english shepherds – Singing Dogs

An English Shepherd always finds other English Shepherds

A couple days ago I was walking with Cody and Sierra in Sherwood Gardens, one of the best places to go in Baltimore this time of year, and I saw what I thought looked like an English Shepherd. I wasn't so sure since everytime I see a dog that looks slightly like our dogs I think “That dog looks like my dogs!” Most of the time it is usually an Australian Shepherd or Border Collie mix though. This usually what most people assume when they see Cody and Sierra too. However, on this day I was pleasantly surprised.

At Sherwood Gardens this dog was lying down casually when he spotted us walking by. Bandit, which we later learned was his name, starting pulling to come say hello to Cody and Sierra and it looked like his owner couldn't stop him. Since Bandit looked friendly I thought I would let my dogs have a little greeting Bandit. After I was confident no snarly faces would be directed at Bandit I casually asked his owner, “What type of dog is that?” she replied, “English Shepherd” to my surprise. I told her that Cody and Sierra were English Shepherds too!

Being such an unknown and rare dog breed I was pretty surprised that we meet another person with an English Shepherd in Baltimore city. I mean Baltimore isn't a huge city but it isn't small either. What are the chances of English Shepherds running into each other?

Some of you might remember, the last time we meet another English Shepherd in Baltimore was when we fostered Scout. You might remember that Sierra gave Scout a singing lesson and he was pretty good. Scout doesn't live in Baltimore city anymore though since he is currently being fostered again by the NESR with a great trainer in Pennsylvania that knows a lot about working with English Shepherds.

What was interesting to see was that Cody and Sierra both really liked Bandit. Sierra was especially playful and they both wanted to run off leash with each other. (Not a good idea in Sherwood Gardens though.) It seemed like Bandit, Cody, and Sierra all knew they were the same breed or something. Usually Sierra is a bit snarky with other dogs but she was fine with Bandit. I took this picture of Sierra and Bandit lying together.

Bandit really like Cody and Sierra too. When we tried to say goodbye and started walking away, he pulled his owner and followed us. He probably thought “Oh no, my friends are leaving!” He clearly felt an English Shepherd kinship too.

Talking with the girl that owned Bandit we agreed that having an English Shepherd is a bit different from other dogs. They can be too smart for their own good sometimes, but it would be hard to own any other breed of dog. It is a lot of work but a lot more interesting and fun in my opinion.

Since Bandit doesn't live to far from us we told his owner he and she could come over for a dog playdate sometime. Cody and Sierra love having friends over since I think they get bored of each other sometimes. (Cody definitely doesn't like dealing with his little sister.)

Hopefully we will see Bandit again and run into more English Shepherds in our area.

NESR in North Carolina with English Shepherds

Linda one of the Pilot Mountain Rescue Dogs

Here is an email update from a representative from the National English Shepherd Rescue regarding the English Shepherds in Pilot Mountain, North Carolina.

NESR is on the ground in NC now. The final count of dogs in our care is 12. There are 9 adults: 5 males and 4 females and 3 pups: 2 males and 1 female. All dogs but one have been into the vet for treatment, vaccinations, de-worming, spay/neuter. The remaining dog will go as soon as it is caught. Of the 3 dogs in the original group that went to an area shelter, 2 have been adopted and and the remaining one pulled by NESR. The dogs are somewhat shy and subdued and understandably so. Their world has been rocked. We have volunteers coming this week who will assist with socialization and leash training. We should have individual pictures of the dogs by the end of the week. Hopefully as people spend time with them we'll see some indication of personality.

We are still looking for foster/adoptive homes if you can help. Feel free to cross post this to anyone who may be interested as well.

If you are interested in fostering an English Shepherd from this dog rescue effort please visit the NESR website to donate money or : http://nesr.info/

North Carolina English Shepherd Rescue Update

I thought I would give everyone a quick update about the dog rescue effort going on in North Carolina. Some of you might remember I posted about the rescue effort. From what I heard now the National English Shepherd Rescue (NESR) will be taking over the handling the care of the Farm Collie mixes in Pilot Mountain from the Scotch Collie Association to my understanding.

Currently there are 14 total dogs still there, 11 adults and 3 pups. These dogs have their origins in a breeding pair of an English Shepherd many years ago. The owner continued to breed dogs to work his cows so although more recent breeding is unclear, NESR feels they are close enough to English Shepherds to help. Right now NESR has team members heading to North Carolina this week to assess the situation with the dogs and will be coordinating vet care which will include spays/neuters, vaccinations and treatment for injuries. As well treatment for the mother and pups who appear to have mange. Some of these dogs will leave on a transport north to Minnesota. Due to limited vehicle space, NESR will need to coordinate a second wave of transport and routes will be determined based on where the foster homes are.

At this point, NESR needs specifically foster homes for these dogs and help with transporting them. They are also desperately in need of donations of towels to serve as bedding in the crates they will be transported in. If you can help or would like more info please contact the NESR. Donations of money to NESR will be appreciated as well as I am sure they will need it. They are working on getting general info and recent photos up on the website so watch out for those.

These dogs will also eventually be looking for loving homes. You can visit NESR's website to learn more about their adoption process. If you're interested in adopting one of these English Shepherd dogs or fostering, you'll find the application at the bottom of this page.

The community has already received a number of offers of help but more is needed. NESR could use all the support they can get, so please help these dogs if you can.

