Sophie is an approx. 10 year old, female Border Collie (possibly mix, although she acts just like a BC!). She is an adorable, tiny little thing - only about 14" at the shoulder. She is a little overweight at the moment, and is solidly built. She's on a diet to help her slim down, and still has about 5 lbs to go. She has a coat that's somewhere between smooth and rough - with a beautiful thick "collar," tapering to a flatter, smoother coat towards her back.

Sophie is a little spitfire of a dog, and the graying in her face make her look much older than she acts. She adores all kinds of toys and running in the yard, but doesn't require the level of exercise most young Border Collies do. She is also very content to spend time curled up with her person on the couch, chewing a bone/rawhide, or getting long belly rubs. She walks nicely on a leash.

Sophie came into rescue almost 3 years ago after being dumped at a shelter with a raging skin condition resulting in missing large amounts of hair - her tail was completely bald! She was adopted a short while later, but her adopter recently experienced health problems necessitating a move into a retirement home and sadly, could no longer keep Sophie.

Sophie's skin condition is an allergy and thought to be related to grains - which many commercial dog foods are loaded with. She has been on grain-free diet for the past few years and has done remarkably well on it. While a "special diet" sounds daunting, there are actually many quality foods and treats available now for dogs with this condition. Her hair has grown back very nicely since those early days, and while it's a bit sparse in spots under her belly and front legs, it is in generally good condition and she does not seem to be itchy at all. Her foster mom has been giving her a skin and coat supplement which has gotten rid of some of the "dandruff" from Sophie's dry skin, and her coat is shining up beautifully. She has been to the vet regularly in the past few years, and is in overall good health.

Sophie is an very biddable dog who is always eager to please. She is extremely food motivated (hence her waistline) and responds well to many voice cues. It takes a bit of time for Sophie to warm up to new people (especially given the chaos of the last 5 mos. of her life), but once she does, she is quite the little snuggler.

Like a lot of older dogs, Sophie has some handling issues related to her back end - however we have determined that with Sophie this may actually have more to do with being properly introduced to a new person handling her, than any pain or discomfort. If you try and rush the handling too quickly, she will give you a growl or snap to warn you off (hey, wouldn't you if some stranger tried to grab you?)

Once she gets to know you, you can tie her in knots and she'll just lean her adorable little head on you.

Sophie loves to be brushed and petted, never turns down a good belly rub, and will stand in front of you for a good long scratch - moving back and forth to make sure you get all the best spots! Sophie is a "talker" she grumbles, grunt, whines, barks and howls to convey a whole range of emotions. She will even walk around grumbling to herself - quite funny - and has a hilarious wind-up bark to a howl when she is excited. She will also grunt and groan during a good petting, or when particularly involved in play. It can be a little disconcerting at first, until you learn what all her various noises mean, but there's nothing malicious behind them.

Sophie loves to chew - bones and rawhide are favorites. Judging by the strange and extensive wear on her teeth, she has chewed a lot in the past. She doesn't seem to have any dental issues, and aside from the wearing, her teeth look to be relatively clean for a dog her age.

We do not know if Sophie has ever been exposed to children, but given her age and handling issues with strangers, we will only place Sophie in an adult-only home. Sophie can have a hard time settling down, and will sometimes pace and whine. This is easily redirected with proper attention, something to chew on, or even just directing her to "lie down." Lots of hubbub seems to contribute to Sophie's restlessness, and has also been known to prompt her to jump up and nip at people's sleeves.

Sophie does have some BC drive in her, and has become obsessed with one of the other BCs in her foster home - following him everywhere, staring at him, and whining/barking if he's running around. She doesn't do anything aggressive towards him - but does make quite the pest of herself. She is not a dog typically looking for trouble, and generally has good, basic dog-dog skills. However if someone else starts something, she will definitely join in. With this propensity, and given that very few other dogs are willing to put up with this kind of attention long-term (and who could blame them?) we really feel that Sophie would be best as an only dog, or with a low-key, VERY tolerant dog.

Sophie is very interested in cats, but so far hasn't shown any desire to chase or hurt them. Then again the cat in her foster home is very old and dog savvy, and refuses to run. Sophie may do well in a home with cats, although we believe she would probably obsess over them pretty heavily - something that shouldn't be encouraged. If you have cats, please don't inquire about Sophie unless you're willing to manage this situation well, and have cats that won't be freaked out by such attention.

Given all this, we believe that Sophie's ideal home is a relatively quiet one, with someone or a couple looking for a dog full of personality, who is still plenty active enough to enjoy playtime. She will make a delightful companion for someone who finds her quirks entertaining (she makes us smile/laugh at least 10 times a day), and wants a dog that, once she settles in, will be a loving and devoted companion.

Sophie is being fostered in southern NH.

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