Forgot to say Hi!

[Goldfields]

It was after 2am here, Frenchy, so guess who is rather tired today? LOL.

Benmax, I'm glad you all love dogs warts and all so to speak. Your cat is lucky to have you. I know people here who wouldn't have hesitated in putting Dundee down as a baby, which is terrible, but my thought was that if his (canine) mother wasn't rejecting him, he would be okay. As it turns out, with shelties being such sweet dogs, all of them seem to think he's special. (Aaaawww, nice doggies! ) I've had a couple of puppy buyers who have wanted to take him as well, so that makes them nice people, and as one has just spent around $7000 on vet bills for his sheltie girl, that makes him an especially good owner. Still, glad we didn't part with him though.

[hazelrunpack]

You have such lovely furbabies, Goldfields! Your shelties are stunning!

Thanks for sharing them all with us! (And sorry we kept you up so late! )

[Goldfields]

Well, I could have gone to bed, I was just wanting the intro done ....if only I knew where Pheobe's photo's are. She's an old fashioned persian with the nose lower, so less of a scowling expression. I was staggered, when looking at the council registrations I have to pay for shortly, that she is 13 this year. Where did all that time go? Our Council gives you free registration for any dog or cat once it turns 13.

[hazelrunpack]

I hear ya about the passage of time! I couldn't believe it when our Cass turned 8 last year! Our first 6 are within a year and a half of each other--and the youngest of the original six-pack, Ridge, is going to be 7 this June!

If you can't find the older pics of Phoebe, it'll just give you an excuse to get some new ones.

[Goldfields]

What sort of dogs do you have, Hazel?
Re the cat, I'm just annoyed I can't find the file I hid those photo's in. I am finding lots of nice photo's I'd forgotten about while I look at least. LOL.

[hazelrunpack]

We have English setters. Field type, not bench.

I've got files and files of pictures, too...I really should go in and delete the icky ones, because I can never find what I want! But I'm very anal retentive about deleting any image except the really blurry ones! So my solution was to buy two 500 G external drives to store them all on! (Yep, I'm as anal as they come, I'm afraid )

[Goldfields]

Wow, are you sure you have enough space? LOL. My external drive I think is only 75G. Got loads of space on my main drive though. Must do some backs up though, I don't trust computers one bit after a couple of crashes.
That's nice that you have Setters. My brother had a pair of English Setters but after they went to the Bridge he got into Rottweilers, having been burgled more than once. He's into big things, they also have Clydesdale horses, whereas I think my medium sized breed, the Australian Cattle Dog is about the best guard dog you can own. My sister, who I have a lot of communication with, regardless of being 200 miles apart, swears by German Shepherds, so there is a bit of lively debate from time to time.

[hazelrunpack]

Ya, I'll bet your family gatherings can be interesting.

English setters are not much in the way of guard dogs, that's for sure...although they've been known to try to chap visitors to death with their tongues...and there's always the tripping hazard that anyone navigating the Pack has to deal with

I crash computers all the time--and I'm so paranoid that I got the two external drives so I'd have two off-computer back-ups. (yes, I really do crash them that often. ) However, I do take the pictures off my C: drive then to help the computer run more efficiently.

[Goldfields]

Oh, you have to add to the mix another brother who is a Group 2 judge/Bull Terrier fanatic. Currently he has a Staffie, not the Bullies, but he's ready to argue the merits of his breeds too. All good fun.
I should take a leaf out of your book and take my photo's out of C too. Right now I'm off to bed, I have to go out tomorrow morning. In 90klm an hour wind - not looking forward to that.

[DoubleRR]

Had a great time reading and admiring beauty in this thread--sorry I missed it earlier!
I hear you about the sheltie grooming--I was a dog groomer for several years and dreaded coats like that after awhile. So my own dogs are usually short coated. Have had Rhodesian Ridgebacks for the past 13 years, and have added a long haired mini dachshund last year to keep my last male company. His coat is much simpler to brush out, and I am not showing. The two boys make quite a team as a guard, Gemma is gorgeous, by the way!

Love the Dorpers--wonder how they take severe cold? Always interested in Australia--several family members have lived there for short periods, and a couple of nieces were born there, all live back in Canada now though.

PS never mind, I found the Canadian Dorper Association--apparently they do not mind cold, just shed less!

[chico2]

Goldfields,you must be living in heaven
Love all your animals,love Shelties and your cats are stunning,the sheep,lamb and horses all wonderful,you are very lucky..
I bet 99% of us here on the Forum would love to pitch a tent on your property

[Goldfields]

DoubleRR, I expect sheltie coats would be much thicker in Canada seeing it is so cold there, but even here, certain coats are very hard work. With the correct harsh outer coat the soft undercoat will lift just off the skin when they moult, then stick there. That sort of coat takes me two hours from start to finish. Softer coats are easier. Groomers would earn every cent they're paid.

