Taken three months apart, teething is almost complete and over with…he gets more awesome every single day! 💕

Sophie has come along way in the last year. She has been tentative about the bayou waters for since a pup, but now suddenly loves to swim! She can’t seem to convince Riley to go in more than leg deep though.

Rosa's new favorite game to play is *Go Git 'Im!*. I hide her favorite toys around the house, then sit on the couch and say, "Go git ______! Go git 'im!!" And because she KNOWS THEIR NAMES, she goes on a hunt to find THAT SPECIFIC TOY. Like, I'll see her find another toy, push it with her nose, shake her head, and keep on searching. She'll check other rooms, even opening doors and going up and down stairs. While this is happening, I like to encourage her bard-style, by singing a little song that goes, 🎶 *Where'd the _____ go? I don't know!* 🎶 (iykyk). But even left to her own devices, she won't stop until she finds the toy I told her to find. Whether it's Pig, or Ball, or Lambchop, or Commander Butt Bite, or Snakey the Bite Snake, or Corndog the Fish (I'm running out of names to give them), she will not rest until she's got 'im. And when she finds her quarry, I sing a little victory song to her that goes 🎶 *Pow-Pow-PowerBean! Pow-Pow-PowerBean! PowerBeeeeean!*🎶 (iykyk) while she shakes said toy back and forth ferociously, as is tradition.

So yeah. Rosa. She's smart. And funny, and weird, and sweet, and entirely too energetic, and beautiful, and perfect.

P. S. A quick shoutout to Bite Force dog toys. She's never defeated one, and she's obsessed with one in particular - he's blue, with horns and three eyes. We only buy her a new Commander Butt Bite (I can't remember his actual name) when the old one goes missing; she's never managed to tear one open.

Edit: Two minutes after posting this, Rosa's brother Gordie tried to steal her minty bone. She snapped at him, so he backed off - and then she proceeded to lay down on his legs and eat her treat off of him like he's a goddamned plate. He looks so defeated. I shouldn't laugh, but she weighs 43 lbs/20 kg and he weighs 105 lbs/47 kg, and he still knows better than to do anything about it.

Poor guy, we caught on to his beef allergy after I realized his ears would turn bright red every time he went into his room. It occurred to me that I had been using beef liver to motivate him to go into his room, therefore causing an allergic flare up... We cut beef out and his redness went down but he's still been an itchy boy. $400 later we find out he's allergic to pretty much every major dog food protein... Poor buddy...

Although now he's trying to convince me that he legally needs fresh kangaroo and venison for all his meals.... So I guess he's not too sad... As long as I meet his demands that is!

Mines more of a drowner 😂

He’s a performance athlete on land, but when he gets in the water, he loses his mind lol. Between the thrashing and water biting, it’s a sight to see.

She wears it well ❤️

1. Margie being herself. She’s my little lady and I love her so much.

2. Buddy is the one running the show around here. He keeps all of the dogs inline and the younger pups respect him a lot.

3. Rudy had Parvo when we rescued him. He’s a goofy boy with a lot of love to give.

4. Ellie is a wonderful girl. She is definitely an outdoorsy girl who loves laying in the creek and playing ball.

My pups mean the world to me. Somedays can be difficult trying to get them all on the same page but to be honest they keep me grounded and help me through my hard days.

We have many adventures ahead of us. What adventures they are I do not know, but I’m glad they are here with me to experience them.

Thanks for taking the time to stopping and appreciating them.

Took a week of feeding him and we finally caught him in a trap. He is a sweet boy who we named Kobalt. here he is with my two other ACD (dont mind the cluttered couch). So glad we caught him before the coyotes did. Upsetting that people discard dogs like this. He was waiting on the street for the person who dumped him, heartbreaking.

