My Beautiful 17yr old Dog

reply to post by Versa


Sadie is a beauty Versa!
I had a border collie once-such an intelligent and loyal breed.
18 is very good going for any dog I think,and that must be in no small part down to your love for her.

I have to ask-What do you feed her?
Because I think diet is a big part in extending a dog's health and lifespan.

Does she like salad bits?most of my dogs love cucumber,lettuce,broccoli stumps and the like.
They get dry mix food as a main meal though.

Give her an itch behind the ears from me!

You might consider taking her for checkups at the vet even if she seems healthy and fine. Due to her age, there's always the possibility that certain ailments may be creeping up on her without being evident yet.

Also, I think I had a dream about your dog like 10 minutes ago. Nothing spectacular, it was just running around playing.

What a cute dog! I love dogs. I love going to the pet mobile for shots every year and seeing all the other people with their dogs. The dogs always seem to behave, the cats in their crates are the ones who don't enjoy being there.

My sister in law has a Boarder Collie. It has beautiful long fur and is larger than the European cousins. The Big dog thinks she is a lap dog. She will crawl halfway into my lap. I only get to see her once a year, but she remembers me still. That dog is afraid of lightening and will hide under the claw foot bathtub. When the children were younger she would try to herd them into a group, sometimes knocking my neice down like a football player. The children were taught run together in a group and the dog will stop.

I've got two little Cairn terrirs who marvel at Big dogs size. The mother dog Cairn used to try to run and keep up, now she sits and watches Big dog run back and forth. My Cairns hunt for lizzards here in South Eastern USA,
no cairn piles here with vermin. When I was in England and Ireland I loved seeing how slightly different the dogs were in the dog breeds than here in the USA. Dogs are just great! Enjoy your furry pal! I had a cairn mix who lived to be seventeen. He was my best childhood friend.

Thanks for sharing your story! Do something special for her birthday!

thank you everyone that has responded so far its lovely to hear all the stories about all the much loved dogs (and cats) and thank you all for the well wishes!

I'll try to go through and respond to the messages later but I wanted everyone to know I do appreciate your kind words and lovely stories

Thank you for sharing Sadie with us!

My pup is 13 years young... I rescued him when he was 9 weeks old. He and his sisters were found in a cardboard box on the side of the road My birthday was coming up, and I told my mom the only thing I wanted was a dog. We went to our local animal shelter and they brought us to him and his adorable sisters (4 puppies in all). He was lively and spunky until I picked him up... he buried his head into my neck and went to sleep... at that moment, I knew I was never letting him go.

Like you and Sadie, my pup and I have been through a lot together... we grew up together... and now we're both adults. I tried obedience training when he was young, didn't help him much lol. He has hound in him, so, to this day, he walks me... he steals food off of your plate... he barks at anything and everything that moves, especially squirrels... he is a bit of an 'alpha' so he doesn't get along great with other dogs... he rolls in the dirt and then climbs into my bed... but, at the end of the day, he rarely leaves my side. Wherever I am in the house, he is there, as well. He has never once failed to eagerly greet me when I come home, or put his head in my lap when I am feeling down. I wouldn't trade him and the time we have had (and still have) together for anything.

We had another dog, also named Sadie, who died of heart failure back in June. We adopted Sadie when she was around 4 and she had been terribly neglected and abused. She suffered from separation anxiety because she had been adopted out and brought back to the shelter several times ('difficult' was the term often used to describe her) before she came home with us. She was gigantic (part Newfie) and would crush you under her weight because she just always had to be touching someone... she couldn't get close enough to you. She was one of only a few other dogs in this world that my dog has gotten along with and I know he misses her. Sometimes I see him looking around for her. Sadie was so big that my dog couldn't eat from their raised food bowl straight on... he had to stand to the side, at a bit of an awkward angle. Even though Sadie is now gone, he still eats in that position. It was hard losing a friend... for both him and I.

