|
You are visiting the "Pam" page. Links to the
right will take you to the other dogs' pages. The links with asterisks in front
will return you to either the parent or "Home" pages. Click on
any thumbnail size image below to enlarge it, then click on your browser's
back button to return to this page.
My Best Friend
Pam was my first Beardie-type dog after a
lifetime of Border Collies. She looked Beardie, but in fact, her
sire was a Border Collie; her dam a Beardie bitch. When Pam was
mated to Beardie dogs, she produced Beardie-appearing pups. She
turned out to be the best dog I have ever owned including the
dogs I ran in sheepdog trials.
I had been looking for a Beardie for over a
year with no luck. In late 1994, I decided to phone a chap
in Scotland who I had phoned a year earlier (all pups from the
litter had been sold). During our 1994 phone conversation,
he said his bitch had not been in season, but seeing as I was
having such difficulty in getting a Beardie, he asked: "Would I
be interested in one of two young Beardie bitches he had bought
to train and sell?" One was nine months; the other ten months.
He said one would bark when working and one wouldnt. He would
rather not sell the one who barked, and I said I would rather
not have it (the bark) so that turned out O.K.
The man was Peter Martin of Aberfoyle,
Scotland. I arranged to meet him in Stirling Market to
collect Pam. Pam was bred by Robin Wood of West Bracklin Farm,
Callender, Scotland, and although we share the same surname, we
are not related. I traveled to Scotland overnight on Friday and
met Peter Martin at breakfast time on Saturday. I returned home
to Wales on a Monday accompanied by Pam, the ten-month old pup.
The next day, I took Pam with me to check
on the sheep. Upon entering the field where she could see the
sheep, she immediately took off like a rocket. The sheep
scattered in all directions. Pam was in pursuit not
knowing quite which way to go first. She was totally ignoring
anything I said, but, finally, she came back to me when the
novelty had worn off. The rest of the morning went without
incident. The following morning a similar performance occurred,
but this time her "enthusiasm" didnt last quite as long as it
had the day before. The third morning, she started to take off
again; I said "thatll do." To my surprise, she obeyed me and
never tried to rush off again. From then on she progressed
rapidly with her training. We never looked back.
Pam had a very strong constitution and
always gave her all. An example of this was when she was about
six years of age. She fought off a badger, who must have
entered the yard to steal her puppies food. In the fight the
badger bit through the middle joint of her hind leg; her leg was
swinging uncontrollably. I took her to the vet after giving her
a shot of antibiotic (Terramycin). The vet said the antibiotic
saved her life, and that, indeed, she had been bitten by a
badger. The vet further stated that although Pam's leg had
swollen up as tight as a drum any infection had been held in
check. She was given another injection and nine tablets to be
taken 1-1/2 per day for six days as there was not much else that
could be done until the swelling went down.
On the follow-up visit to the vet, Pam's
x-ray showed that the bite had severed the ligament inside next
to the joint with damage to the outside as well. The vet
informed me there was an operation that she could try although
she had never done this procedure before. She explained that the
procedure would entail putting two buttons inside her leg; then
a very fine thread could be attached to the buttons in order to
hold the inner ligament in place. Two small screws would
next be inserted on the outside of the joint using fine wire
between them. This was done to provide extra strength in
holding everything together until, hopefully, the ligaments
healed. I said "OK, go ahead. If you can learn something from
doing it all well and good, because we certainly cannot leave
her as she is."
The operation was performed, and I was told
Pam was to do nothing for six months as it would be a very long
recovery. One month later a farmer came to buy one of Pams bitch pups. I let
Pam out so he could see what the pup's dam looked like.
At that point, the next door neighbour came through the yard; he
stopped to speak to me for a couple of minutes. After his
departure, I turned around expecting to find Pam, but she was
gone. The farmer said: "she just jumped the gate and
went to the hill." My heart sank into my boots. Some minutes
later, as I was on my way to find her, Pam appeared in the
distance with approximately 350 ewes being herded towards the
gate where we were standing. The farmer watched
spellbound. I purposely let Pam work on her own with no
commands from me, because there were rocks on the hill. I
did not want her turning sharply in case of further damage to
her leg. I could only stand, watch and pray.
When she got to the gate with the sheep safe and sound, the
farmer said "I dont care how much you want for her pup, just
put it in my truck" I took Pam back to the
vet for a follow-up appointment from the surgery. She
could not believe the improvement in such a short time. The vet
said "she must have the constitution of an ox and the heart of a
lion."
One of the saddest days of my life was Sunday, 30th October
2005 when I had to have Pam put down. That day I lost not only
the best work dog I ever owned, but my best friend of eleven
years. She had been that "one in a lifetime." To me what stood
her out in front of others, besides her working ability, was the
fact that she was not my dog. The way she saw it, I belonged to
her. Pam will be missed for many years to come, but I am richer
for having had the pleasure of her for so long.
|
|
|
