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Recent Battles
Queen Victoria
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Juicing The Sheep
09 April 2009 11:11 AM | No CommentsThe Journal of Queen Victoria Thursday, October 21, 1868 “Juicing the Sheep“ At a quarter to twelve I drove off with Louise and Leopold in the waggonette up to near the “Bush” (the residence of William Brown, the farmer) to see them “juice the sheep.”...
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Queen Victoria’s Border Collies
26 January 2009 4:40 AM | 18 CommentsFor well over a century the “Collie” name has been co-opted by show breeders who have created a monster whose face looks like a door stop with beady eyes set in triangular slits. These same people have co-opted the notion that Queen Victoria was deeply...
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Show Me the Collie
22 January 2009 3:38 AM | 1 CommentHaving established that Queen Victoria’s direct influence on the proliferation of the show Collie is insubstantial at best, let’s explore what impact the Monarchy may have, in fact, had on the culture of dogs during her reign. Five. If the show Collie owes more to...
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The Queen and the Collie
20 January 2009 2:57 AM | 2 CommentsThe old wisdom on the rise of the show Collie is that Queen Victoria met them on a trip to Scotland in the 1860s, became infatuated, acquired them, sponsored them in shows, bred them, and her abundant trend-setting prowess lead to their bountiful rise to...
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The Victorian Collie Myth
19 January 2009 8:03 PM | 5 CommentsThe prevailing creation myth among show Collie enthusiasts is that Queen Victoria’s infatuation with the breed set the ball in motion, elevating the humble farm dog to aristocratic splendor. Queen Victoria saw her first Collies in the 1860′s, and she enthusiastically began to sponsor them,...
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Juicing The Sheep
Mercury Archive
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Caught in the Act
Posted on May 21, 2010 | 1 CommentThe Bark magazine is holding a contest for dogs “Caught in the Act” being naughty. The prize is appropriately a Vue Personal Video Network so you can monitor those devious dogs when you’re away. You’ve got a week left to submit your own photos, but... -
And Puppy Dog Tails
Posted on March 14, 2010 | 3 CommentsThe best part about having a dog at stud is ample access to puppies with none of the hard work of being a breeder: no baths, no mopping, no puppy pads, no shots. Weekly visits ensure an ample allotment of puppy breath, paws as big... -
The Heart of Barkness
Posted on March 10, 2010 | 3 CommentsA mere 8 weeks after being forced out of the warm embrace of their mother’s womb, the sons and daughters of the Mighty Mercury and Magnanimous Mara stand but a few days away from the great puppy diaspora whence they shall be tossed to the... -
Mercury Puppies at 4 Weeks
Posted on February 19, 2010 | 7 CommentsAlthough Mara's unique expression of the Merle gene (or a heretofore unidentified modification gene) is still making exact classification of the pups a challenge, the one thing that's for certain is that they are all homozygous for CUTE.
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Mercury Rang the Bell
Posted on January 19, 2010 | 21 CommentsMy little baby Mercury is a father! His present for his second birthday was his first co-ed sleep over with that hot red head Mara, and now she’s given birth to six beautiful and healthy border collie puppies. Oh they grow up so fast, and... -
A Family Affair
Posted on December 5, 2009 | 2 CommentsJust over a year ago, I brought you news of Dublin’s love children with that feisty red-head Mara: the “other woman.” In her bid to compete for the affections of the Astraean men, Mara couldn’t let Celeste hog all the lime light of celebrity so she and... -
We’re in DogJoy, TWICE!
Posted on October 10, 2009 | 2 CommentsMy dogs only subscribe to one magazine, and that’s The Bark. And yes, it comes in their names. I tolerate their subscription, despite the magazine being published by the dirty bears in Berkley … sssssssssss … and the rather granola overtones of some of the... -
The Easter EGGEs
Posted on April 10, 2009 | No CommentsThe Easter EGGEs, originally uploaded by AstraeanBorderCollies. In these tough times, it’s hard to keep up with the supposedly recession proof (read: you’re still going to spend a fortune, broke or not) pet toy industry. But I have a great tip for the best 5... -
Close But No Collie
Posted on January 27, 2009 | No CommentsIn digging around the internet looking for picture and painting evidence of Queen Victoria’s dogs, it was impossible not to come across Sir Edwin Landseer. He was in with the Royal Family from before Victoria became Queen and was a specialist in animal–especially canine–paintings. Queen... -
Happy Birthday Puppies
Posted on December 6, 2008 | 4 CommentsA year ago today I was up all night with a very pregnant Celeste, taking her temperature and watching as she continually remade her nest in her kennel, then dug fruitlessly in the extra dog bed, then shredded the paper and the pads I had...
Queen Victoria's Border Collies