Millie

Millie is a small (35ish pounds) border collie mix (DNA says 30% border collie, 20% Aussie and then a bunch of other stuff mixed in) who will be an excellent long-time companion for the right human(s). We think she is only about 18 months old. She was rescued from a cemetery with some other dogs last summer while pregnant, we think on her first heat . (She is now spayed, and her puppies are nine months old and adopted out to their forever homes. She was a great mom!) She has been with her foster parent for nearly 3 months now and has learned an enormous amount. Fully house trained, and has a reliable sit, stay, and recall. She is crate trained and seeks it out as her happy place. She sleeps in her crate at night (door is open) but would probably love to sleep on the bed with you if you allow her to. Her favorite activities are long walks, cuddling, and sprawling on the couch. Oh, and EATING! Her recall is so reliable that she has been on 3-4 mile woodland hikes off-leash. She always comes back, even if she gets briefly distracted by chasing a squirrel. She walks well on leash; isn’t a puller but would need training to walk at heel. Since she is a young dog, she has oodles of energy but also has a very good “off switch” unlike the classic border collie. She’s perfectly happy to lie around all day if that’s what is going to happen, but would also probably walk all day long with you. She is an unusual combination of laid-back and energetic. She does have a few quirks. She is highly sensitive and can mope for a long period if you speak to her even just in a mildly stern voice. She seeks reassurance fairly often, and will flop on her back in a submissive way (perhaps a relic of whatever original situation she came from). She can be wary of new humans that come into the house and will sometimes bark at them (though has never shown any real aggression). She is universally friendly with all dogs and humans she meets outside, but is reserved about being petted until she knows someone. Her original rescuers (who had her for 6 months after she gave birth and weaned her pups) had a house full of cats and dogs and she got along with everyone. She will just need a patient and devoted human to build confidence when she feels insecure. I believe she would do well as an only dog, or as one of a menagerie–as long as she has one or more humans who will dote on her and spend plenty of quality time with her.