Any guesses on who was the most anxious member of our family to get outside on Friday (02/01/2019) morning after being cooped up inside during the worst part of the arctic blast was past? Cooper! I thought the temp and wind was still quite unfavorable taking Ashton out to the bus just before 7 am. Cooper was anxiously awaiting his leash to be put on so he and I could walk Emma out to wait for her bus. Emma’s and my fingers were freezing with gloves on but Cooper was happily playing, digging and burying himself in the snow not bothered by the cold and wind at all. Here is an attempt at photography now that warm enough for camera shutter lol.
This spring Cooper will be turning 7 years old and we adopted him just after he turned 3. It was easy to see that he was a very intelligent dog watching and interacting with him at the shelter. We also realized he was a very intuitive dog bringing the children to meet him and since he has been part of our family. He was brought in as a stray twice during a short period of time, the second time put up for adoption. The shelter named him Beast, kind of misleading as he is only an average sized dog, is very strong but playful, unless they meant hairy beast, I agree with that lol.
Cooper certainly is an all weather dog. He is an Australian Cattle Dog and Mountain Cur mix. I describe him as extremely strong, looking a bit stocky being shorter than a German Shepherd. His face is a bit triangular and there is some pink on top of his nose reminding me of cows so I nicknamed him Heifer Head, have not called him that since moving away from all the farms almost two years ago though. I often call him Mr. Fluffers as he gets fluffy with his winter coat in. I managed to figure out his shed cycle, only once per year January 1 through December 31 lol, he is a very special dog so I put up with all the hair, everywhere.
The temperament of an Australian Cattle Dog is said to be alert, curious and pleasant. The American Kennel Club states here “The compact but muscular Australian Cattle Dog, also called Blue Heeler or Queensland Heeler, is related to Australia’s famous wild dog, the Dingo. These resilient herders are intelligent enough to routinely outsmart their owners.”
The temperament of a Mountain Cur is said to be intelligent, strong-willed and reserved with strangers. Here the American Kennel Club states “The Mountain Cur is a hunting dog with a good treeing instinct. It is a very courageous fighter and extremely intelligent, doing whatever job its master desires. The dogs were a crucial part of the cultures of early pioneers, settlers, and homesteaders.”
He has a few times decided to hold it a while upon seeing very heavy rainfall from opened door. He will cut his out times short when it is extremely cold. Other than that he does not seem to mind what the weather is.