WHAT TO WATCH FOR

Local science and nature, compiled by Bob Bowles

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Posted 2 months ago

STARGAZING

There is a full moon on Wednesday at 2:30 a. m. The full moon in December is called the cold moon since this is the time of year that winter cold fastens its grip on the land and nights are at their longest and darkest. The mid-winter full moon has a high trajectory across the sky because it is opposite a low sun at this time of year.

OLD JOE AND HIS KIND

I remember as a young boy growing up on a farm in Grey County the first dog my family owned. He was black and white and the best guard, family guardian and farm-working dog that I have ever known. We named him Joe.

My father had ordered him from a faraway kennel and told us he was an English collie. He was a little larger than a border collie and a little lighter than an Australian shepherd, two popular breeds today. Joe would watch my older brother and me, making sure we did not go near the road or stray away from home.

My mother had a great fear of snakes, so Joe would hunt these out of the garden where she was working, seize them by the neck and shake them until they were dead, then laid them at my mother's feet. He did the same thing later in life for my father with mice and rats around the barn. Joe watched over us as we played in the yard during the day, then guarded the house from strangers at night.

My father was away in the hospital for five years as we grew up, so Joe acted as guardian of the house. Old Joe was late in life by the time my father returned home and he passed away when I was a teenager.

My father suggested when I wanted another dog to get a beagle since I enjoyed walks in the woods and hunting, so my very first dog I owned was a beagle. He was with me for many years but passed away when I was away from home attending college.

I did not own another dog until a few years ago when my two boys wanted a pet dog. We purchased a purebred beagle named Jewel and she was with the family until last year when she passed away.

I decided that I wanted another pet dog, but did not want it to be a beagle again. My thoughts went back to Old Joe and I decided that I would get an English collie. However, when I checked my references in my library on dogs, I could not find anything called an English collie. The only collies registered were bearded, rough and smooth collies. Rough collies, sometimes called Scotch collies, were once a popular breed made famous by Hollywood's Lassie movies. Collies were one of the first breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1885 and then by the United Kennel Club as the Scotch Collie in 1920. There was no mention of English collies and certainly Old Joe did not look like any of the collies illustrated, being much smaller and with different features.

After much searching, I finally found Old Joe listed under the name English shepherd between the pages for border collie and Australian shepherd.

The English shepherd was introduced into North America from the British Isles by the early settlers and has come down to us unchanged in type and temperament. Energetic, intelligent, active, courageous, protective and loyal to its master, the description fitted Joe perfectly.

Little is known about the history of this breed, but it is thought they came from the Romans originally. This is the farm collie, common on early farms as a heeler for livestock and the breed that went west with the wagon trains, the all-American farm dog.

The breed was not recognized by the United Kennel Club until 1927 and is still not recognized by the American Kennel Club. The Australian shepherd was recognized by the United Kennel Club in 1979 and the American Kennel Club in 1991. The border collie was registered as a breed by the United Kennel Club in 1961 and the American Kennel Club in 1994. This was opposed by many owners who wanted the border collie to remain a working dog and not become a show dog. As herding dogs, these three species are very similar, the most intelligent of all dog breeds but very different in temperament.

The border collie makes close eye contact, engages a concentrated crouching style and meets the flock head on, the Australian shepherd uses a heeling nip-and-run style while the English shepherd uses a standing loose-eyed style, assessing the stock to be worked and changes the style to fit the situation.

The real difference is the indoor/outdoor personalities of these dogs. Border collies tend to be active indoors and intense outdoors, while Australian shepherds are alert indoors and active outdoors. English shepherds are mellow indoor and active outdoors.

The off-switch of the English shepherd makes it a good family pet, but because it is not a show dog, they are almost impossible to find in Canada now, as I soon found out. More about my search for an English shepherd next week.

WINTER FEEDING

Now is the time to put up your winter bird feeders where you can spend time this winter observing at close range some of our common and rare winter bird visitors. Black oil sunflower, nyger seed and suet is a must for most winter feeders and this combination will attract many species of birds.