Chekia Shetland Sheepdogs
Our Shelties
You're listening to
"La Dee At Dee"
(traditional Shetland
folksong)
Pride 'N Joy April Blizzard
"Blitz" was the first Sheltie to live at Chekia.
He was a double blue merle, and he was nearly blind.
His vision was limited to seeing light, and his tiny eyes
were protected by his inner eyelids. He had his own
seeing-eye- Collie, Corey, and she took remarkable
care of him, guiding him thru the yard and always doting
on him. They were an amazing team.
On a leash, Blitz was both brilliant and fearless. He knew
he could trust in the safety of the leash that guided him,
and the verbal cues that let him know what was ahead.
"Step up" would instantly bring a front paw searching for
a higher level to mount, just as "Step down" would bring
nose to ground, seeking the depth of the new terrain.
He had been taught as a puppy to wait until his feet
reached grass or dirt before stopping to potty, and this
nearly proved disastrous for him at the first snowfall!
Poor little guy had to go, and I knew he had to go, but
he had no way of knowing the "whole world" had been
covered with snow, and kept stepping forward hoping
to reach dirt or grass. Finally, I got out the shovel and
cleared an area of grass for him. No doubt the neighbors
thought I was crazy shoveling the snow off the grass, but
Blitz was thrilled to finally have the familliar surface under
his feet and most releived to let go his bladder!
A double dilute merle is the result of breeding two merles
together. Both of Blitz'a parents were blue merles.
Double dilutes may be perfectly normal in both vision and
hearing, or they may be partially or fully blind, and / or
partially or fully deaf. The Mendellian principle of genetics
shows that one out of four puppies (ultimately, given
enough puppies) from a merle to merle breeding will be
double dilutes. There are no established genetic
principles that state what the liklihood of those resulting
double dilute puppies will have of being visually or hearing
impared, nor to what degree.
Blitz had the softest fur on his face that I have ever felt
on any dog. He loved to have his face held, and his
head stroked. Dispite his disability, he was outgoing
and confident, and made friends with everyone he met.
He was also one of the smartest dogs I have ever known.
He enjoyed learning tricks and words and had a vast
vocabulary. He truly was an incredible little dog.
My deepest gratitude to Shirley Gill for entrusting
him to me.
