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Boe – Adopted

You must complete an adoption application with WBCR before we will consider you for one of our Border Collies (under the “adoption” link). Then go to our PayPal link to pay the $15.00 application fee. One of our volunteers will check your references, and then another will come to your home to meet you & your family in person before the board will vote on your application. If you are approved, we will arrange a time for you to meet the dog(s) you are interested in. If you decide he/she is perfect for you and the board agrees, we will schedule a day for you to pick up your Border Collie, sign adoption paperwork, and pay the $350 minimum adoption donation. This whole process may take a month or more, as all WBCR members are volunteers and we’re committed to making a perfect match for our border collies. Thanks for your patience!

Please contact Tammie for more information on Boe1 Year Old Male (Suamico, WI) – ADOPTED!

January 26

This weekend I had a friend, Deb, who has met Boe twice now, come and take care of my dogs overnight – she brought her 3 poodles along and another female friend. Deb was impressed with Boe, he was much better than she expected, and she ended up by Sunday really liking him. Initially, Boe was a little leery to come out of his crate when she first came into the house. But he came out, barked a little at
Deb, and then a little at her friend. The friend eventually sat in a rocking chair, and Boe came up and sniffed her, backed away and barked a bit, then came back to her, and soon she was petting him and he was trying to crawl in Deb’s lap for petting and hugs. He played well with everyone, listened to Deb in the house and outside, ate his meals, played frisbee, and though he wouldn’t take treats from Deb’s hand, he ate them quickly when she put them on the floor. My recent commitments away from home have allowed me to mix up Boe with different situations/environments; hopefully it has demonstrated to him that he is always safe, people are kind, & appears to be building his confidence to deal with each new situation.

January 20

Boe had a weekend retreat Thursday-Sunday with one of our other members and her father, people he had never met. Boe was reluctant to get into my vehicle again, but once in rode well. He was not too happy coming out to meet Megan, but he only barked once or twice and was more fearful, trying to back away. He, so far, has let anyone pick him up and put him in a crate in the car, and doesn’t fight the
holding or the crate.

Megan says the stay with her went well, he only missed breakfast the next morning, but otherwise ate his meals and treats. Boe got along fine with her group of dogs, including an intact male and a pup under a year of age – they found out how much he loves to play frisbee. Boe cuddled on the couch with her dad and they said Boe minded better than her own dogs – that is just Boe, he can entertain himself throwing a jollyball or frisbee in the air but you call him to come in the house, and he comes full blast! 😊

When I met to pick Boe back up, he barked at me once, and wanted back in the Dad’s truck – it was like he did not recognize me at all, even after sniffing my hand. Megan’s dad said that Boe just doesn’t seem to remember a person from a few minutes ago if you leave for another room or don’t see him for days– sort of like the movie “50 First Dates” in the beginning. But once in my car, Boe looked out the window for a bit, then settled down nicely while I ran errands; he was in the car for 45 minutes while I grocery shopped, and just napped or people-watched. When we got home, he came right out of the car, into the house, and grabbed his favorite blue rubber dumbbell and acted like he had never been gone.

In the last few weeks Boe has decided he likes to give hugs, which is a great alternative to barking, especially when Tom comes home from work – so Boe can learn to recognize other people and not bark. Sometimes he gives his hugs a little fast but his touch is so soft that he can instantly be back on all four paws if you just turn away or raise a knee slowly to block him – he is a good hugger though!

I was grooming all the animals last Wednesday and Boe, again, was patiently waiting in line for his turn. When his turn came, he walked up the grooming table steps and let me take a snip off each nail – not his favorite thing, but he tolerates it very well; his favorite part is being brushed or combed and maybe the Greenie treat afterwards. The newest photo shows how he lays near me and looks out the patio door while I work on the computer. Boe’s improving greatly!

January 12

Boe’s stranger-danger is getting better; we went for a walk the other day and a small dog ran right into the middle of my three, everything was fine, but when the young lady came to get her dog, Boe scooted behind me. Along the way he only barked once at a couple as we passed, but he was nervous; when we passed them again, he did not do anything but watch them and tried to sniff the air. Today we had company drop by and I had the animals in their crates to start; about an hour later, I let them all out, and put Boe on a leash. He was leery but went to the lady and sniffed her – she wasn’t looking at him, he barked at the man a few times but I popped the leash and he just sat and looked at him and I could feel him shaking thru the leash, but at least not trying to hide nor pull on the leash.

