Smallholders Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: So many dogs!  (Read 6506 times)

Remy

  • Joined Dec 2011
So many dogs!
« on: November 12, 2012, 08:01:29 pm »
I had a house full of five dogs but had to say good bye to my beloved Cattle Dog in June as her hind end got paralysed due to spinal spondylosis.  Later I had a 'look' around the local Dogs Trust (fatal) and spotted a lovely old Staffie x and agreed to give her a home, as I felt being an older dog (10) she would be passed by.  However, a breeder of cattle dogs rang me just after to say her bitch was expecting a litter and did I want one?!  I was really torn as the dog and bitch who has mated were exactly what I wanted and the mating wasn't to be repeated - but I couldn't let Maggie the Staffie x down, and ended up agreeing to a pup as well!  ::) ;D  meaning I would have six dogs  :o .


Anyway, Maggie arrived and settled in perfectly, and Woody the pup came a few weeks later.  What a full house but OMG Woody is adorable - very very naughty and very smart  :D .  When I got him at 7 weeks he learned to sit almost immediately, the next week he learned to give his paw and the third week he learned to lie down!  Am going to have such fun with this pup


Hmmm think these boots are a bit too big ..


1 horse, 2 ponies, 4 dogs, 2 Kune Kunes, a variety of sheep

in the hills

  • Joined Feb 2012
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #1 on: November 12, 2012, 08:15:35 pm »
You've got your hands full!!!!!


Pup is seriously cute.  Just looked the breed up because I'd never heard of them.  Really interesting.  Looks like they need to be kept busy. You've kept them before ..... do you work them in anyway?

luckylady

  • Joined Aug 2009
  • Yorkshire
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #2 on: November 12, 2012, 08:24:11 pm »
Aww he is adorable.  :love:
Doing that swan thing - cool and calm on the surface but paddling like crazy beneath.

Remy

  • Joined Dec 2011
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #3 on: November 12, 2012, 08:31:57 pm »
I don't work them as such but have done quite a bit of obedience training with them and take them on long walks into the Welsh mountains and Shropshire hills, which I love anyway - they have lots of energy.  They can be quite challenging dogs, having the smartness of a BC but not the subservience lol.  They can be quite wary and suspicious of strangers and other dogs but not all of them are like this, all my three have had totally different characters.  I love them because of their quirkiness and think the cattle dog puppies are the cutest ever, they are like little bears  :love: .


Woody is very bold unlike my two bitches, and I'd love him to learn to herd, it would be very useful with my sheep.  My bitches had the herding instinct but not the training - they liked to lend a hand with the horses when I didn't want it!  ::)  I only have one to worry about now ..
1 horse, 2 ponies, 4 dogs, 2 Kune Kunes, a variety of sheep

in the hills

  • Joined Feb 2012
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #4 on: November 12, 2012, 08:38:25 pm »
Bold is good but could mean he'll need even more training  ;D  and even longer walks.


They are very unusual ...... have fun with him, Remy  :)

Mammyshaz

  • Joined Feb 2012
  • Durham
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #5 on: November 12, 2012, 08:43:12 pm »
He's a little cracker  :love: so glad you also had room for the old girl, it will mean so much for her to retire in a proper home  :thumbsup:

A house is not a home without a dog or six in it  ;D

jaykay

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Cumbria/N Yorks border
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #6 on: November 12, 2012, 08:53:14 pm »
Oh he is gorgeous  :love:

Yeh, we had 6 dogs at one point  ;D Now I'm down to three. My friends say, with horror in their voices, three dogs!  - but of course it feels quite sane to me  ;D

Castlehill Farm

  • Joined Oct 2012
  • Methlick
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #7 on: November 12, 2012, 09:40:09 pm »

We also had 6 dogs earlier this year, this seems to be a common number!

We started off with a golden/red cocker dog and the a black cocker bitch then a black patterdale bitch and then a brindle fell type patterdale bitch which seemed to be a good number of dogs for us.

But we used to use a farmer friends dog for herding up our sheep but he run over his dog we were all devastated so he got himself another collie and finding he was no use to rounding up sheep we decided we needed to get our own working collies for the farm.
We ended up getting a brown / white collie bitch called Jess who was born on Xmas day 2011 and who is starting to work real well rounding up our sheep and a black / white collie dog Ben who was born on this new years day who is a slow starter with the sheep and hope he will learn of Jess.