Farm Collie Rescue Effort in North Carolina

I recently heard about 14 Farm Collies or English Shepherd mixes that need help and rescue in Pilot Mountain, North Carolina.

I am not sure of the entire story but from what National English Shepherd Rescue (NESR) has said the owner of this farm in North Carolina purchased an English Shepherd years ago. He mainly wanted cow dogs for the farm. The dogs are most likely a mix of Teverun or Belgian Shepherd since the owner might might have had these breeds of dogs on the property at one paint. His main concern was producing cow dogs. He seems to have lost control of the breeding as the dogs appear to have been running loose for some time. It sounds like the owner did not have relatives or was estranged from his family. A daughter might be coming to help sort out what to do with the dogs on the property.

Someone from the county's Humane Society down there has evaluated the dogs behavior and determined that they exhibit herding behavior and are probably part Farm Collie or English Shepherd. This person is familiar with herding dogs and specifically English Shepherds to my understanding.

She felt the dogs, although under socialized, will come around with attention. She did not seem any sign of aggression but they are a bit scared. It sounds like they have not had much contact with humans from just running around the property.

The Old-Time Scotch Collie Association is now the main group aiding in the rescue efforts down there. They believe the dogs reflect the behavior and are might be Scotch Collies.

Please click here to visit the page and donate through PayPal to help these dogs. We donated a small sum to make sure these dogs are vet bills, transportation, and other needs are taken care of. You can email – Tonya AT farmcollie.org – if you are in the area and can help these dogs.

The dogs that are still there should be split up as they are relying on each other, like a pack would. The dogs that have been removed from the property are already are responding well to individual attention and care. Of the original 21 dogs that are on the property that are 14 left that are still on the property that need help. The dogs appear to be in good shape and are healthy. Most likely they will all adapt very well to a loving home environment. Donations and fostering will be needed though.

If the dogs are seized by county animal control the outlook is not good for them. There are 2 possibly more pregnant dogs out of the 14 dogs still there. There is an immediate need to get them into safe and secure surroundings.

The Humane Society had a routine was feeding the dogs in certain pens in the hopes of capturing the ones that are there. I am not sure of the Scotch Collie Rescue group has taken over but these dogs will need foster homes so they can learn to be trust humans. The pregnant dogs will need to be in a home where someone can whelp and help raise a litter of puppies. Who wouldn't want to have a bunch of puppies around? 🙂

I will keep people updated with the progress of the rescue efforts of these Farm Collie, Scotch Collie, or English Shepherd dogs. Hopefully all of them will find a great home with great families soon.

Sweet and Wonderful English Shepherd up for Adoption in Virginia

english shepherd

Sweet and Wonderful English Shepherd up for Adoption in Virginia

UPDATE 5-25-2013 – Mister Bear was adopted according to the National English Shepherd Rescue adoption page.

You might have noticed that we have started to post animals on Singing Dogs that are available for adoption. Today I am featuring Mister Bear an English Shepherd located in Virginia. I transported him from a shelter in Ohio out here so he could find a good home. Unfortunately he has been in foster care with the National English Shepherd Rescue for over a year.

I think it is really time for him to find his forever home (some like to say furever home) with a new family. He was a sweet and calm dog when I transported him and I have been told he has adjusted quite well to being in a foster care environment.

Wanted: Special person who enjoys laughing, fully living every moment, and lots of public displays of affection. If you bring confidence, experience, and a gentle hand to this relationship, I'll give you all the love you can handle! Sheep, goats, or geese are a plus, but not a necessity, so long as we have plenty of room to play and you can think of ways to keep me busy! My first relationship was a huge disappointment, but I'm ready to try again, so if you like long walks through green pastures, full-body hugs, and chasing the occasional goose back into its pen, please drop a line to my agent, Michael. (sage_moon_naturals@yahoo.com)

Can't wait to meet you!
Love, Mister Bear

If you need an all around partner on your farm and would like more information on Mister Bear contact Michael at (sage_moon_naturals@yahoo.com) please put Bear in the subject line.

Click here for Mister Bear's listing and to find out more about the adoption process. If you want to know about the English Shepherd breed visit the National English Shepherd website to learn more.

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Sierra’s Auld Lang Syne Video on Good Morning America!

Sierra's Auld Lang Syne Video on Good Morning America!

Another BIG appearance I haven't put up on Singing Dogs is that Sierra was on Good Morning America for the New Year's Show! A producer contacted me and said that they “Loved” the video of Sierra singing to ‘Auld Lang Syne' lying down and they wanted to show it on Good Morning America for the Play of the Day segment.

For those that might have missed it (we did too by the way) you can watch the video here. I included the short promo they did before the commercial break.

Pretty cool, right? I mean the guy call Sierra a “He” but at least she was the best part of the Play of the Day segment. (That is my biased opinion.) He did say “English Shepherd” which was accurate.

It took me awhile to get the video on Youtube. Someone sent me a VHS of the show, then I transferred that onto a DVD with my Toshiba DVD Recorder, put the file on my laptop, then I finally got it edited correctly and uploaded it to the SingingDogsRock channel. It was sort of annoying because it was so time consuming. At least the video is up so people can see it now.

Please leave a comment below and let us know what you think of Sierra's Good Morning America appearance. Got an opinion about Cody and Sierra's other media and press appearances? Leave a comment too!

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