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New Camping Buddies

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
Last May, I lost both my dogs, Moose-dog and Bat-dog. Moose-dog to old age (15 yr old shep/poodle/newfie) and Bat-dog to a brain tumor. She was 11yrs.

Anyway, it was very lonely so I adopted a very beautiful, very sweet shepherd, Cat-dog. Her only issue is with other dogs. She's afraid of them. However, she mothers her cats wonderfully.

So after time for her to adjust to her new home, I started looking into getting a puppy. The first thing was to see how she'd take to a puppy, so the local shelter's foster brought over a small puppy. Cat-dog was in love! She immediately washed its face and was just so happy.

OK. Now we're ready to find the right puppy. It needs to be 4 months or under, big enough for a large shepherd and I'd prefer a male. My preference was for a shepherd mix, but I was open to other mixes.

Rescues wanted as much as $750 to adopt a puppy. The ones I contacted about were adopted the same day they were posted on the websites. There were girls available, but they didn't want to adopt them with another female.

After 3 months of searching, contacting, failing, I contacted a shelter 4 hours away about some aussie mix puppies they had just posted. They were already taken, but she told me they had a litter of border collie mix puppies that would be ready in two weeks. So I submitted my paperwork and got scheduled for the first virtual adoption appt. Which meant I got my pick of the litter.

On Sunday, January 31, they posted their photos. There were 5 girls all but one brown and white shorthaired. The 5th was almost all white with just a touch of black. The 3 boys were each different. One was brown and white like the girls, the second was fluffy with a black with brown coat, and the 3rd was white with some black. For the entire night I kept looking at the photos and I just kept being drawn to the same one.

Monday morning, I had the virtual and they brought that puppy into the "camera viewing area". He was adorable and happy and friendly. They asked if I wanted to see one of the other boys and I couldn't pick between them. So I adopted the one and scheduled to pick him up on Tuesday after his neutering.

So which one came home? Here is what I found after the tornado hit the living room:


Cat-dog loves him! She washed him, she showed hime where to sleep - I don't know why but she insists on sleeping UNDER the bed. I have invited her on the bed, but she won't stay. He comes up for a nap sometimes, but likes to sleep with his sister.






I had my doubts about the border collie, so I got his dna tested.

At just under 8 weeks, he weighed 10lbs. He's the biggest of the litter. At 15 weeks he weighed 25lbs.

Any guesses as to what he is?
1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)
47 REPLIES 47

colliehauler
Explorer III
Explorer III
toedtoes wrote:
Deb and Ed M wrote:
toedtoes wrote:
He does love it. His sister doesn't and she will try to redirect him away from the water.

He's reaching the point where his energy doesn't ebb and flow as much. After a long water session yesterday, he went inside, moved all the throw blankets and then tried to play with The Twooney. I had to take him back out for the tennis balls when he started chewing on Looney2.


Have you ever heard the "difference between a BC and an Aussie?" The Aussie has an "off switch".....LOL!

I'll keep your stamina in my prayers ๐Ÿ˜‰


Thanks. He got his final puppy shots - finally. So tomorrow Aunt C, Cat-dog and I are taking Tornado-dog out for a hike. It will be his first outdoor adventure and will hopefully tire him out.

He has been busy ripping up cardboard. I no longer have to break boxes down for the recycle bin. Tornado-dog turns them into confetti very quickly.

Hmmm, if Aussies have an off switch and BCs don't, that must mean JRTs have a turbo boost.
Both my Collies love turning boxes into confetti, now that they are getting older not so much. Use to joke with my sister about getting the Collies boxes for Christmas.

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
Oh, he has learned the trick with the hose. He likes to race up the spray attacking it as he heads towards the nozzle but he would choke on the water as it hit the inside of his throat.

So now as he races up the spray, he holds his head so it hits him on the chest. Then he attacks the redirected spray coming off his chest. No more choking on the water.
1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
Deb and Ed M wrote:
toedtoes wrote:
He does love it. His sister doesn't and she will try to redirect him away from the water.

He's reaching the point where his energy doesn't ebb and flow as much. After a long water session yesterday, he went inside, moved all the throw blankets and then tried to play with The Twooney. I had to take him back out for the tennis balls when he started chewing on Looney2.


Have you ever heard the "difference between a BC and an Aussie?" The Aussie has an "off switch".....LOL!

I'll keep your stamina in my prayers ๐Ÿ˜‰


Thanks. He got his final puppy shots - finally. So tomorrow Aunt C, Cat-dog and I are taking Tornado-dog out for a hike. It will be his first outdoor adventure and will hopefully tire him out.

He has been busy ripping up cardboard. I no longer have to break boxes down for the recycle bin. Tornado-dog turns them into confetti very quickly.

Hmmm, if Aussies have an off switch and BCs don't, that must mean JRTs have a turbo boost.
1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
DilanYah wrote:
We're in the process of looking for a dog as a family pet (possible rescue). We're looking for a small young one that's good with children. So far we're considering papillons, shih tzu, and affenpinscher. I have no knowledge of the affenpinscher. If anyone owns one, I would appreciate hearing your comments.


Shih tzus and affenpinschers are both short nosed dogs and can have trouble with heat. As RVers, that could be a consideration.

Papillons and affenpinschers are more athletic and willing to be outside exploring.

Shih tzus require the most grooming - regular puppy cuts or daily brushing and keeping hair out of their eyes. Affenpinschers will need their faces trimmed regularly.

Shih tzus are likely to have more issues with potty training.

The French call the affenpinscher "mustached little devils". They can be stubborn and are more terrier like in attitude.

