8-4-17 (15+ yrs)

Beloved long term foster at SSR. Dance Hall Dolly, your personality will be missed and remembered fondly.

Linda Schwartz , SSR founder, furmom 

~~Jewel also known as Pretty girl did not have a pretty life for her first 10 years.  She had broken ear cartilage & a broken tail.  But thanks to Linda & Sheltie Shack I was able to give her a safe environment for her last 7 years.  She had a tape that looped around in her head:  "Am I safe, can I stay here, or do I need to run and hide."  I desperately wanted to change that tape to "I AM safe and I do not need to run and hide."  But she always exhibited existence of that tape which was intensified after Max went on, still not truly trusting even me.  Which was a question I often got and I responded by saying "She HAS no trust."  My prayer for her was always that at least once in her life she would feel absolutely completely safe.  I never knew if that happened until the day we sent her on.  She was wrapped in a towel [she always felt more safe enclosed in something]  resting in my arms and she finally felt safe, totally at ease PTL.  Her plaque on her ashes box reads:  "Safe Now Pretty Girl"

Thank you Linda for allowing Max and Jewel to bless my life.  I am truly thankful for them.

~~Brodie - MACH Highlands Wandering Minstrel
6/21/01 - 1/3/13
 
Brodie came into my life when I adopted him on October 5, 2003.  He was the 2nd sheltie that I adopted from Sheltie Shack Rescue and he was a very special little boy who was known as "Wiley" (after Wiley Coyote) to his Auntie Linda because he loved to howl.  That was something that he did all of his life whenever he heard an emergency siren or his brother "Piper" would start howling.  We had quite the sheltie serenade going on most mornings at the Jones house!!  I have always tried to find a Scottish name for my Shelties, so "Wiley" became "Brodie" and he moved into my heart.  Brodie was a very happy and friendly sheltie who loved everybody except for the mailman - when he heard or saw the mail truck, he raced to the window and barked until the truck was gone!  He did not have the usual sheltie reserve when meeting new people.  He would go right up to them wagging his tail, looking for love and attention.  Everybody loved him!!!
 
I started taking Brodie to agility training soon after I adopted him, and he became my special agility partner.  He loved to run and jump, and he always tried to do whatever I asked of him.  We started competing at AKC agility shows in November 2005 and finally earned our MACH (Master Agility Champion) title on March 20, 2010.  We had such a good time running agility courses both in class and in competition.  He really loved it, and I miss my partner very much.
 
I found a small lump on Brodie's neck in April 2012.  It was a swollen lymph node, and he was diagnosed with fairly advanced lymphoma which we started treating with chemo right away.  He quickly became a favorite of the staff at the clinic because he always came in wagging his tail, loving everybody.  They said he never complained when he was poked and prodded, and he would sit in his kennel and howl for attention which the girls were happy to reward with turkey treats and petting.  We were able to give him another 8 months of a high quality life, but finally on January 3, 2013 Brodie told me it was time to say goodbye.  That morning he wouldn't eat at all and was weak and lethargic.  The most convincing thing was that he say the mail truck when we were outside, and he didn't bark or show any reaction - just stood there and looked at it.  I was able to spend that last day loving him and saying goodbye.  Then later in the afternoon, we went to the cancer vet clinic one final time so his friends could say goodbye, and we gently and lovingly helped him go to the bridge as I held him and whispered in his ear. 
 
Brodie was my sweet, sweet boy.  He is my heart dog, and I miss him so much!!  But I know that I'll see him again at the bridge where he'll be waiting for me with Piper and MacGregor, and we'll all be together again.
 