We have a lot of ice around the yard so I am cautious about him playing too much frisbee, so I keep the frisbee low and just throw it a few times. For not getting much exercise, Boe has been great in the house. He had a pressed rawhide one day, we play a little fetch in the house with various toys, and when I am on the computer, as like right now, he just lays quietly near me.

I have posted a few videos of Boe playing inside the house with my dogs and as you can see in the new photo, he is quite comfortable on the furniture. 😊 https://photos.app.goo.gl/GqxU2AodbU472pq98

December 27

Boe is doing better with strangers, but still barks when people enter the house, but not as much. We had several people over Christmas Day and even though I locked the dogs in the hallway, he was still nervous with so many new people were in the house; I put him in his crate for a few hours. When some of the company had left, we let the dogs out; some people remaining he had met but others he had not. He did not run and hide, but did stay close to me and look at them, eventually they all got to pet him – it helped that they all stayed seated and he could approach them. I don’t know if he will ever be a dog that is happy to see new people, like a Boxer or a Golden Retriever, but I think he can get to the point that he accepts them, but it will take work and practice.

A few weeks ago, Tom took Boe and our Boxer for a ride to the grocery store – they went in the truck (a new vehicle for Boe) and I stayed home; we were curious how he would take the changes. Tom had the leash on him, just had to do a little coaxing to get Boe to the truck, but then Boe got up inside by himself and did great on the ride and while Tom was in the grocery store.

We’ve been on a few more walks and Boe improves each time; nice heeling most of the 30+ minutes, barks just a little when we see strangers but settles nice when we say “Leave it” in a neutral voice. One day he was nervous to come to me with the leash in hand while we were outside. I gave him a minute to figure it out, he didn’t, so he got left at the house as we walked. Since then he has let me leash and collar him in the house and sits nice when I put on and take off his collar.

Boe got his first bath with us just before Christmas – Tom gave it to him, said it took just a little coaxing to get him into the normal-sized human tub, but once in he relaxed and enjoyed it!

December 10

This past week and a half have seen great progress – like an evolution of trust of Boe. The first accomplishment he did on his own – navigating down the stairs to the lower level; he must have been watching the other dogs and I go up and down to bring Christmas stuff up. As I am getting ready to head up the stairs I heard little footsteps and he peeks around the corner and we all throw a party. Since then there has been no stopping him – I can’t go down alone anymore, we even play fetch upstairs and then downstairs.

Saturday night I asked a friend and her mom to stop by so I could set Boe up. I have been practicing some putting the leash on him and doing nothing and then taking it off. When she called to say they were coming I put the leash on him and let him walk around with it. When they arrived, the dogs went barking to signal “Company”, I quietly picked up the leash and just leaned against the kitchen sink. When they came thru the door Boe got a little barky and anxious, but not too bad, and with the leash he wasn’t allowed to leave, just back up. My friends came bearing gifts of french fries, chicken nuggets, and burger – something out of the ordinary, warm and smelled good. My friend even laid on the floor to be “submissive” – now that’s a friend! 😊 Boe would take and eat the food, and after a few minutes there was petting and about 10 minutes later we took the leash off to see if he would leave. He went about 10 feet, but came back for some treats, and even let her walk up to him and give him treats. At the end he even approached her twice for petting. The whole think took less than 20 minutes and demonstrates he just needs more “practice”.

Our third accomplishment was going for a ride. Sunday, we loaded everyone up – my dogs in the very back of the SUV, Boe and I in the back row of seats, and Tom up front driving. I had the leash on Boe, he was nervous and not sure of going, so I pulled him a little towards the car, he slinked up, I put his front feet up and onto the car and he got in the rest of the way. I rode with him, him looking out the window most of the trip; there was some drooling but not too bad. We made a quick stop at Starbucks, I got back in but in the front, so Boe had the back seat to himself; same thing, he likes looking out the window most of the time, otherwise he lays down. We got to my friend’s house, delivered tea and coffee, got Boe and other dogs out, and went into her yard. Boe was a little nervous but quickly took to investigating the yard. Then she let her 3 standard poodles out, one was barky, and Boe wasn’t bothered, barely really acknowledged them except for quick nose-to-nose smells – he has great doggy manner. Our next step was to get him inside her house. Took a little doing, but with everyone in and him alone, he made the decision to enter himself. He was nervous, but after several minutes would go into all the lower level rooms, take treats, even finally came up to the mom who is a bit scary due to a cane and took treats and then let her pet him. A very successful day for Boe!

