Furry Baby

It turns out that Ruby has a touch of Colitis. Her poop this morning was rather unhealthy looking and had spots of blood so we went to the 'out of hours' vet. They did a thorough check including blood tests. The results were good. No dehydration and all the readings were normal. Ruby was prescribed a medicine that helps settle the stomach (a probiotic). And since taking it this morning she has been much better. 

The vet recommended giving her the usual food but half the amount, twice as often. This will help her digestive system process the food without getting overloaded. 

Ruby - tired after a visit to the Vet

She has responded really well and has been a little bundle of energy all afternoon/evening. Boy, am I relieved.

I have also had some feedback from other BC owners today after putting my blog up on www.reddit.com 

It is great to be able to tap in to the experience out there as I am the first to admit I am not an expert. Having said that, I am under no illusions as to the commitment and energy needed to have one of these dogs in one's life. Ruby's breeder is an absolute gem and we will be visiting regularly so that Ruby can socialise with her pack as well as getting some herding practice in with the chickens, geese (and eventually sheep) on the farm.

I have received the odd comment around my lack of experience, and expressing the hope that there is a good 'BC rescue' centre nearby. As far as I am concerned, taking on Ruby is akin to bringing our children into the world. We didn't have the parenting experience with our first child but would never have thrown in the towel. In the (very) unlikely scenario that we felt we couldn't cope with Ruby, Gillian would take her back. In fact Gillian keeps in touch with the owners of all her puppies. She would be mortified if one of her dogs was sent to a rescue centre. She would take any of her dogs back in a heartbeat. 

But that won't happen. It's nice to have the security of Gillian being there and I might not have plunged in to BC ownership without finding her. But now Ruby is part of our family, that is how it will stay. She is a lovely dog and we have already bonded really well. I have established myself as the pack leader and consider her to be my very own furry baby.