- Tiffany (affectionately
known as Tiffers) was born January 1, 1988. As all
border collies, she was intelligent and loving.
- Not much is known about
Tiffers before she was adopted by my sister Pamela at age
8. In fact, the local border collie rescue network
in Racine, Wisconsin didn't have much hope for an 8-year
old dog. However, when they put her stats on the
net, they had at least six responses in less than one
week. One couple in California was willing to pay
for Tiffer's travel expenses. Pamela had two things
to her advantage: she was local and knew Tiffer's
previous owners. On May 7, 1996, Tiffer's adoption
became official and they became the best of friends.
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- Tiffer liked to go for walks
and sniff every blade of grass. In fact, the word
"walk" had to be spelled around her because she
knew what that word meant (she was a very smart
dog). She wasn't really into playing with
"toys," but she thrived on interactive things
like playing tag and being scratched. She was the
only dog in the neighborhood that had two pet black
cats: Maize (pronounced may-zee) and Mylo.
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- Tiffers could always tell
when Pamela was not having a good day and would act
accordingly. With loving patience, Tiffers never
held a grudge nor got upset if Pamela slept in and
breakfast was a couple of hours late. If Pamela
really felt bad, Tiffers would purposely not drink much
water so she wouldn't need to "go out" so often
or for her w-a-l-k-s.
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- Tiffer's favorite food was
anything Pamela was eating (except for broccoli or cantaloupe).
She especially had a fondness for ice cream cones, but
insisted that Pamela hold the cone.
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- Unlike most dogs, border
collies have perfected "the look." You
know the one ... the intense staring that brings most
creatures to submission of the border collie's will.
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- Sadly, Tiffer's time was
soon to end. From Saturday to Wednesday night, her
health deteriorated from being okay to not as frisky to
ignoring Pamela to being confused and weak. Even the
cats knew something was wrong and seemed shaken up by
Tiffer's declining health; Maize hid for about five days
and Mylo was temporarily became nice and obedient.
Doctor Scott (Tiffer's veterinarian) and his staff were
very kind and helpful considering the circumstances.
On Thursday, August 8, 2002, Tiffers' spirit departed this
world.
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- As time heals all wounds,
Pamela will one day adopt another older dog, probably from
a rescue network. Not too long ago, she saw a bumper
sticker that she absolutely fell in love with: MY
BORDER COLLIE IS SMARTER THAN YOUR HONOR STUDENT.
However, the bumper sticker was on a vehicle moving at 55
MPH, so inquiring about the origin of the bumper sticker
was pretty impossible at that point.
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- You can find the same love
and friendship as Pamela did from your local animal
shelter or a rescue network. There are several
networks and groups that help Border Collies, Boxers, Labrador
Retrievers, Bulldogs, Shelties, etc. These rescue
networks have volunteers all over the country and will be
glad to help people find someone near them. Your local
pound/animal shelter may also have information and contact
information on rescue networks. Speaking for what we
know about the border collie rescue network, they will not
take in mean dogs or dogs that do not appear to be
trainable. The fees they charge only cover the
expenses they incur, and barely at that.
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- Make sure any rescue network
you contact is legitimate! Click below for more
information
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- Other information available
about rescue networks on the internet:
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- Humongous
heartfelt gratitude to Pamela for allowing me to share her
story about Tiffany.
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