Our dog, Jake, Australian Shepherd

Our wonderful dog, Jake – Australian Shepherd breed – which means NOT that he is a shepherd breed, nor from Australia. These dogs likely got their names because bred in America, they were most often used by Basque shepherds to do sheep herding.

Thus the Australian part of the name and the shepherd part of the name. They are working dogs, guarding dogs, and are bred to be working dogs, herding dogs. While our guy doesn’t get to do near the amount of taskings and jobs he would like to do, we can attest that he is a spirited, working, herding dog. He is likely to herd cars if there are no children or critters around for him to herd.

I like this video, owner of an Australian Shepherd:

And we know this would be Jake if he ever had a chance to be around a real herd of anything.

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Our dog, Jake, ACL surgery

Our dog, Jake, after surgery on his ACL (anterior cruciate ligament). Didn't realize it was going to be such an invasive procedure. He healed, never fully, and has a permannt limp, and we are grateful the veternarian who performed the surgery did as well as he did. Prior to the surgery, Jake couldn't seem to walk at all. It took about a year of recovery, and now Jake bounces in excitement when we ask him if he wants to go for a walk. He walks and will walk forever, but he does suffer some the next day.

What a great dog, we love our Jake. He is Australian Shepherd with some collie mix.

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