ISSDC Newsletter - March 2006

Shiloh Shepherd Times, MARCH 2006

SPRING IS FOR PUPPIES
by Heather O'Connor

March, time for Green Beer and Leprechauns or so my Irish grandfather always said! For me it is a special time spring puppies! Pet ownership is about relationships – the bonds people form with their dogs and other animals. The happiest pet owners are those who know they are taking the best care of their pets. Only people who care enough to find out how to do things right need ever be responsible for the life of a living creature. People research buying a TV or car but when it comes to buying a dog, they fall victim to the first pair of soulful eyes they see. With proper care, a dog becomes an interactive part of their lives for a dozen years or more.

By making a well-thought out decision when buying a puppy, you protect yourself from many possible heartaches. The time to decide whether to buy, as well as how and when, is before you look into those big brown eyes. Putting a cute puppy down and walking away is downright impossible especially after she snuggles close to you and licks your nose. Before you buy is the time to examine your lifestyle, facilities and pocketbook. Contemplate all aspects of your life present and future. Although you may not currently have small children, consider the possibility of becoming a parent or about visitors or neighbors.

Expenses don’t end with the purchase – love and affection are free but other life necessities are not. A large sized dog eats, chews and barfs his way through approximately $500-700/year. If the dog is healthy, expect to spend over $150 per year at the vet. If the dog needs professional grooming, plan on spending $50 each visit. The first year of dog ownership is often the most costly. Bowls, housing, grooming gear, collars, leashes etc. Other wise investments include training classes and fencing for either your yard or an exercise area.

So you have decided to take the plunge, Congratulations! See next month’s column for more puppy buying thoughts.

Ideas for future newsletter articles are greatly appreciated. Contact our newsletter staff today.

Hello ISSDC members! Our membership is growing daily, as is the interest in our Club and wonderful group of people and Shilohs.

I am terribly sorry, we have not had our monthly meeting this month yet due to an ill VP. However, I know we have our Club ad sent to Puppies USA and paid for! Thank you all for participating. A special thanks to Jacki Wilde for putting that ad together and also for giving us a beautiful logo to go forward with. Jacki, hats off to you.

We are trying to get everything together for the Club Chapters and also, since the May 2006 show is getting huge, we are looking forward to the Fall 2006 show here too. We have a couple of organizations willing to come in, so I would appreciate any input on what the Club members want.

We could do the National Kennel Club again, OR we could look at the National Canine Association. Either group will be fine with us... so if you have any thoughts, please let us know them. I would also appreciate any input as to the date of the Fall show. We have always had a Labor Day weekend show here, but could do the weekend before or after if we liked. We can't do this without our members, you guys are the reason for the ISSDC success.... so email us and let us know what you think!

The stray lived in a small town on the East Coast. He was a mix of several breeds, but you could never call him a mutt. He had a regal look, some people would call him the wolf-dog because he was large with a long black and brown coat. Most people guessed he had German Shepherd and Collie in him. For years the town people just called him “Stray”.

I was eighteen years old when I first met the stray. I was spending the summer with my sister and her husband before I went to college. They owned a gas station and I worked there to get some extra money for school. I was at the gas station the day I met Stray. I was on the side of the building filling up a bucket with water to wash the cars windshields with. He startled me when he came around the corner. I could understand why some people called him wolf-dog. He was large with no collar but I could tell he had been brushed recently. He looked at me and started walking toward me. I backed up a little. I had always liked dogs but I was unsure of this one. When I backed up he went over to the faucet, had a drink and trotted down the street. When my sister arrived at the station I told her what had happened. She was a top mechanic in the town. She laughed and said she should have told me that Stray came around almost everyday to get a drink of water from the faucet. He would then sometimes visit for a while. She said for the five years that she had lived here Stray rarely missed a day. The townspeople told her that Stray just showed up as a pup about seven years ago. He doesn’t belong to anyone but the whole town takes care of him. People would feed him, brush him, and the local vet would check him out and keep him up to date on all his shots. It’s like the whole town is his adopted family. Several people have tried to take him into their homes but he would always go back to roaming the town. My sister told me that Stray had a regular route about town and would go off at night and sleep. No one ever knew where he slept.
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