Bear

Bear is the third addition to the pack. Sheltie Rescue was contacted by a breeder who had a double merle sheltie and wanted to find a home for him. We usually don't take dogs from breeders! BUT, I wanted to go up and see her and her dogs.

Double merles can easily be prevented. Just don't breed two merled shelties together (Ella is a blue merle). However, many uneducated (and unethical) breeders will breed two merles. Some are doing it to try to get a white/albino sheltie. Others just don't understand that in a merle-merle breeding, 25% of the puppies will be deaf, blind or both. So, if a breeder wants to breed merles together, they must be prepared to deal with the "defective" puppies. Some euthanize them. Some find them pet homes.

So, my friend Paula and I drove up to look at Bear. I pretty much knew before I left for the breeder's house that, if Bear came home with me, he would be here to stay, since he is deaf, really crosseyed and hadn't been well socialized.

Let's not talk about what we saw, eh?

Once we got Bear home, he settled in nicely. In fact, he is my constant shadow. And, you can barely tell he is deaf - that is, until you try to get his attention when he isn't looking at you!