my dog's eyes.
~ Unknown
My sunshine doesn't come from the skies,
It comes from the love in my dog's eyes.
~ Unknown
Friday, November 14, 2014
The American Collie - You've a come along way, baby! (reposted)
I've always felt that to understand the present, you must consider the past. And when I look at my collies, when I study their pedigrees, I can't help but be fascinated by how far back I can trace my dog's ancestry. But before I get into my own collie's pedigrees, I want to discuss the history of the American collie.
The first English collie was imported to the United States in 1879 by Allen Apgar. When his imported collies began winning at dog shows, other breeders followed his example and began importing collies as well. So the foundation stock of the American collie were collies imported to our country from England. A famous collie breeder, W.E. Mason established his kennel, Southport Collies, in New Jersey. While he bred his own family of collies, he was also responsible for importing more high quality collies to this country than any other breeder/exhibitor. He imported four famous collies to our country, Ch Anfield Model, Ch Squire of Tytton, Ch Parbold Picador and Ch Southport Sample, and these collies changed the breed.
What I find interesting is that when I look at pictures and videos of the collies being shown in England and other European countries today, and compare them to the modern American collie, I prefer our collies. The European collie has changed quite a bit in appearance and temperament over the years. They are shorter, heavier, and have a wider skull and a more pronounced stop. They don't resemble the top winning collies of the past, many of which were imported to the United States. And if you compare the American collie with those British imports from the turn of the century, they still look very similar. I think that the American collie now surpasses European collies in beauty, grace and elegance. I've seen breeders from England, Japan, and many other countries attend the Collie Club of America National dog show. They come to evaluate our collies, and they offer exorbitant sums of money to purchase our collies to add to their own breeding stock. The American collie has come a long way.
The first English collie was imported to the United States in 1879 by Allen Apgar. When his imported collies began winning at dog shows, other breeders followed his example and began importing collies as well. So the foundation stock of the American collie were collies imported to our country from England. A famous collie breeder, W.E. Mason established his kennel, Southport Collies, in New Jersey. While he bred his own family of collies, he was also responsible for importing more high quality collies to this country than any other breeder/exhibitor. He imported four famous collies to our country, Ch Anfield Model, Ch Squire of Tytton, Ch Parbold Picador and Ch Southport Sample, and these collies changed the breed.
Because lines of American collies were still being developed, the collies that were imported
from Britain were of higher quality than what was being bred here in the United
States, and so they were dominating the show ring. The high demand for these British collies led
many English kennels to sell their top winning collies to American
kennels. With the heavy influx of
imported, high quality collies, the American collie "made rapid progress
between 1900 to 1920." The American
collie was originally a farm type specimen, and all the British imports helped
to develop our collie into the beautiful dog we now see in most American
kennels.
What I find interesting is that when I look at pictures and videos of the collies being shown in England and other European countries today, and compare them to the modern American collie, I prefer our collies. The European collie has changed quite a bit in appearance and temperament over the years. They are shorter, heavier, and have a wider skull and a more pronounced stop. They don't resemble the top winning collies of the past, many of which were imported to the United States. And if you compare the American collie with those British imports from the turn of the century, they still look very similar. I think that the American collie now surpasses European collies in beauty, grace and elegance. I've seen breeders from England, Japan, and many other countries attend the Collie Club of America National dog show. They come to evaluate our collies, and they offer exorbitant sums of money to purchase our collies to add to their own breeding stock. The American collie has come a long way.
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Smarty pants... (Our 250th post!)
Jodi
over at Heart like a Dog wrote a post about how her dog, Sampson, manipulated her into letting him off leash during a walk. Which made me laugh, because so many people claim dogs are stupid. But I think they are more clever than we realize, and here are some of the reasons why:
Our dogs know, by reading our facial expressions and body language, when we are happy, sad, angry, worried or frightened. They can not only judge our moods, but they either join us in our happiness, or try to offer comfort if we are not in a good mood.
We had one dog, Mojo, who taught herself how to open the fridge, and she would make midnight raids. When we blocked off the fridge, she learned which button on the microwave to push to open it, and would steal the loaf of bread we stored in there.
