Adventures of Sadie the Cow Dog
After some pretty heavy blog posts, this one will lighten the mood and will be easy on the brain!
Sadie is ¾ blue heeler and ¼ miniature Australian shepherd.
A little about these breeds of dogs…
Blue Heelers: Also called Australian Cattle Dog or Queensland Heeler. Related to Australia’s famous wild dog, the Dingo. Made vital contributions to the growth of Australia’s beef industry and are an important component of the Australian economy. Weigh 36-50lbs. 12–16-year life expectancy. Highly intelligent and energetic and routinely outsmart their owners (definitely Sadie).
Miniature Australian Shepherds: Derived from small-size Australian Shepherds being selectively bred in the 1960’s. Weigh 20-40lbs. 12–13-year life expectancy. Good-natured, intelligent, and are endearingly loyal and lively companion dogs (definitely Sadie).
Sadie’s birthday is April 22. She will be 11 this year. She weighs approximately 36lbs. and was the runt of her litter.
Sadie most recently had a TPLO surgery on September 30, 2020. I don’t remember what that stands for, but it is the equivalent to having an ACL & meniscus repair in humans. Pretty big stuff! We are happy to report Sadie is recovering well but has to retire from cattle gathering & working. Now, she is full-time greeter at Lundgren Angus Ranch & loves to have visitors!
Here is her life in pictures:
This is the day mom & dad picked me out!
My first picture after getting “home”!
I still love taking naps in this position 11 years later!
And in this position!
I have always loved lap time with mom!
First time checking cows with my brother when he came to visit!
My cousin loved spending time with me when we were little!
And then she got a doggie cousin for me!
Staying at my cousin’s house. We REALLY wanted to be let in the house!
More cousin time at grandma & grandpa’s house!
Pick-up time with dad…we both really should’ve been smiling more!
Dad talks on the phone a lot when we are in the pick-up together!
But he plays with me a lot, too!
I get to hang out in the pick-up with mom a lot, too!
And in the semi during wheat harvest! I was really sleepy in this photo. Cutting wheat is hard work!
And when hauling bales!
And in the feed truck when feeding cattle!
And in grandpa’s pick-up, but sometimes he has so much stuff in his pick-up that there is hardly room for me!
Not very often, but on this day, there was hardly room for me in mom & dad’s pick-up. So, I just decided to sleep!
This is mom’s favorite, but I don’t really like the water or my life jacket. I like hanging with cows best!
I did like the water on this day when it was really hot & I was helping mom & dad fix fence!
And I really liked water on this day, too, when mom shared hers with me. Helping haul bales made me thirsty!
Speaking of nice things my mom & dad do for me…I love it when dad lets me lick “treats” off of his coat left by baby calves!
I really like finding “treats” in the corrals, too. They can occupy me for hours while mom & dad are working with cattle!
I also like playing basketball with dad. This was during a Thanksgiving scavenger hunt mom planned for the family!
As you saw in the basketball photo, I don’t mind the cold & the snow & never have, even since I was a puppy in this picture!
I really like riding on the 4-wheeler with mom & dad but just hopped on for the photo after mom got done gathering cows that had gotten out during a blizzard. Otherwise, I would’ve been as muddy as she was!
If you look at my paws in this photo, I really do something besides sleep & pose for pictures (before my TPLO surgery anyway). I got muddy helping mom get cows in & then couldn’t go in the house, so this picture is on my bed on the back porch.
I was helping fix fence in this photo!
I really like riding in the back seat checking cattle or just driving down a country road letting the wind blow my hair (& ears) back!
We don’t always work! Sometimes we hang out at the lake (as you saw in the boat picture), & I really like my lake bed in the camper!
My all-time favorite thing to do is to be with mom & dad at the same time no matter what we are doing! I love them so much that sometimes I have a little separation anxiety when they leave me home alone or with other people.
Mom loves taking photos of me in this pose when I don’t know it. She has a ton more photos like this as well as a ton more pictures in general that she wanted to include in this blog, but I told her she had more than enough & that we should end with this one. I’m sure I will appear again on her blog, but until then, thank you for “paws”ing your day to read mom’s blog post about me & to check out my photos!