Papillons are pretty easy to train and have an attitude more like a spaniel.

All are small, so not necessarily great with small kids. Affenpinschers will be more feisty in their play. Papillons should be pretty good with kids as long as no pulling on the ears.

If I had to choose for myself, I would say affenpinscher, then papillon, then shih tzu. But that's because I prefer the tougher sturdier terriers to other small dogs. For someone else, I'd probably say papillon, affenpinscher, shih tzu because the papillon will be easier to train but still have an active attitude. Personally, I'm not that fond of shih tzus - known too many yippy ones. And I hate that folks started buying them just so they could mispronounce their breed and think it was funny.

Personally, I really recommend a rescue dog. But, a rescue papillon or affenpinscher is not going to be an easy find. There are likely to be rescue shih tzu mixes all over - backyard breeders have been mixing them with all sorts of breeds to create new "fashion breeds". Please don't buy one of these.

The most common small rescue dog you'll see will be chihuahua mixes.

Hope that helps.
1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

Crowe
Explorer
Explorer
DilanYah I would recommend a separate post as this one is buried pretty far in.

I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be

Douglas Adams

[purple]RV-less for now but our spirits are still on the open road. [/purple]

Deb_and_Ed_M
Explorer II
Explorer II
toedtoes wrote:
He does love it. His sister doesn't and she will try to redirect him away from the water.

He's reaching the point where his energy doesn't ebb and flow as much. After a long water session yesterday, he went inside, moved all the throw blankets and then tried to play with The Twooney. I had to take him back out for the tennis balls when he started chewing on Looney2.


Have you ever heard the "difference between a BC and an Aussie?" The Aussie has an "off switch".....LOL!

I'll keep your stamina in my prayers ๐Ÿ˜‰
Ed, Deb, and 2 dogs
Looking for a small Class C!

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
He does love it. His sister doesn't and she will try to redirect him away from the water.

He's reaching the point where his energy doesn't ebb and flow as much. After a long water session yesterday, he went inside, moved all the throw blankets and then tried to play with The Twooney. I had to take him back out for the tennis balls when he started chewing on Looney2.
1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

Deb_and_Ed_M
Explorer II
Explorer II
I LOVE it - that's Augie's favorite game, too! Also a nice way to take the energy level down a notch - at least for a while....LOL!
Ed, Deb, and 2 dogs
Looking for a small Class C!

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
Here's Tornado-dog in action...



1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
BCSnob wrote:
My wifeโ€™s Hattie was purchased from a breeder. Hattie and most of her littermates traveled from MO to Glenwood Srings CO where we got her. She then traveled back with us to MD.


Hattie is quite the travel pro.
1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

toedtoes
Explorer III
Explorer III
colliehauler wrote:
So far Sawyer has visited the following states Kansas Colorado Nebraska Minnesota Iowa Missouri Illinois Indiana Ohio West Virginia Pennsylvania New York Maryland Kentucky Tennessee Georgia Florida Oklahoma and Texas in his 2.5 years. Keep in mind we have not gone anywhere in the last year because of covid.

Sasha has not been to as many states but close.

If I don't take the RV I usually stay at a motel 6 because of their pet policy, also they have laminate flooring instead of nasty carpet.

The most expensive motel was in New York state. I had difficulty finding a motel that would accept pets. Finally found one ironically down the street from West Point.


Sawyer and Sasha have been busy. That's a big trip.

I just retired in the fall of 2019, so we're still working our way into big cross country trips. At this point, the cats are the old pros with two trips for Looney1 and one trip for Looney2. The dogs and new parrot (Bird) are all awaiting their maiden voyages.
1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

BCSnob
Explorer
Explorer
Yes, itโ€™s quite hilly in western MD; we frequently use I68 when traveling west. We are east of Cumberland along I70; our farm is on the eastern slope of the ridge the Appalachian Trail in on. There is one more ridge to our east (Camp David is on the slopes of this ridge) and then itโ€™s mostly flat.
Mark & Renee
Working Border Collies: Nell (retired), Tally (retired), Grant (semi retired), Lee, Fern & Hattie
Duke & Penny (Anatolians) home guarding the flock
2001 Chevy Express 2500 Cargo (rolling kennel)
2007 Nash 22M

colliehauler
Explorer III
Explorer III
BCSnob I had never been to Maryland until that trip. I was amazed at how steep the hills were in Cumberland. Is the area your located like that?

Sounds like your pup had a long journey as well.

BCSnob
Explorer
Explorer
My wifeโ€™s Hattie was purchased from a breeder. Hattie and most of her littermates traveled from MO to Glenwood Srings CO where we got her. She then traveled back with us to MD.
Mark & Renee
Working Border Collies: Nell (retired), Tally (retired), Grant (semi retired), Lee, Fern & Hattie
Duke & Penny (Anatolians) home guarding the flock
2001 Chevy Express 2500 Cargo (rolling kennel)
2007 Nash 22M

colliehauler
Explorer III
Explorer III
So far Sawyer has visited the following states Kansas Colorado Nebraska Minnesota Iowa Missouri Illinois Indiana Ohio West Virginia Pennsylvania New York Maryland Kentucky Tennessee Georgia Florida Oklahoma and Texas in his 2.5 years. Keep in mind we have not gone anywhere in the last year because of covid.

Sasha has not been to as many states but close.

If I don't take the RV I usually stay at a motel 6 because of their pet policy, also they have laminate flooring instead of nasty carpet.

The most expensive motel was in New York state. I had difficulty finding a motel that would accept pets. Finally found one ironically down the street from West Point.