Gemma is indeed gorgeous, a very photogenic little girl, and a bit of a character. She loves to play even though she's now 10. She'll hook her paw around your ankle to try and stop you from leaving the room(and her) and is very good at undoing your shoelaces.
My only dealings with a RR is that a neighbor had one and I don't know who led who astray but the Ridgeback and a NZ Huntaway would end up over in the forest, hunting kangaroos. I heard them there one day, barking for ages, so guessing they had a roo bailed up, I grabbed a couple of leads, jumped on my little (dog exercising) bike and pedalled off to find them. Sure enough, a big roo was bailed up in the middle of an irrigation channel and when the dogs swam out to attack it , it'd try to drown them. It was looking exhausted though. So I called the dogs, fortunately the Huntaway was friendly, got him on a lead but the RR just looked and growled. No offence but I reckoned he was the type of dog to run off home if I took his mate away, and that's exactly what happened. LOL. Don't know what happened to the RR but the Huntaway got caught killing sheep in the end and was shot. Very bad management.
Chico, wouldn't it be nice to have you all here in a tent city, we'd never stop talking. Glad you like the fur kids and other beasties.

[DoubleRR]

Too bad that some people are allowed to own dogs! My dogs have never been aggressive, nor livestock botherers, altho one female loved to hunt birds. My male, pictured here, once caught a rabbit--it kicked him and he dropped it, never tried again, Bunny won.

[Goldfields]

That's too funny about the rabbit. Lovely photo's, he is such a peaceful looking boy. All we seem to get around here are irresponsible owners. Two farming neighbors disregarded the DSE warning that fox bait was going to be laid in the forest for instance and both lost working dogs that had been allowed to wander. Sad, isn't it?

[DoubleRR]

Originally Posted by Goldfields

That's too funny about the rabbit. Lovely photo's, he is such a peaceful looking boy. All we seem to get around here are irresponsible owners. Two farming neighbors disregarded the DSE warning that fox bait was going to be laid in the forest for instance and both lost working dogs that had been allowed to wander. Sad, isn't it?

VERY sad. Ignorance is rampant.

Yes, he is peaceful--loves to run, loves to chase strange cats or running anything--but doesn't want to catch it--no thanks! Posted some pics in the pet photography of todays dog park excursion.

[chico2]

DoubleRR,he is a beautiful dog,as is the little Doxie and the Calico-kitty.
Got to go and check the pic-Forum for more..

[Tundra_Queen]

Hi

Welcome to the forum!! *waving*

I love all animals,,,they are beautiful and the first pic of the ram, he is such a pretty boy! And the pic of the ewe and the 3 lambs are adorable!!

[Goldfields]

Hi to you too, Tundra Queen. The ram is nicer looking than the huge Border Leicester ram we used last year, and much more sedate, a real pet. Those triplets were time wasters, a bit like puppies, you could sit and watch them all day.

[Goldfields]

I only introduced Dundee(in the previous page) as a puppy, didn't want everyone seeing him and thinking they wanted a dog just like him. He's a very special one off, they broke the mould after he was born. Joking, I am just protective of him, but I've seen how many kind, caring people are using this forum so here goes, I got a halfways decent shot of him the other day, so be kind to my poor darling, he really doesn't know he's not as handsome as I tell him he is. We treat him just like we would our best show dog.
He cannot shut or blink his left eye and may be blind in it. His right eye is smaller than the left one. He is , or definitely(as a pup) was deaf in the left ear, his top jaw twists slightly to the right, the bottom doesn't so much, he is overshot, teeth are crowded, canines don't go quite where they should, bottom incisors are in two rows not one, ears aren't set right, or even level on his head.

We just adore him! In every other way a normal happy dog, very loyal and protective, and I love my quiet times with him when he just sits still on my lap and seems to meditate. More often he doesn't want to sit facing left, he wants to spin around and have me give his back a nice scritch. He's been a joy to own. So sad that other pups like him could be put down because they aren't perfect. He's my buddy boy.

[chico2]

Goldfields,your Buddy-Boy looks adorable,his imperfections makes him even more so
I don't know much about breeders,but I am almost certain he would have been put down,for not being perfect.
But like you say,he's a very,very special boy

[Goldfields]

Chico2, I was worried about some of the issues he might have faced but as a pup I was lucky to find that the vet I took them to for their microchipping/vaccinations actually owned a dog like him. He was very reassuring. Glad I didn't let him go to those who asked for him, in surburban homes, as his hearing/brain(?) is such that any strange noise can startle him, then he goes into noisy alarm barking until you calm him. Fine here in the country, no-one's going to complain.

[Dee-O-Gee]

Very handsome boy Dundee is.

[Goldfields]

You wouldn't say that if you saw some of my photo's, but handsome is as handsome does they say. If dogs have souls his is beautiful and he's a good boy.