Effie (now Ellie)

Effie has been adopted where she will be living with her family in the country. Her family has horses so she'll be hanging out making pals with the horses while her people ride. And, being the companion dog she was meant to be.

This is her story:

Effie used to be on a farm in Picton. The sheep farm closed up due to a divorce. People outside of Ottawa took Effie and her son. They decided to give up one of the two dogs and Effie was the one as her son was aggressive and not adoptable.

This sweetie is 5-years old. For two years, her former people tried to make her a working dog but she wasn't having it. She kept running away. She even got out over and under the fencing with a tire tied to her. If your dog isn't interested in working within three months, you now have a companion dog.

This little girl is about 50 pounds and timid. I couldn't image her defending a flock from coyotes.

I bathed her first because she smelled of sheep manure since that was a little hard to work with. Once dried, I groomed her for three hours. She was full of mats. She was so good and just lay there. Farmers seem to think that because a dog works and is outside all the time that they don't need to be groomed. On the contrary. Mats are very painful the thicker they get, and the more they pull at the skin when the dog moves.

A harsh word should never be spoken to this girl. With any dog, only positive-reinforcement methods should ever be used. Rewards such as treats and a 'good dog' for wanted behaviours and redirects for unwanted behaviours.

She has such a lovely smile. She soaks in any petting and her eyes squint in delight. She will someone a wonderful companion.

For more photos see http://zitisweetie.blogspot.ca/