I am constantly impressed by the diversity of the collie and his ability to adapt. But it really stretches the imagination to think that Border Collies could save the population of the City of Chicago from e-coli this summer!
However, as the cities beaches become infested with disease carrying birds, instead of having to shut the beaches down, the dogs move in for a game of chase.
Don't believe it? Read on...
'In one of the more amusing spectacles of municipal governance, the City of Chicago has contracted dog handlers to apply one of the world's most obsessive dog breeds to one of the city's most Sisyphean tasks.The hope is to chase off the sea gulls, whose droppings are believed to contribute to e coli counts closing beaches.The job of chasing sea gulls will be played out every half hour, about four to six hours a day, seven days a week for the next month.
Max was bred to do this work.
"They want to move something, whether it's kids on a soccer field or birds from a beach," said Susan Hagberg, president and chief collie wrangler at La Grange-based Wild Goose Chase.
But after years of developing inanimate strategies to make the beaches less comfortable to indolent water birds, there was something deeply cathartic about watching a team of border collies charging into a flock of sea gulls.'
Border Collies The Border Collie is typically a high energy breed - never happier than when at work. He is intelligent, loyal, willing and consequently relatively easy to train. Thus making him not only an excellent working dog, but also a good pet - providing his owner understands his consistent need for physical exercise and mental stimulation. Boredom does not suit a potentially neurotic creature such as the collie, especially a mischievous young puppy!
The Border Collie originates from the borders of England and Scotland and the prefix 'Border'was adopted around the time of the first world war, so as to distinguish the working collie from the show collie. The working collie has an in-born instinct to 'round-up' and is as happy to work with cattle as with the traditional ideal of sheep.
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So, now we have a brief outline of the collie. Do you have a border Collie? Have you any funny stories about him? Do you have a burning question? The largest percentage of collies are black and white, with varying physical characteristics which come from the dogs being bred for their skills and not their looks. Do you know a particularly unusual looking pet?
Then getting posting!!! Any suggestions for what you'd like to see here gratefully received and considered!
Oh, by the way, the collie pic? That's Tess. She's five, neurotic, crossed with a whippet and goes like the wind! Likes: Playing, running, football, paddling. Dislikes: Thunder, window cleaners and getting out of her depth in the river!