Until then,
Pat and Tom

~~
MacGregor
March 2000 - 3/21/14
 
MacGregor was a 1st for me.  I adopted him on October 19, 2002 and he was the 1st dog that I adopted from a rescue, my first dog from a puppy mill, and my 1st blue merle sheltie.  He was 2 1/2 years old when I got him, and he had spent his 1st year and a half in a puppy mill before he came to Linda.  He was a 1st for Linda - her 1st foster dog and the 1st sheltie to be adopted from Sheltie Shack Rescue.  I found him on facebook and contacted Linda about him.  I had lost my last obedience sheltie in July, and only had one sheltie left.  The house was too quiet, and Piper needed a friend so I was looking for another sheltie.  After emailing back and forth and a successful home check, Tom and I were approved to adopt him.  We traveled to Kansas to meet Linda and "Blue" (as MacGregor was known at the time).  We were welcomed with open arms and have been good friends ever since.  I thought MacGregor was beautiful and even with his little quirks, I thought we could give him a good home.  So he came home to Colorado with us and started his new life.  Of course he had issues from living in a puppy mill.  I think his problems stemmed from lack of socialization and no meaningful contact with people.  When we first got home, he found a corner of the family room that became his safe spot, and he stayed there unless I made him come out to go outside or go to bed.  For the first couple of days, I had to hand feed him, but he soon began eating on his own.  He was very nervous outside of the house as if he was afraid of the big, wide open sky - when he was outside, he would pace continuously.  If there was thunder and lightning or a plane overhead, he would bolt to the back door and sit there shaking until I let him back in the house.  He also did not like to have his picture taken - he would run away when he saw the camera.  I never could get a decent picture of him.  I decided to just treat MacGregor like a normal dog and let him come around on his own while we gave him all the love and attention he deserved.  It seemed to work with all issues except for taking his picture.  He was a very sweet, loving dog who followed me all over the house.  He just wanted to be with me, and I loved him very much.  We were able to take him back to visit Linda a number of times which she thoroughly enjoyed, and he became one of our RV camping dogs.  He had a great time camping in the mountains and walking around the campground.  The last time we went camping with MacGregor, he was the dog who spotted a bull elk bedded down in the trees to the side of the road.  MacGregor just stood there silently looking at the elk until we saw him too.  I thought it was pretty neat that MacGregor didn't bark at the elk and scare him away.  MacGregor did have one funny habit:  when he was in the RV, he would stand staring out the window looking for motorcycles.  When he saw one, he would bark at it until it was out of sight.  That made for some very loud trips!!  As he got older he stopped pacing when he was outside, and storms and airplanes didn't bother him anymore, but he still didn't like the camera.
 
In February 2013 MacGregor had some bloodwork done before a teeth cleaning, and it showed that the kidney function indicators were starting to move into the danger zone.  I didn't know how much time he would have left, but as long as he had a good quality of life that would be OK.  It was one year later in Feb. 2014 that he began to have some troubles, and we knew his time was short.  Finally on March 21,2014 MacGregor  showed us that it was time so I took him to our vet and held him while he went to the bridge.  All through his life, MacGregor would try to get my other dogs to play, but they never would play with him.  I picture him at the bridge with Piper and Brodie, and they are all 3 happily running and playing with each other.  I miss my sweet MacGregor, my Mickey-G, my sweet boy.  One day we'll be together again, and until then, I'll picture the three of them playing and waiting for me.
 
We love you and miss you MacGregor,
Pat and Tom
 

~~Dear Linda,
 
We picked up Katie from the Sheltie Shack in September of 2005.  We
had adopted a Sheltie in March of that year and wanted to get her a
sister.  Katie won our hearts from day one.  When she managed to slip
free of her harness seatbelt on the way back to Iowa we new she was
the one for us.  Once we got her home she would show her snarling
smile, gums and all, to any of the other animals that tried to get
close to "her" couch.  She gave us 7 years of pure joy!

In February of 2011 we took her to the vet for, what we thought would
be, a tube of salve for ringworm on her belly.  Unfortunately, it
turned out to be an aggressive form of cancer.  We were devastated to
say the least.  They told us if they didn't remove it, we would have
two weeks.  If we went through with the surgery, we COULD have two
more months.  We wanted every day we could get and are so glad we
chose surgery.  Katie shocked us and all of the veterinarians involved
in her care by living a year and a half longer.  I guess she just knew
we weren't ready to let her go.  But on Oct. 9th 2012 the cancer won
and we had to let her cross over the Rainbow Bridge.  Sometimes the
hardest thing to do is the kindest thing to do.
 
 
____________________________________________________________
 
Dear Katie,
 
We miss you terribly.  We miss your barking.  We miss the way you
scooted your furry butt on the carpet, and your barking.  We miss your
stinky breath on our faces while we sleep at night, and your barking.
The cats miss you herding them around the house, and your barking.
Your Sheltie sister Sydney really, really misses her best friend.  We
miss your exuberance and zest for life.  We hope you felt loved as
much by us as we did by you.  We can't wait to see you again at the
Rainbow Bridge.  Keep barking!

We love you!
Mamma Steph, Mamma Joni, Sheltie Sister Syd