Meet Echo

One of the major things I wanted to avoid this year was getting a third dog, but sometimes a foster dog comes along, fits in great with the other two, picks up training concepts right away, and is an absolute sweetheart.

Last year, I successfully fostered a border collie mix named Chuck. He was a big boy, a total sweetheart, and mostly got along with the other dogs. During his time with me, we discovered a limp, he went in for knee surgery, came out with three legs, and I spent a good three weeks nursing him back to full health. I thought, "Wow, I could do this again!" I didn't overly emotional adopting him out, and he's now living his best life with his new owner.

When I saw the post for Echo (then Coco), I thought it would be similar. She'd come into my home, I'd figure out her quirks, get her all vetted up, and I'd send her on her merry way. How very naive I was!

Echo was fearful her first few days with me. I learned her quirks (she hates sirens and planes), and I began to see her personality start to come through. A timid and compulsive dog quickly became a curious and driven dog with just a little bit of redirection and training. Clicker training? Piece of cake. Agility equipment? No problem. Loose leash walking? You'd think she was born with it.

I remembered Loki, now nearing eleven years old, at her age (Echo just turned four years old). At an even younger age, Loki was always so easy to walk on a leash, and he was always so confident and curious about the world. Sure, he had his quirks (dude is on puppy Prozac), but I worked hard to overcome them so he could become a competition dog. And he did! He's earned both his Novice Agility and Novice Agility Jumpers titles. He's two-thirds of the way to earning his Rally Novice title, and he's going to a Fast CAT trial this weekend (along with Jean Grey).

What's more, is that I've been pining after a brown and white border collie since I was approximately 13 years old. Unsurprisingly, that's also about the time I got interested in dog sports like agility. They are considered one of the best breeds for the sport, and the one in my 4-H club regularly got top scores.

All this to say, I'm excited to pick up this new venture, even if it means there won't be any foster dogs until I'm back down to two. Fingers crossed the rest of my year is a depth year. 😉

Carolina Border Collie Rescue has been incredibly supportive and a great organization with both of the dogs I've worked with through them. Please consider making a tax-deductable donation!