Sam
	Gender: Male Age: 2 Years Height/Weight: 23" / 55lbs House-trained: yes Fenced yard required: Yes Location: Mid-Michigan Foster Home: Pam and Roberta	Crate-trained: Yes Treat-motivated: Yes Toy-motivated: Yes Likes Car Rides: Yes Good with cats: will chase Good with kids: older kids Commands: sit, wait, Kennel-up, quiet, his name

Sam was adopted in July, 2018. Here he is with his new family!

Sam – The Big Red Dog

After you notice Sam’s overall size (he’s 23” tall- Big for a purebred BC!), you are captivated by his eyes. Those EYES! Many people find typical brown Border Collie eyes either captivating OR eerie. People who have met Sam say his yellow eyes are intense, like he’s looking into their soul. Long ago I got used to yellow-eyed BCs with my heart dog, Ruby. There were many unspoken conversations we had, eye to eye, and I miss that. So now, let’s move on from Sam’s expressive eyes…

Sam is a purebred BC who was surrendered to Animal Control because he is a typical young dog. His elderly owners (I understand they were in their 80s) had their minds set on getting a Border Collie puppy, even against their adult childrens’ warnings that the combination of BC & puppy wouldn’t really be a great idea, but their admonishments were ignored. The rest of Sam’s story with them is just conjecture: Although Sam was well-loved and well-taken care of, he finally got to be too much dog for them. At just over 2 years old, Sam was taken to Animal Control. Thanks to some friends of GLBCR out in the field, Sam was spotted and had a soft landing with GLBCR.

So, Sam’s story isn’t one of abuse in any way, nor was it one of neglect. Sam just grew up normally and became too much dog for his owners. Now GLBCR has Sam, and after a few weeks in foster care, he has been released for adoption!

Sam came with his veterinary history, as well as a short note from his previous owner, something that rarely comes with a dog from Animal Control! This is what the note says:

“Sam Born 3-25-16
Border Collie
Sam is up to date on all his shots, he likes to play outside with his toys.
He’s been eating Iams green bag dog food, he likes Milk Bones.
Sam needs to be on a farm or in a fenced in yard.
He doesn’t Mind very Well. [owner’s comment – not mine]
He’s been neutered, he’s housebroken.”

Sam came to me thinking he ran the show and got his way. He’d bash forward and expect humans to do what he wanted them to do. In the course of his time with me, he has learned he doesn’t get to exit his crate at high speed; he must WAIT until he is released. He knows how to SIT, but he needs some work on “sit” as a control command (like waiting at the door before going outside).

Although Sam likes people and has been GREAT with every person he has met (including my 12 yr old niece), he does not have an attachment to humans. He has not yet developed a mutually beneficial relationship with any human. Sam understands humans are important, but after he’s eaten his human-provided meal, he’d rather go play with all of his toys. Come inside? Um…NO! For this reason, he goes outside every time on a Flexi-leash (the only time I like them!!), because I cannot run to catch him. He’d rather run the other way, “laughing”. No, really! He’s having a great time! IF he is hungry, and IF it is meal time, he will come in for me; otherwise – FORGET YOU! In other words, Sam has NO recall!

In order to repair Sam’s view of humans, and most importantly, his owner, whoever adopts him MUST prove they have signed up for at least 1 training class. It doesn’t matter how much experience you have with training dogs. I am a Dog Behavior Consultant, and I’ve trained dogs to advanced Obedience Titles – I would take Sam to a training class. Teaching a dog basic obedience commands is just a part of class. Taking your dog to class will also:
• Teach your dog to tolerate working with other people & dogs around
• Teach your dog to behave in novel locations – not just at home
• Teach your dog leadership comes from YOU
• Start to develop a bond between you & your dog
• And, if you practice, you’ll be surprised how well you & your dog will work together. It happened just like that with me, long ago, with my 1st dog. We went on to all kinds of training & showing adventures, together!

These things will happen only with your teaching and your input, and Sam has the capability to be an awesome dog!

Photos

Sam playing with foster sister, Giselle.

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