And HORSES, too! Wow! I love horses (I got to go see mine yesterday – he’s a retired hunter/jumper). That is so cool. How many do you have?

I asked this of another FL person I thought might be you, but are you the horse trainer who used to (maybe you still do?) comment over at TalkLeft?

Thank you for the beautiful story – and keep us posted on what you find out when your relationship develops with the collies!

Lucy seems to be getting ready – any day now…

Oh, and Sassy, I hear ya – before Lucy came along, we were thinking we would take a little break before getting any more dogs. Best laid plans and all that!

I have never seen a standoffish collie except for those who were mistreated. Even the blind collie we adopted 20 years ago after someone left him tied to a fence along a busy highway was immediately friendly and loving. Normal behavior is to roll over for their bellies to be rubbed and jumping up to lick anyone who comes along.

Collies are family dogs who pretty much have to be kicked off the couch and out the door. The idea that your new friends are so skittish that you can’t get “close enough” to determine their sex doesn’t speak well for their previous owners at all.

I wish someone would drop 2 at my door. I miss having a 70 pound dog crawl up in my lap thinking he is about as big as a chihuahua.

I rescued all of mine. Two were in the garbage can at 8 weeks old. I guess what they say about “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” is true. I can’t imagine having lived one day of my life without my babies, and I wouldn’t have had them had the creep who owned them not thrown them in a garbage can.

I’m sorry for your loss and it seems you helping the critters was able to get your focus elsewhere, keeping your good heart in check

Thanks for the story and the compliment. I am using a blackberry, so forgive the short respnse!

Judy, you’re only one state away, so we’d be happy to provide door-to-door service!

These are beautiful, friendly and well cared for dogs. One has a shaved area, hair half re-grown, where either an accident or surgery happened and the vet dealt with it. I can only imagine the situation that led the people who owned them to dump them on my road. They got lucky, they found a home with someone who likes dogs and will feed them and keep them as safe as possible. They don’t go through gates like my hound will, so they are basically confined to the stable yard, which is big enough for a couple of horses to turn out in, so is ok for two dogs. It’s about 1/2 acre or more. They “get out” for a walk and romp at feeding time for the horses. They get their dinner while I fix the horses’ dinners and then romp along when I go feed the horses. They are a bit scared of the horses, which is a good thing.

So, due to the economy, I now have two Lassies, or Laddies, or one of each. Haven’t looked yet. They are very friendly, but trying to find the appropriate signs of gender in all that fur involves a bit more intimacy than I am comfortable with at this time in our relationship. So I will wait a bit to check on who is what. My guess is that they come from a foreclosed home and the people had no way to keep them. They are a breed that requires a lot of exercise, and do not do well confined or kept on a leash. Well, now they are country dogs, with plenty of food and fresh air and a soft bed to sleep on in the tack room.

I think they might have come from the next county over, where the shelter is a kill-shelter. I got my hound from there. And I am sure that the people were told that the dogs would probably not be adopted together, and they are a definite pair. So the owners did what they thought was best. And luckily for the dogs, it was for the best. They have a good home now, and are still together. I wish I could get word to the former owners that the dogs are ok. And that I am glad to have them.