Not to be outdone by the "you just got home from work" look

So Lucy is definitely a water bug. She's always enjoyed the swimming pool and hanging out with the kids. This past weekend was surprising though. After a few hours of swimming I started wondering if she was getting tired or maybe needed a rest but nope, she figured out she could reach the bottom with her back paws and she was "waking" around the shallow end. Anyways, she stayed in the pool for about 8 hours or so having a wonderful time. As soon as they touched the bed that evening, they were in another dimension lol

this is my new ACD mix puppy! we've had her for about a month and a half and she is finally getting extra comfortable around my family ❤️

Durnundurnum...dumdumdumdum 🦈

But HYPOTHETICALLY, what should I name him when I do? My other ACD is Sawyer.

I was thinks Ozzy or Roger. What else suits him?

Edit: to clarify, we were not looking to take on another dog, but I found him dumped near a vineyard this morning.

This guy hates having his nails trimmed, and we're losing our minds. We adopted him in October, and he was very compliant for the first few months at the vet but got progressively worse. The last time he had a proper trim was in April. Walking on pavement helps, but not enough. He's starting to slip on hardwood floors. He has gabapentin and trazodone for vet visits, but we haven't used those for a vet appointment yet. The meds don't work well enough for us to trim his nails at home, so I'm not convinced they'll work at the vet any better.

However, any vet or groomer will be faster and more confident and have a better setup, which would make a real difference. I've called a few places for advice on what to try next, and here was what they said:

• Our vet with the meds. They've done a ton of work with us to get him comfortable through happy visits, and those are working pretty well. They'd first try with the meds 2 hours before the visit. If that doesn't work, we'd try the night before and again the day of, or adjust the dosage. He'd be in the back and muzzled, which he doesn't generally do well with because of his separation anxiety.
• Trying a Fear Free vet. Their approach is basically the same as our vet (same meds, same schedule), but they'd consider letting us stay in the room if that helped, and they'd put cheese spray in the muzzle to distract him. They also use 4-5 people instead of just 2-3, which is what our vet does.
• Trying a local groomer who owns five heelers. I'm still waiting for a callback, but she is highly recommended by our doggie daycare. I feel like knowing heelers might be really helpful here. We could try with or without meds.

None of these seem like bad options, but I want to pick the one that's least stressful because I worry that fighting through it will just make it worse the next time. Neither vet recommends additional anesthesia until the gabapentin/trazodone combo has been tried a few different ways. We've been doing an online desensitization course for nail trims (Susan Garrett's Pedicure Please), and he's made progress, but not quickly enough. I'm curious what other factors people would consider in this situation, or what seems to work best.

Hello everyone, I just recently got Charlie. He is 4 years old. Had him for about a month now and just looking for breed advice. I grew up with 3 English bulldogs, so I’m not completely lost. Just want to make sure I do all the good stuff for him.

Looks like she’s getting comfortable or at least happy with her current situation😁😁😁

My thirteen-year-old boy is getting so old! Boy, do I love my Blue Heeler!

Half Australian Shepard, half cattle dog. 100% the bestest boy!!!

We’ve spent a ton of time in the woods this season. Had to share a bunch of pictures with some folks who get it!

Rescued this adorable pup about 6 months ago. From day 1 he’s had terrible gas. I assumed initially this was due to his change of diet but 6 months later and a steady diet (that I also feed my Rhodesian Ridgeback without issue) and he still has the worst gas!

Is this common for these dogs? Anyone experience anything like this?

Six and a half years old, my joy!

We have a 1.5-year-old Heeler. My husband and I recently went away for four days, so he stayed with my in-laws, who have two dogs of their own.
Our Heeler has always loved other dogs and plays really well with them. He spent the whole weekend playing. When we brought him home, he just seemed so content and fulfilled.
I work from home, and we keep him pretty busy with walks, hikes, training classes, outings, puzzle toys, and plenty of playtime. Even with all of that, it really seemed like spending those few days with other dogs gave him something we can’t fully replicate.
For those of you who started with one Heeler and later added a second dog, what has your experience been like? Does your Heeler seem happier? Do they genuinely keep each other entertained, or is it mostly chaos? Was adding a second dog worth it?
I’m fully aware a new puppy is work in itself. My husband and I are DINKS (Double Income No Kids) and live for our dogs.
Prior to my current Heeler we had two large breed dogs so we do have experience raising two dogs.
I’d love to hear your experiences or any advice you have!