Call me crazy...

[Gail P]

...but here we grow again

This is Blaze, my daughter's new pup who will be coming home probably next week. He's 8 weeks old now but is going in this week for vaccinations and microchipping so we couldn't yet bring him home. My friend who runs a border collie rescue also has a working sheep farm and occasionally raises a litter of her own CBCA reg. Border Collies as well and this guy is one of her pups. He's actually a nephew of some of our other dogs, although they came through the rescue they come from known bloodlines that are related to some of my friend's dogs. When Blaze grows up he will become a part of my daughter's sled team and we will also train him to work in goose control with us. My daughter thought she might like to get a female pup but Blaze picked her. While the other pups were playing around he just kept coming back to her and was very content to be held by her most of the time we were there visiting.

Something a little off topic, but interesting - my friend and her husband, along with 3 of their dogs and some of their sheep have been working on a movie set for part of last week and will be back at it again next week. The producers were looking to hire some sheep and herding dogs and so my friend and her husband have ended up both being competitors in a sheep dog trial in the movie. Their other dog is the herding double for the movie dog.

[ancientgirl]

He's adorable. It certainly sounds like he did choose her.

Congratulations.

[Chaser]

What a sweetie!

[chico2]

Awww what a sweety and your daughter is beautiful

[SIL]

Congratulations to you and your daughter. He's a sweetie

Guess now you have to update your website...

[ownedbycats]

He's adorable! Your daughter is lucky to have a dog of her very own.

[babymomma]

Adorable dog! A BC is definatly on My list for the future! ..

Cant wait to watch him grow and Cant wait to see him all grown up and Sledding with your daughter!

[hazelrunpack]

What a doll! He's going to make a lovely addition to the Pack, Gail! Certainly will be fun to see him develop!

and did you all notice that Gail now has nine? he hee And hazel doesn't look so crazy any more, does she?

[14+kitties]

Originally Posted by hazelrunpack

What a doll! He's going to make a lovely addition to the Pack, Gail! Certainly will be fun to see him develop!

and did you all notice that Gail now has nine? he hee And hazel doesn't look so crazy any more, does she?

Technically Gail has ten now, doesn't she? What with her hubby's hunting dog?
We would never call you crazy hazel. We love you!!!

Very nice puppy. I'm sure your daughter will have lots of fun with him.

[Gail P]

Thanks everyone! When we get him home I'll be sure to take tons more pictures

Technically I still have only 8 since Blaze is my DD's and Shorty the beagle DH's. Even if I were to count them all though, I'm still small potatos compared to a lot of the racing and touring kennels. Although most of them don't have the same living arrangements as my guys

It's amazing, even though we already have a pack, my daughter was so keen to have a dog of her "own" that she is willing to take full responsibility for all the costs incurred for his upkeep, and that is including his vaccinations and neutering. She's been earning some money helping me this summer with our goose control work and though at first she wanted to spend some on toys she's been saving it up for a while. When we talked about her doing this she said she is also willing to put all the money she gets at Christmas and her birthday towards taking care of her pup. She's showing a lot of maturity for her age (10) taking this on the way she is. And, she's even cleaning up her room to have space for his crate and puppy-proof the room! If you could see the disaster that is her room you'd understand how big of a deal that is. She's got enough toys for 10 kids and usually has them strewn all over her bedroom and the playroom, but she's doing a thorough clean-out in hers.

[Magicwildwolf69]

what a beautiful puppy and they look bonded already! boy i'm jealous i really want a dog lol.

[growler~GateKeeper]

Blaze is adorable Congrats to your daughter and a big for the maturity & responsibility she is showing towards his care, though I'm not surprised with the great mum she has

[Bailey_]

Blaze is ADORABLE. And so is your daughter!! That must be so exciting to see her taking on so much responsibility at such a young age.

You are clearly a wonderful role model.

[ownedbycats]

My room has always been a disaster area since I was a little kid, so I understand exactly how much your daughter must want this puppy if she is willing not only to clean it up but to do so voluntarily. Sounds like she's willing to go a long way to make sure her dog is well looked after. to her.

[Love4himies]

I bet these two will become inseparable . What a sweetie both your daughter and Blaze is. She is showing signs of becoming a very responsible adult

[Gail P]

Awww...thanks

Wow, what a difference in her room now that she's been motivated to do something about the mess and clutter. I can actually see the floor now! It's bare even with everything put away on shelves, in under-bed storage bins or in the garbage (amazing how much garbage gets accumulated what with old crafts, broken toys and stuff that is just ready to be given away or thrown out) I should have taken before and after pics. She worked all weekend on it and more after school. She's still got to dust and organize the stuff on top of one dresser but that's it, her room is ready for the puppy. Oh, and I have to get her one more storage container to put stuff in on a shelf so the pup can't just pull things off the shelf.

[hazelrunpack]

Has the date been set, yet? Your daughter must be getting mighty excited!

[Dog Dancer]

How great is that, it's so nice when the kids start to grow up. So spill the beans mom, you going to split it 50/50 with her?? I ask because I know that's what I'd end up doing if it was me. I'd make sure she was willing to make the commitment then help her out. But then I don't have ten dogs to deal with either! Very cute daughter and the puppy is sweet also. Look forward to seeing all the pics as they grow together.

[TeriM]

Awww, what a cutie Blaze is . Good luck .

[Gail P]

We are hoping to get him either tomorrow evening or on Saturday so that she'll have the whole weekend to spend with him. That's assuming that the pups did go and get their needles and microchipping this week. I think they were supposed to be going on Tuesday but that might have changed depending on which days my friends were involved in the movie filming. It's been a really busy week for them with that going on and all the traveling to and from the movie set as well. I haven't spoken to them this week since I knew they were so busy and also I didn't want to pester about when we could get him, I wanted to make sure first that my daughter would have her room ready in time.

As for splitting his expenses with her, we'll see. I think it would be good for her to really understand what all goes into having a dog of her own, including appreciating the financial responsibility. Mom doesn't just take them to the vet and poof, it's all taken care of. I want her to learn how to budget the money she gets (never too young to learn that, wish somebody had taught dh ) so this is a great opportunity to learn. Plus, it's a better way for her to spend the money she gets than on more toys to clutter up her room again. She's already got enough for at least 10 kids!

[Gail P]

Okay, so I didn't take "before" pictures of the bedroom, but just to give you all an idea of what it was like, this disaster zone is the playroom and is very similar to the state her bedroom was in


I'm not really sure how we can continue to call it a playroom when there's no room to play


The playroom used to be our spare bedroom, but back when we had great danes we took down the bed to make room for a big custom made crate for one of them that was being destructive. When we no longer needed the crate and took it out of there we decided to not set the bed back up and instead turn it into a play room, so that the toys could be in there and her bedroom would stay tidier. Yeah. Right. That worked well. The mess just grew and spread to encompass 2 rooms. Word to the wise, never give your children more space to clutter up, instead make them tidy up the space they already have.

So, the bedroom. A few things have been moved, there used to be an armchair at the foot of the bed that was piled a mile high with stuffed toys, plus stuff all over the floor. The chair has now replaced the old worn out one in our living room and the dresser that was just inside the door (and blocked it from closing tightly) is now at the foot of the bed instead.

"Tidy up" used to be interpreted as "clear a path to walk through" or "pile it all on the shelf" (the old baby change table) Now it's all away, off the floor, the shelves are neater and just as soon as I get that other storage bin everything on the middle shelf will be in it to keep the puppy safe.

Here are the "after" pics.

[growler~GateKeeper]

Your daughter has done a great job Good for her

Now you just have to think up something to get the "playroom" the same treatment