And they know how to beg for food, without ever saying a word. Our boy Ryder is the master of the "heavy head" trick. To be fair, this is our fault, because the first time he did this, we didn't discourage him. So what is this trick? We can be sitting on the couch, eating something, and Ryder decides he would like us to share. So he will hop up on the couch, sit next to you, lean against you and put his head on your shoulder. That's it, there is no whining or drooling, just his head on your shoulder. If this doesn't work, he will press his head closer, so that his cheek is pressed sweetly against you. If it still doesn't work, his head becomes progressively heavier and heavier, just in case you were some how unaware he was there. It's a pretty unique form of begging, and he will quit and get down if you tell him to stop, so it's not obnoxious. But I have given in and shared whatever snack I had at the time, because I do think he was pretty clever to think of it...
So in what ways has your dog shown how clever he or she is?
Our dogs know, by reading our facial expressions and body language, when we are happy, sad, angry, worried or frightened. They can not only judge our moods, but they either join us in our happiness, or try to offer comfort if we are not in a good mood.
We had one dog, Mojo, who taught herself how to open the fridge, and she would make midnight raids. When we blocked off the fridge, she learned which button on the microwave to push to open it, and would steal the loaf of bread we stored in there.
And they know how to beg for food, without ever saying a word. Our boy Ryder is the master of the "heavy head" trick. To be fair, this is our fault, because the first time he did this, we didn't discourage him. So what is this trick? We can be sitting on the couch, eating something, and Ryder decides he would like us to share. So he will hop up on the couch, sit next to you, lean against you and put his head on your shoulder. That's it, there is no whining or drooling, just his head on your shoulder. If this doesn't work, he will press his head closer, so that his cheek is pressed sweetly against you. If it still doesn't work, his head becomes progressively heavier and heavier, just in case you were some how unaware he was there. It's a pretty unique form of begging, and he will quit and get down if you tell him to stop, so it's not obnoxious. But I have given in and shared whatever snack I had at the time, because I do think he was pretty clever to think of it...
So in what ways has your dog shown how clever he or she is?
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
We sure are lucky dogs!
It's that time again - the collies get to express their opinions in another review! This is thanks to our friends at Chewy.com, where you can buy all sorts of yummy treats for your dogs and cats!
Last weekend we had two friends staying with us. Miley and Jody were visiting, while their parents were out of town. These two collie girls are good friends of ours, and they even traveled with us to the Collie National when it was held in Wisconsin, back in 2013. So we always have a good time when they come to visit!
Since they were visiting, we decided to be nice collie hosts, and let them do the review with us!
This month we were asked to review Natural Balance Delectable Delights Duck Formula Tender Cuts Dog Treats. Mom of course HAD to read the ingredients list, she loves to see what is in our treats/food. The first thing she noticed was this:
Key Benefits
Of course, we aren't concerned with all of that! So on to the important stuff! BOL
Smell - we thought the smokey smell to these treats was pawsome! It had us all lining up to try some!
Taste - We were not disappointed, we LOVED these treats, and wished Mom would have let us eat them all! They were that good! They were nice and chewy, and Mom said they would be perfect in the show ring, as they would be certain to keep our attention when the judge was evaluating us!
We give these treats four paws, and we just bet your dogs will agree!
Last weekend we had two friends staying with us. Miley and Jody were visiting, while their parents were out of town. These two collie girls are good friends of ours, and they even traveled with us to the Collie National when it was held in Wisconsin, back in 2013. So we always have a good time when they come to visit!
Since they were visiting, we decided to be nice collie hosts, and let them do the review with us!
 |
| Miley posing pretty with the treats! |
Key Benefits
- Made with high-quality duck
- No corn, wheat, artificial flavors or colors
- Suitable for all breeds
- Great for puppies and adult dogs
- Made in the USA
Of course, we aren't concerned with all of that! So on to the important stuff! BOL
Smell - we thought the smokey smell to these treats was pawsome! It had us all lining up to try some!
Taste - We were not disappointed, we LOVED these treats, and wished Mom would have let us eat them all! They were that good! They were nice and chewy, and Mom said they would be perfect in the show ring, as they would be certain to keep our attention when the judge was evaluating us!
We give these treats four paws, and we just bet your dogs will agree!
 |
| Pumpkin kitty thought these treats smelled really yummy too! |
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