My profile picture is of my ex worker Border Collie 'Sweep' age 11 He has now retired as we sold all the sheep four years ago. I do miss the sheep especially at lambing time - I was frequently found with my hand up a sheep's back end !
I enjoy walking Sweep and he has grown into quite a little character not the vicious sterotype working dog. He was never very good at working - used to get half way up the hill look at me and scratch his head as if to say 'What do you want me to do? and promptly come back to me, resorting in both of us trudging up the bank to bring back the sheep. While I was in hospital he drove my husband bonkers by barking and not settling - I dont care what people say but they do know when something isn't right.
He loves playing sticks but hasn't quite grasped the rules of the game that if he brings the stick back I'll throw it again - he'd rather hang on to it and let me do the chasing - he's not stupid.
It's great confiding in him with all my fears and concerns which I don't like doing to family incase it makes them worry, he puts his head to one side and gives me his paw.
He is light relief at this awful time.
FormerMember
My little collie cross Toffee is 15 and totally blind. Has been for about four years now. We got her from the Blue Cross when she was about four months old - she had been thrown out of a car window on the A1. We got her when our labrador (Tilly) was 11 and she gave her a new lease of life. When Tilly had to be put to sleep at 13 she pined. If I took her to the beach and she was off her lead she'd race off after any black lab she saw which resulted in me having to charge off after her and explain in tears what she was doing. We got her another black lab of course who is now 13 so we have two geriatrics now. She is cream and white and I think there's a bit of whippet there too. She looked like a fluffy teddy bear when she was a puppy. She manages extremely well considering she's blind but does bump into things. She doesn't go out any more now as she got more and more stressed at the outside world and it's difficult to remember to tell her there's a kerb to go up and down or a rock or whatever object she doesn't see.She started to get very frightened at traffic noises (bearing in mind she was thrown out of a car that's understandable). She manages to go motor homing with us and likes to potter about the van and sit outside in the sunshine. Whereas the old lab has arthrities, she has nothing at all wrong, oh apart from her heart murmur, bless her. I think back to the times when she and Mollie used to come out riding with me, trotting alongside my old horse who has now departed to horsey heaven. Old age comes to us all.