Aside from a few gray hairs in his beard, my puppy (yes, he's still a puppy to me) is as lively and spunky as he was many years ago... the vet has given him a clean bill of health... and I hope that, in a few years time, I, like you are with your Sadie, will be looking forward to his 18th, and then his 19, and 20th... ...

I hope, when the time comes, Saide has a wonderful birthday! I know you feel like the lucky one (we all say that, don't we?), but she is is very lucky, as well, to have found someone like you.

Thanks again for your post... it really brightened my day

reply to post by Versa



That's awesome Sadie.

My little buddy just turned 10 and he too is a former agility and former show dog.

He has also earned his Masters of Agility title and is a true athlete.

I have owned dogs and cats and enjoy both. The only difference is how/what triggers their minds.

I feel that all of us souls human and canine/feline all connect and establish relationships for a definitive reason.

And that is we support and help one another through life.

Don't fear though as

One of our dogs who passed on prematurely has come back to us in another terrier body via reincarnation.

There's too much for coincidences to list in why we believe this but you really only need too look at her eyes and can tell who she really is.

It's interesting and it has given me a completely new perspective on life in general.

But do Enjoy every day with her to the fullest !

PEACE

Originally posted by Silcone Synapse
I have to ask-What do you feed her?
Because I think diet is a big part in extending a dog's health and lifespan.

Does she like salad bits?most of my dogs love cucumber,lettuce,broccoli stumps and the like.
They get dry mix food as a main meal though.

Hi thank you for the kind comments they are a lovely breed!

I've varied Sadies food massively from dried to wet and all different brands and I've never fed her at the same time of day either, every other week she has a day with no main meal just titbits on her walk. Ive worked on the principle that dogs digestive system must be designed to cope with a varied diet and varied meal times along with days of not finding food.... Its worked for her and she's never ever begged for food of my plate or stolen any, she can be left in a room with meat on a low table and she wont go near it so it must be suiting her!

I give her scraps too with her dinner but she always leaves very clean vegetables (licks them clean and leaves them) in her bowl as she's not a fan! you can count the peas in and out of the bowl and if 23 go in, 23 come out

Originally posted by trollz
You might consider taking her for checkups at the vet even if she seems healthy and fine. Due to her age, there's always the possibility that certain ailments may be creeping up on her without being evident yet.

Also, I think I had a dream about your dog like 10 minutes ago. Nothing spectacular, it was just running around playing.

hiya yes she did go to the vets about 6 weeks ago (she had a pine needle in her ear) and they gave her a good check up, alls fine except she's going a bit deaf and her eyes are getting a little cloudy!

She does a lot of running around and playing! No-ones told her she's an old dog

Sadie Died today aged 18yrs


She died in my arms, I am heartbroken.

Originally posted by Versa
Sadie Died today aged 18yrs


She died in my arms, I am heartbroken.

Omg hun i am sooo sorry...

the body dies but the spirit lives on...

God will comfort you...

Much love

I am so sorry.

reply to post by Versa


I'm so sorry to hear that your best friend and loyal companion has passed on. Rest assured that you'll both be together again.

If a good dog could live 50 years, it still wouldn't be long enough.

As my own 13 year old border collie mix follows me everywhere I go, I can see myself in your shoes probably much sooner than I'd like. Some people say when your dog dies, it helps to get through the heartache with the diversion and love of a new dog. For me that won't happen for a couple reasons, but I could see you getting many smiles from watching your little one interact with a pup.

I can still feel the tears coming when I think about my dog that died in 1980. Believing I will see her again helps. My thoughts are with you.

Hopefully, a visual that will give you a laugh - When my younger son was two, we got a kitten. As he lay in bed and wiggled his toes under the sheet she bit him on the big toe. He cried out: "SHE DOESN"T LOVE ME ANYMORE!!"
So soon jilted by his first love. She 20 years old now and losing her is going to me hard on both my boys.

My grandma had a collie named "Sadie."