Perry's Mum

Have you been asked "Oh so is he/she blind in that eye?" yet? People with Koolies have to answer that as well.

Koolie Rescue have a fosteer carer up there.

Don't get a Koolie if you want a dog that - - Is NOT cleverer than you. - Is not going to tell you off when you are wrong. - Doesn't shed. - Does not always love all other dogs but will sometimes amaze you by selecting the most unlikely playmates including neighbourhood cats. - Is happy being ignored - for any period. - Is not going to want to be with you all the time whether that is going shopping, going for coffee, visiting friends, going for rides in the car etc. - Is not going to push you to play endlessly. - Is not going to need a lot of training and strong leadership. - Is not going to need a great deal of mental and physical exercise. - Is going to be happy living outdoors - they want to be with their people. - Is going to be happy without a job to do - if you don't give them one they will give themselves one and you may not like it. - Is not going to potentially chase anything that moves. - Is not going to be happy on its own for extended periods. - Is happy going for one short walk around the block a couple of times a week. - Is not going to demand shows of affection and want to come and sit on you or lie on you or supervise your showering and dressing. and they are definitely not the breed for you if you don't have the patience to explain to people what they are and where they come from and what they are bred for.

Perry has free run of the whole house at any time whether I am here or not. I have not known her to abuse it. She has her own self imposed rule about good dogs not getting on the beds or couches.

Sheepdog names should be short - Fly, Spy, Sky, Pip, Sal, Moss, Dell, Bess, Cass, Chloe, Jinx, Jess, Jazz, Lola, Meg, Ros, Star, Tori, Taz, Tia.

Dale Formosa of Shaundar Herding teaches dogs to work ducks at his property in Greenbank QLD.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=qeuL5IGimCQ

The next Koolie Club Sheepdog School will be on 17-18 March at Bobbara Station, Binalong, NSW near Canberra. Cost for the two day workshop is $120 for Koolie Club members, $130 for others. Koolies, border collies, kelpies and Australian Shepherds are welcome. PM me for an application form if you are interested.

On the 12th of May 2012 Dale Formosa of Shaundar Herding is holding a Koolie Herding Clinic at his property in Greenbank QLD. If you have a Koolie and are interested in learning how to herd, or would like to brush up on your skills, then come along in May for a great day with like minded people where I can be sure you will learn a lot. The day will start at 7am and go until around 3-4pm, we will be working ducks and sheep, and also get a run down on some “herding theory” and basic obedience and control. Beginners to Advanced, maximum of 10 people with 2 dogs per person, there will be a BBQ lunch and morning tea, coffee, tea etc. cost is $120 ($60 for second dog) making it excellent value for money and an excellent opportunity to work your dog on stock. Please call or email me to book in, [email protected], 0417122766 This is a fun and educational day so please leave any politics at home, Koolies only for this clinic please. Bookings and payment to Jessica.

Perry hates banana but will eat pretty well anything else. She is particularly fond of strawberries and raspberries - She will be 9 next month and I have not had one strawberry out of my fairly large strawberry patch since she arrived. She loves asparagus as well and now I just buy double the quantity I want so she gets her own - she particularly likes it barbecued with a little drizzle of balsamic. Sweet potato and carrots are a regular part of her dinner - she is not keen on brussels sprouts but will eat them and she has decided she loves roast broccoli and cauliflower.

Send me your email address and I will pass it on to the organiser for you.

The Koolie Club will be having a school at Mareeba in May. Not sure if that is close to you.

Perry likes most people but if she does not like someone I am fairly cautious. One person who gets barked at a lot is our postman who seems to me to be a perfectly nice man but I think she is picking up on the fact that he is terrified of dogs.

Perry jumped my six foot fence and went walkabout when I first got her. I advertised everywhere - radio, newspapers, posters, all the vets, all local pounds. She turned up on Saturday - she had gone much further than I would have imagined, had crossed a major road, lost her name tag. On the Saturday (she went missing on the Monday) I had a phone call from a family who had had her since the Monday - she had been adopted by their brain damaged son and they did not have any means to take her to the pound or RSPCA because their car was off the road, they did not get the local papers except for Saturday so did not see my ads. They recognised her instantly from the description and rang up early Saturday morning. Non pet people do not think of taking a lost animal to a vet. I hope Alvin turns up soon.

So do I but she brings half the garden in on it every time she comes in. She was a rescue from Koolie Rescue and is a joy to live with.

I just looked these up - absolutely gorgeous! Lovely coats and adorable foxish faces! One of the base breeds of the Koolie - my long coated Koolie is a very similar type.

Koolie Border Collie German Tiger Dog Australian Shepherd Corgi (either variety)

That was the Weston Woden Animal Hospital. The RSPCA in Canberra also burnt down and people risked their lives to save the animals. I think the ones they could not find foster homes for ended up in empty cages at the zoo.

Spoke to my friend. She has tried feeding him BARF but he gets dreadful diarrhoea, one third meat.rice.veg - same problem. They live fairly far north and are already under thick snow so she does not want to live with diarrhoea in the house. She would prefer to have him eat a good quality dried food with a little meat to top it off but he is not keen on it. He does get a salmon steak a week and a can of sardines.

African Dreams - are not those the basic Thyroid Tests or are they something different? He has had the blood tests 3 times in 3 months. Mags I will suggest the book - thank you.

Some research in the US suggests that it can affect reds as well. He does have weight gain despite being on thyroid medication and is pretty lethargic for such a young dog.

Koolies never slow down - I have met a 17 year old who is still working.

Thanks for the suggestions which I will pass on. She lives in a small town with only one vet who is more used to dealing with farm animals than pets.

This made me cry.

Red