Other pluses: we went for more walks and the last one Boe did most of the half hour on my left side with a VERY slack leash – so nice to walk a dog that doesn’t have to sniff and urinate every 50 feet; he also will settle and lay down nicely if I sit down at the computer, but as soon as I move he is ready for action!

December 1

Boe was wonderful grooming this week; I even used the nail clipper and tapped each nail or took a little off and even got the nail grinder out and did two front nails – he just sat there and gave my hand a couple of licks. When we were done, I turned him around and put his two front feet on the stairs going down and then he went down beautifully. He is also doing the stairs in the garage up to the house naturally.

We have gone for two more walks, one I did all 3 dogs by myself with no issue, however, we did not encounter any people or vehicles; the 2nd walk I had Tom hold his leash and I took our two. On the 2nd walk we encountered a couple of people – big coats on, hoodies up, coming at us – Boe got a little growling and barked a bit but was never difficult to control nor did he pull on the leash very hard. Tom worked on “Leave it” as they are none of his business, and Boe always looked to Roc and Reba who just kept on walking. Boe is responding to “Leave it!” better and better and looks to Tom or I for assurance. Another highlight of walking is that Boe came up to me both times so I could put the leash on him! The first time I sat on the steps after leashing the others and he came up and kind of sat behind me, and the 2nd walk, he came up to me after watching the others get leashed and sat in front of me to be hooked up. 😊

Boe did have a 3rd visitor this week (Monday) who came after dinner and this meeting did not go well; not sure if it was because it was his first indoor meeting, but he got very agitated and barky but then kept hiding behind the couch. Eventually I got a leash on him, got him on the correct side of the couch and he quieted down and let the lady pet him and give him treats – he wasn’t terrified at this point but not his normal self and just laid down and looked at her and wouldn’t play fetch. We eventually took him outside to see if he would fetch and it went a little better, but even with the flood light and the cold it was hard to stay out long or throw the frisbee too far; Boe did bring the frisbee to both the lady and the man, so that was good.

Boe also did much better with the leaf blower this week, he would run in the yard with his frisbee as I blew the leaves, and started to act the same way towards the vacuum but I just said Leave it and he stayed calm and ran around the house with the other dogs and the cats.

November 25

Another good and interesting week. He has actually put his front feet on us while we are on the coach or standing, to get petted like the other dogs and doesn’t seem to mind if we hover over and around his head. Boe has done the garage steps (4) that lead to the house all by himself twice and they have open risers; we haven’t attempted the inside stairs again. He is fine with the 4-wheeler and followed me around the yard carrying his frisbee. However, with the leaf blower, he got very agitated/aggressive and bit the nozzle, so I locked him away while I did some chores.

We went to the vet Monday morning for a distemper vaccine. I put him in a rather small crate, which I am sure wasn’t too comfortable; I could hear him moving around a bit and a little panting. At our first stop I checked on him and he was laying comfortably and just looked at me. Next stop was the vet. Boe waited quietly while I opened the door and leashed him and then came out slow and careful – just perfect. There was noticeable drool in the front of the crate. He was cautious going into the vet office and while inside, but I never had to pull him or pop him back; he did leave several drops of drool on the lobby floor. He was nervous, but alert and interested in what people were doing, the printer was going off, the phone etc. Boe willingly investigated the lobby and areas close by and eventually went into the room without issue. The vet is a tall man and Boe only barked a bit and one low growl. He was nervous during the exam, but the vet let him stay on the floor, I held his head, and Boe was relaxed enough for a thorough exam of his organs, flexing of his front and rear joints, having his temp done, and no reaction to the vaccine. Boe slunk to the car, but got into the crate much better with me just lifting him up. When we got home, he came out slow and careful with
no issues.

He had two visitors this past weekend, barked at them initially, but then warmed up to them and brought his frisbee for play. However, when he saw the leash, he cowered a bit and kept his distance. Eventually we got him leashed and folks could walk him around the yard, but he wasn’t too happy if I went out of site. Once I showed them how willingly he goes in his crate he wouldn’t come out until they left and I brought my dogs inside.

Boe is definitely a cautious dog but has the potential to be a really good boy with a consistent routine, patience, and continued exposure to anything and everything in a positive and relaxed manner. Treats are not motivating in stressful situations; he seems to get thru them with just a “Good Boy” and a little petting.