All the dogs seemed to get on real well and about 3 months ago the golden cocker who was only 7 got real aggressive and bit my missus Maxine and had to be put down as we have a girl of 6 and a boy of 3 not taking any chances and with in 2 weeks after the cocker bitch who was 6 contracted infection of the womb and died real quick so we are now at 4 and think to ourselves this is our good dog number.  :dog:

Pedigree Belted Galloway cattle, Soay / soay X sheep & Boer / boer X goats

jaykay

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Cumbria/N Yorks border
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #8 on: November 12, 2012, 10:19:01 pm »
I don't know why but seven sounds like a silly, excessive number of dogs  :roflanim:

aliceinwonderland

  • Joined Feb 2012
  • Victoria, Australia
  • one day, i will live in my very own wonderland
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #9 on: November 13, 2012, 12:53:32 am »
I found it interesting that cattle dogs are considered 'unusual' in your part of the world - here in Australia they're almost as common as labradors or border collies! My uncle used to have two cattle dogs, one of whom was lovely (Doug) and the other (Betty) who was particularly nasty to small children/big children/anyone she didn't like. There's lots of colour varieties - like red heelers and blue heelers - and there used to be a local crime/police show (like The Bill) called Blue Heelers, as the policemen were meant to be active and always on the job, just like the dogs!


I can understand wanting six (or seven) dogs, but can't quite imagine what it would be like - we've only ever had three at once.
planning to have: beef cattle, a house cow (or two), maybe some goats, definitely some hens and ducks, a lovely farm with rolling hills and a stream running through the back paddock, and a cottage covered with climbing roses and an old wood-fired stove.

Castlehill Farm

  • Joined Oct 2012
  • Methlick
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #10 on: November 13, 2012, 08:30:14 am »

Having 6 dog seemed crazy for a start but it seemed to fit well in our life.

They all had lots of fun running around the farm together.

We had 2 cockers who were partners in life have 2 terriers who work together ratting and the same for our collies you we work with our sheep.

It's all about what you can get from and give owning dogs as most have a purpose in life especially working dogs.
Pedigree Belted Galloway cattle, Soay / soay X sheep & Boer / boer X goats

HelenVF

  • Joined Apr 2012
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #11 on: November 13, 2012, 11:56:31 am »
Awww, he is gorgeous!  Well done rehoming the staffie cross!

We have 9, although 6 are kennel dogs - working gundogs.  Both myself, and husband need grouse counting dogs, so need to have plenty.  We have 3 house dogs - lurcher and 2 terriers and I think that would be our maximum in the house.  The last terrier wasn't planned and I think 2 would be a nice number but I couldn't refuse Jim! lol

Helen

Chris H

  • Joined Oct 2011
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #12 on: November 13, 2012, 04:54:47 pm »
We have 7, all rescues, all loved :thumbsup:  the staffie X is a bit soppy thing, fantastic breed.
We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.

Remy

  • Joined Dec 2011
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #13 on: November 13, 2012, 05:09:22 pm »
Six dogs in the house is a LOT of dogs, I find that I have to separate them into different rooms at times to make life a bit more manageable under foot, lol.  Since the pup came there seems to always be a dog trying to trip me over wherever I go!  They do tend to all follow me whenever they think I am going out (basically whenever I move around), or from 3pm their stomach clocks go off even though they aren't fed till 5 .. so most of the day I have this pack of dogs in tow  ::) ::) .


One (a Jack Russell) is an oldie of about 15 and we keep thinking he's going to snuff it but he has been hanging on for the last 2 years!  Another is a GSD who has had just about every condition GSDs can get and he's still hanging in there too.  I have another JR who came here courtesy of my daughter's ex who couldn't keep him any more, then there is Ruby my ACD, Maggie the Staffie and Woody the ACD pup!


There is an awful lot of dog mess to clear up every day ...  :o
1 horse, 2 ponies, 4 dogs, 2 Kune Kunes, a variety of sheep

sabrina

  • Joined Nov 2008
Re: So many dogs!
« Reply #14 on: November 13, 2012, 07:07:33 pm »
May be a lot of dogs but when walking one anyway a few more makes it more interesting, puppy is very cute.

 

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