It’s always awkward crashing a family reunion. Even when it’s a canine reunion. The Cascadian Nomads invited us to come to Huxley’s family reunion on Sunday at a sheep farm. Well we had some communication mishaps and we were at the Collie reunion for three hours before they got there. And someone is very obviously not a Collie.
Even at a canine reunion, family connections matter. People would introduce themselves as this is Fido from so and so’s X litter. Who is your dog? I felt a little out of place with my mutt pup. He doesn’t even know if he’s from the wrong side of the blanket!
Out of the Nomads, Huxley is Mr. N’s favorite playmate and he didn’t have any qualms about being surrounded by the masses of Collies. Besides the Collies, he also met some ducks.
And sheep. Most of the Collies tried their paw at herding.
I kind of wanted to see if Mr. N could herd ducks but I was also afraid that he would try to eat them. He does like duck after all. And lamb.
So instead of herding, he romped in the field with the collies and bossed them around. Huxley’s breeder commented that Mr. N has no fear.
He found a piece of wool on the ground and enjoyed rolling on it and playing with it.
The collies weren’t quite sure what to make of Mr.N. Neither were some of the humans. One woman said, “What is that?” when she saw Mr. N running.
There was also a livestock guardian dog in the next field who popped in to say hello.
Before lunch, we also played with the agility obstacles in the barn.
Then back to the field. I was looking at the clock and thinking about leaving soon when the Cascadian Nomads showed up! Wilhelm and Mr. N played together for a little while but Mr. N’s favorite playmate of the trio is still Huxley.
We had to leave shortly after the Nomads arrived so we took a group photo right before we left.
Wilhelm got a little distracted and went over to say hello.
Mr. N sends his thanks for the invite to Wilhelm, Brychwyn, and Huxley!
June 23, 2014 12:13 pm
I think it always depends on the friendliness of the people you are with on how well these types of events work. We attend a couple of rescue fundraisers every year and one of them focuses on reunions of dogs rescued from that group. Well we didn't use that rescue, but we do believe in that mission and for the most part we enjoy the event.
This year was the first time we were made to feel uncomfortable. We had the opposite reaction. This rescue focuses primarily on mixed breed adoptions, our dogs came from a pure bred rescue. Why was this year different. Well honestly, it was the attitude of a few that changed the atmosphere from one that was welcoming and inclusive to one that was more about an agenda. I thought that was sad. After all this was a fundraiser and frankly, money is hard to come by for many of these shelters. Alienating people who come to these events and spend generously to promote and agenda is foolish in my opinion. Hopefully, this is not a trend and people will return to planning a fun event and collecting the proceeds to use for saving dogs.
June 23, 2014 6:39 pm
That does sound like a bad move to alienate your donors! There were a couple of friendly people (including the breeder) and one or two snobby people but that's how it goes.
June 23, 2014 1:08 pm
It looks like you had fun, and Mr. N really had a great time. That's awesome that he likes to play with bigger dogs.
June 23, 2014 1:30 pm
Ha! Looks like everyone had a blast!
I know I say this a lot, but I love that Mr N plays with all kinds of dogs. Kind of speaks to the topic at Something Wagging this morning, where there are a lot of assumptions about sizes of dogs and who they should socialize with, and Mr N disproves those assumptions!
June 23, 2014 6:56 pm
Mr. N is not breedist at all. Whereas I am (in the choice of his playmates) because I feel like letting him play with dogs with high prey drive or with a breed who is typically dog-aggressive is not a good call because he is so small and looks like a bunny when he runs.
He likes playing with big dogs who aren't rough or boisterous and who will handicap themselves to play with him. He will wrestle with Sage and Sage will go a little slower when they play chase so he can catch up to her. He met a Golden who was afraid of small dogs but really liked Mr. N and they played together for a bit.
June 23, 2014 5:01 pm
Wow! That looks like a ton of fun! Mort and Tig have done herding evaluations, and both would herd (Mort tends to move the livestock to a wall and stop them, Tig moves them along with the herding evaluator). Except when it was hot and Tig was being evaluated with a mother and baby geese… Momma Goose raised her wings and Tig thought it would be a great idea to go sit in the shade.
Mort? I wouldn't trust him at all with ducks. Goats and sheep fine, but I think he'd want to eat the ducks based on his response to them 🙂
What a sunny day and how lucky to meet up with the Cascadian Nomads! Lovely group shot. Love the expression in the last one "whatchoo lookin at!"
June 23, 2014 6:28 pm
That looks like a great time. I feel sorry for the doggie next door that didn't get invited. : ( Mr. N can hold his own with the bigger dogs! Way to go boy!! ♥
June 23, 2014 6:42 pm
Well he's a working dog and I think technically, he was still on duty. There was a sign warning people not to pet him or interfere with his work.
June 23, 2014 6:48 pm
All in all it looks like a great time was had by all!
June 23, 2014 6:49 pm
Isn't it great fun when we get a chance to me fellow dog-bloggers?!
June 23, 2014 7:19 pm
Looks like Mr. N had fun!
June 23, 2014 7:58 pm
Glad you had fun Mr. N. Collie families are usually quite welcoming to all! 🙂 I'm glad Mr. N got to enjoy the agility equipment. Huxley had a blast on it too! Wilhelm continued to be distracted, though. But it is finally summer, right? No more rules or learning… Just play!
June 23, 2014 9:24 pm
Looks like a fun time Mr. No. I think the level of filth is a very good indicator of level of fun.
June 23, 2014 9:49 pm
Was Mr. N exhausted after all that? Looks like a fun time. There used to sometimes be a collie meetup at he beach and Rita used to love playing with them!
June 24, 2014 4:11 am
A little bit but I think it was more heat related than tired due to play.
June 23, 2014 10:34 pm
If your clean, it means you didn't have fun. At least that is what my dogs have been telling me for years. Sounds like you have plenty of dirt and fun for one day 🙂
April 7, 2017 7:56 am
That sounds like such a fun day! Even though you “crashed” the family reunion, it sounds like it didn’t bother anyone too much, especially Mr. N! And how cool you got to meet up with a fellow blogger!
April 7, 2017 8:47 pm
I think people were more puzzled than anything!
April 7, 2017 9:20 am
What a fun and very cool reunion! Sure looks like everyone had fun!
April 7, 2017 8:48 pm
The dogs had a ball.
April 8, 2017 11:37 am
Looks like everyone had a great time! I’m glad you were able to get the foxtail out of Mr. N’s foot, I’ve heard those are very painful.
April 8, 2017 4:00 pm
Looks like Mr. N had a blast. That reunion went well. The perfect day for trying obstacles and running around outside with new friends.
April 9, 2017 5:37 am
Mr N is so brave. Looks like her had a blast. It’s good none of the bigger Collies tried to herd or eat him. Unfortunately I think Kilo would have been terrified and cranky. However you and Mr N did inspire me to take him on his first playdate with Maltipoo Maya. She is older and not afraid of him but not in his face either. I left his leash on just in case I needed to grab him, but Kilo ran around happily for an hour in the sun in her large fenced in backyard. They chased balls but he was happy to leave them for her after the chase so it was quite the success!
April 9, 2017 1:34 pm
Mr. N a party crasher, say it isn’t so! Looks like he had fun. Mr. N, Party crashing can be fun, but look for a group that makes it easier to blend into, makes the crash experience more fun, less stress ful. 🙂
April 9, 2017 3:55 pm
Awww what a fun thing to crash: It looks like you had a really good time. I loved when Cascadian Nomads brought the crew to the BlogPaws Conference. The weather was nice for you, too.