November 17

We had a couple of new experiences this week; first we found out he is petrified of stairs; the dogs and I got him down and back up, but he was stressed. Once downstairs he quickly rebounded and trotted around getting familiar with the layout. Going back up he was no less scared but only a few steps from the top he relaxed a bit and moved forward more easily. We have not worked on this since but will this week.

On Friday afternoon we took the 3 dogs for a walk – it is a country block and takes a little over ½ an hour. Tom took our two and I had Boe on a six-foot leather leash. First off, he was not happy to see the leash and ran back into the yard; a few minutes later we were leashed and joined the others. Walking down the driveway he was very nervous, common for him in new environments, and zig-zagged a lot. Our driveway if about a 1000 ft, so I let him walk his way and sniff. When we hit the road, he was ok, nervous, but I shortened the leash a bit and tried to keep him on my left. During the walk he calmed down, watched our dogs and seemed to get courage from them. Half-way thru the walk he would moved out in front until he was just behind our Boxer and then he would come back close to me. Periodically he would look to me and Tom for affirmation and we’d say Good Boy or Good Boe and he seemed to acknowledge it. There was no traffic until we neared home; a pickup truck went by and I slowed and Boe sat and I pet him. He showed no fear and nor inclination to chase the vehicle. A few minutes later a big school bus went by and he got a little nervous and moved toward the ditch; he recovered quickly and finished the walk calmly. As we turned into our driveway he relaxed completely.

Today, Sunday, was grooming day. I did my dogs first, including nails and the use of a nail grinder. Boe showed no fear and actually sat near me as I finished up the second dog. I then put a slip collar on him and lifted him onto the grooming table – he did not fight or tense during the lifting – I have stairs to the grooming table but did not make him do those. On the grooming table he did not mind being hitched to the stand, I kept his tether slack; he was a little nervous and did not stand easily. He left me lift all his paws, check his ears, check his teeth and lift his tail. By the time I asked the 3rd time for him to stand he stood easily. He enjoyed the attention and the combing and the Fresh n Clean spray. Ears were great, nails did not have to be done, amazing since he has been with me for two weeks or so. I lifted him down with no issues and they all had Greenies.

Boe continues to be great in the house and with the cats. He is getting a little more confident around the cats and was doing some nipping to the youngest cat – look like he was trying to get Diego to move, and so, he got tied to a door knob in the living room while we ate and he just laid down. He has not done any destructive chewing at my house, ripped up a dog toy or two, but nothing I wouldn’t expect from a young boy. He is crated, as are my dogs, for meals, sleeping, and during the day while we are at work (7-9 hours) and doesn’t mind at all. We try and exercise him before we go to work and when we return, but very dependent on weather. Inside the house we throw toys in various directions to play fetch and are working on him to drop the toys closer to us.

November 4

Boe is a year & half old neutered male, and is up-to-date on vaccines, heartworm negative, neutered, and microchipped. He was a surrender from a family that admitted they did not have time for his energy and drive. He has been with me 4+ days, and so far, I find him to be a normal BC with medium drive and in need of mental stimulation and a job – like obedience, herding, agility, flyball, or frisbee (his favorite!). BCs are dogs bred to interact with their owners and Boe is no exception.

He has easily adjusted to a big plastic crate and goes in fast at meal and bed times and is in one while we are at work. Boe has also been exposed to a wire crate during his few days with Julie who was kind enough to transport him to me – thank you! His new foster home consists of a male Boxer, a female Mastiff, and three cats. Boe gets along with all very well; however, the last two days he tends to want to herd or stalk my youngest cat so I am keeping an eye on him and distracting him with toys… or the middle cat comes up scares him before I can do anything – Boe jumps up in the air like a fox! But for the most part, the cats ignore him and walk around the house without fear.

So far Boe comes quickly when called and sticks close when outside running around – both in the fenced area and the non-fenced area. I keep a close eye on him when outside the fence as he is young and still apt to run given a reason. One issue he has is that he will bark at men if they come into a room, even if they were there just 5 minutes ago; he does not do the same thing with me. This seems to be
subsiding as the days go by, today he hardly barked when Tom came home from work. He is also very skittish with things moving around or above him – like doors, drawers, etc. and strange noises, but he recovers very quickly and comes back to investigate.