From commentor Moses2317, back in early December:
This is Moses2317, an occasional commenter on Balloon Juice and also the creator, along with my spouse, of the blog Winning Progressive. Yesterday afternoon, we adopted a shelter dog named Bard from a shelter in suburban Chicago. We don’t know a lot about Bard, except that he was at a kill shelter until early this past week, when she was brought to the no-kill shelter at which we found him. We used to have a dog named Moses, also adopted from a shelter, but he died last February and its taken the past eight or so months for us to get to the point where we felt we could get another dog. After going to five shelters in the Chicagoland area, we finally found Bard.
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Bard is an approximately seven year old border collie. He is affectionate and lovable, and appears to be quite well-behaved. We brought him home only three hours before we had a Chanukah party with ten people in our house, and Bard handled the entire situation quite well. He let people pet him, slept, and did not beg for food even once. Attached are a few photos of Bard. Our favorite feature so far are the little black dots on his white paws.
SiubhanDuinne
Anne Laurie, the post title link is broken. In the preview mode I can read the first few sentences of Moses2317’s text, but when I click on either “read more” or on the link title itself, I get three photos but no text at all. Thanks.
stuckinred
YAY!
matoko_chan
in horseworld the little black dots are called ermine spots.
the mark of great nobility, and once the property of kings.
Carnacki
Good dog.
stuckinred
@matoko_chan: Hey whackadoodle, I didn’t think you were a morning person?
DPirate
Is he dead?
JPL
We often say that pets find you and Bard seems to fit right in with your family. How did such a great dog land at a shelter? Whatever happened previously, he sure seems happy now.
Carol
THanks to a lot of foreclosures, a lot of great pets are finding their way back into adoption. Apartments seem pretty regressive on the matter of pets. I live in a condo place that is apartment-typed, but pets (except for 2 pet owners who we are annoyed at) don’t seem to be a problem.
Bard seems like such a sweetheart.
My two cats have both been adopted from owners. One was left with me and stayed with me to the end, the other was adopted from a multi-pet family where he couldn’t get along with the others. No money changed hands with either one. Indeed, I don’t get the idea of buying dogs or cats unless it’s for a very rare breed. There’s far too many cats and dogs running around for that.
HRA
Our son-in-law brought us a puppy several years ago that he had gotten from a friend. He said it was a poodle mix. Tasha grew up to look exactly like Bard. She was with us for 9 wonderful years. We could not even think of replacing her. Our kids decided we had mourned long enough (5 years) and brought us Tiki who besides being the most spoiled pet ever has brought us joy and love.
Thank you for this story.
Sko Hayes
Bard looks to be a black lab (see the head) crossed with border collie? Hard to tell from pictures.
He looks very content on his bed, that’s for sure.
I like adopting older dogs too, even though you may not have them as long, they’re pretty laid back and you don’t have a lot of puppy antics to live through.
Congratulations on the newest member of the family!
Sarah in Brooklyn
Happy Valentine’s Day to you and yours and Bard!
Triassic Sands
What a handsome fellow. And it’s great he’s got a new home.
Morbo
Where’s Tom Levenson today? I suspect Rick Perry is going to have a lot of job openings soon for college professors. Severely reduced pay for all!
Linda Featheringill
What a handsome fellow!
I remember that you and the Mrs. have some health problems and perhaps some other difficulties. May all three of you cuddle up in a loving embrace and wait for the storms to pass.
matoko_chan
@stuckinred: yawn
aiight.
bring it…less us rumble stuckin
A government that reflects the popular will in Egypt could create new tensions with the U.S. and Israel.
GTFO missionaries with guns.
gogol's wife
I love the elegant way he has his front paws tucked together in the first photo. I’d love to scritch him.
debit
Older adult dogs are awesome. I wish you many happy years together.
josefina
Bard looks lovely! Very puppy-ish head in the first photo. Keep us posted on how his personality emerges!
Libby's Person
Congratulations, both to you and to Bard! He sounds amazing. He looks very content – I bet this is the first time in a while that he’s felt safe enough to really sleep! Please send us more pictures as he settles in!
I’m a big fan of adult shelter dogs; my completely wonderful, gentle, calm sweetie was dumped in the country and found her way to me through a shelter.
Tim
Congratulations on your new family member, Anne Laurie. He looks like a good fellow, and is lucky to have you. :D
Another Commenter at Balloon Juice (fka Bella Q)
What a lovely Bard, and so happily settled in. Thanks for sharing.
Jane2
He’s lovely! Great paws, great disposition…enjoy your expanded family.
Moses2317
Thanks, all, for all the kind words! Here is a little update:
We have, for various reasons, recently changed our dog’s name from Bard (which is the name he had at the shelter) to Saul. He has adjusted well to the change and is now fully responsive to his new name.
Saul’s personality continues to come through. He is a ball of energy when outside, whether taking a walk on leash or when he gets to go off leash at the dog park. He is very inquisitive, playful with other dogs, and has quite a bit of spunk for a seven year old. At home, Saul likes to guard our apartment – barking when he hears another dog or person, and staring out the window – but other than that he is quite calm and sweet. Saul has also decided that a small stuffed dog we have in the house is his favorite toy, which he often carries around with him. Finally, Saul was an amazingly calming influence recently when my Dad, who suffers from dementia, had a bout of agitation.
We got very lucky when we found Saul and we hope he feels the same way about us!
You Don't Say
@Moses2317: Saul sounds like a great dog.
asiangrrlMN
@Moses2317: Saul is a handsome, sweet boy, yes he is. It’s so neat that he’s helping with your dad as well. Sounds like a win all around.
debg
Congrats on finding each other! Saul is a keeper, that’s for sure.
Kent
Except for the white spots on his paws, Saul looks almost exactly like my dog. (Oh, and mine has only one white foot, not 4.)
Mine is a purebred half-breed: her mother was a golden retriever and her father was a Newfoundland. She is only 63 pounds, despite a 65-pound mother and a 150-pound father.
Not saying that’s what Saul is, but he may not be a border collie.
A couple of photos of mine:
#1
#2
Sasha
Saul looks a lot like my estranged dog, Shadow, a border Lab (border Collie/Lab mix). He has a very Labbie face.
If Saul is such a beast, congratulations! You have a dog that has border Collie’s smarts, but has its border Collie ADHD wonderfully tempered by its Labrador retriever laid-backedness.
I miss my mutt. :(
Original Lee
Many border collies have a broad Lab-like face. I love the paws, too. We were told by one vet that spots on the paws and legs can be indicative of stress in border collies, but this dog seems too laid-back for that to be the case.
Sko Hayes
@Moses2317: Saul says call him anything you want, just don’t call him late for dinner!
@Kent: Yes, that head really looks kind of newfie, doesn’t it? I used to have a lab/newfie cross, the best dog in the world, if you don’t mind getting slimed by slobber once in a while!
Tom_23
We had an adopted shepherd mix that had the same exact paws but not the same face. She resembled a Belgium shepherd and the description of the breed was a good match to her personality. Molly was such a sweet girl. She passed away over 8 years ago. You never forget. It took us a couple of years of mourning but we now have Sunshine-another adoptee; an American Eskimo / Golden Retriever mix. (She made BJ dog blogging page last year)
Boy, what a great introduction to a new family with the Chanukah party. Goes to show how adaptable dogs can be.