This is my Shetland Sheepdog. Officially, her name is Danaan but I call her 'Sheepdog' (clever, eh?). She is 4.5 years old. She is also the world's most perfect dog.
I think that she thinks so, too.
I never liked dogs much when I was a kid. We had a few, but in general they scared me. A few years ago, however, I had a change of heart, mostly because my parents got a miniature Dachshund who is really a great dog. I decided to get a dog of my own. While researching the various breeds to try to determine what dog would be best for me, my brother suggested one I wasn't familiar with: the Shetland Sheepdog. I liked what I read about them, and then saw by a happy coincidence that there was a family in the area that had Sheltie pups for sale. I went to see them, and my dog picked me.
Yeah, SHE picked ME. There were five little pups in the pen when I went to see the litter. Three were asleep. A forth looked at me, turned around and waddled off. But the fifth one came over, put her little paws up on the wall of the pen, and checked me out as if to say, "Well, if nothing better comes along, I guess you'll do."
Like most dog owners, I've had my troubles with her. Let me say now that a bored Shetland Sheepdog is a destructive Shetland Sheepdog; I have holes in my carpets and walls to prove this. She can also be... vindictive. One day, some antique books I ordered arrived at my house. I was very excited to get them. I was reading one before bed when Sheepdog got her ball and started pestering me to play fetch. I put her off. I finished the forward of the book, then left it on the arm of my couch for the night. I remember that she was LOOKING at the book as I went to bed. I realize now that she was thinking about murder.
She tore the cover off.
I was furious. She got a severe scolding.
I also learned my lesson, and know better than to ignore her when she wants attention. If Sheepdog ain't happy, ain't NOBODY happy.
No, I don't wonder who's in charge in my house. I know: SHE is.
It's hard to tell from the photo, but she's a beautiful dog. Because of the hot weather, I keep her coat trimmed. However, when I let it grow out in the winter it's long and beautiful. I've only recently started cutting her hair (I had to buy horse clippers for this!) because of a VERY bad experience the first time I tried cutting her hair.
My aunt came to visit a couple of summers ago, and badgered me to let her cut Sheepdog's hair. I resisted at first, but she ASSURED me that Sheepdog would feel much better without so much hair. Since my aunt has owned Pekingnese dogs for years, I felt that she knew what she was talking about. So, she got a pair of scissors and a comb and went to work.
About an hour later, my beautiful dog looked like something out of 'Resident Evil': ragged coat with large bare patches. I don't know if she felt cooler, but somehow I think she wasn't too happy with her haircut. I mean, why else would she sit in front of a mirror and whimper? (Let me say here that grooming dogs is a heckuva business. I took Sheepdog to a professional groomer and it cost me $50, which is a darned sight more than I pay for a haircut).
I have started to keep her trimmed in the summer. Presumably, this keeps her a bit cooler and it also cuts down on the number of baths I have to give her (which neither one of us likes). When her coat is long and she gets muddy, I can wash out so much dirt that I could practically grow a crop of potatoes in my bathtub! Yech.
Sheepdog is also very jealous, which (natch) makes me feel kind of good. Because she often stays home alone all day while I am at work, I thought that getting another dog to keep her company would be a good idea. I checked on the internet and got a lovable terrier mix named Tessa (aka Small Dog) from the pound. They get along fairly well... as long as Tessa doesn't try to get affectionate with me. Then Sheepdog will practically stand on my chest, look daggers at Tessa, and growl until Tessa whines and slinks away.
As affectionate as Sheepdog is, she is very pushy and bossy. When I dress in the morning, she will stand in front of me and bark as though to say, "HURRY UP!" When I get ready to take her somewhere in the car, she dashes out the door and runs round and round my car, barking. She barks at me to open the door, then barks at me to get in, then 'chases' the seatbelt into its buckle, and continues to bark until I start the car and leave the neighborhood... or I yell at her to shut up, in which case she whines and yips because she can't restrain her excitement. If we get behind a slow driver, she barks at him as if to say, "GET A MOVE ON, SLOW POKE!" I don't mind this, or rather I don't notice, because I'm 'barking' just as loudly.
If it sounds like she barks a lot, that isn't so. Yes, she's very insistent when she wants something, but in general is a fairly quiet dog. She loves to play fetch, even with soccer-sized ball, which she 'catches' with her forelegs. Despite having plenty of endurance (she will play fetch for hours), she is rather a clumsy dog. I often take my dogs to my parents' house during the day because they have a large, fenced back yard (Sheepdog does an outstanding job of keeping planes from the local airport from landing in it). She loves it there and gets very excited when I pull into their driveway. One morning, she leaped out of the car... and caught a foreleg on the seat belt, went ass over teakettles and landed on her back. She was fine, but when she got up, she looked quite embarrassed and looked around as if to say, "Man, I hope nobody saw that!" She also didn't look like she appreciated me laughing my ass off.
The best thing about Sheepdog - and I think this is true about almost any dog - is her affection. I once read a quote that sums it up:
Man gives his dog the time he can spare, the food he can spare, and the love he can spare. In return, the dog gives the man everything. It's the best deal man has ever made.
When Sheepdog picked me out four years ago, it was the best deal I ever made.
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