Well! I must say that clearly my Sophie the Australian Cattle dog is NOT living up to her full potential.

Several people have been telling me about this book. It's about an Australian Cattle dog that gets tossed overboard and survives on her own for five months. Oh, and her name is Sophie. That's right, just like my Sophie (or my parents Sophie. You get the idea). Here is a quick summary of the book.
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The story that became a global sensation, now sold for film, of Sophie, the amazing Australian cattle dog who fell off a yacht, was feared lost, yet swam six miles through shark-infested waters to a remote Whitsundays island where she survived for five months.

When Jan and Dave Griffith's beloved cattle dog, Sophie, fell overboard from the family yacht during rough weather, she feared the worst. But Sophie, a true Aussie battler, wasn't going to give up that easily. She swam six miles through shark-infested waters to a remote Whitsunday island where she survived for five months before being miraculously reunited with her amazed owners. Sophie, a highly domesticated dog, had been living ferally - and surviving. Yet one glimpse of her owners when they were reunited was enough for the old Sophie to re-emerge.

This is an amazing, inspirational story of survival, loyalty and what binds animals and humans together
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What? Cattle dogs named Sophie can do what on their own? Shark infested waters?
You're really going to have to up your game there Spoofy.
C'mon Sophie. Hasn't this inspired you to get up and challenge yourself? Live each day to it's fullest?
Don't you want to tackle each day like you've been thrown overboard and need to survive on your own without people buying you food and yummy rawhide chewies?
Yup. Didn't think so......
 
I was extremely fortunate growing up to have always had pets around me. Both my parents knew how important it was for their kids to help raise a pet and the responsibilities that go along with.
I have had two dogs in my life (other than Bailey), and four cats other than my two. Our first dog Katie was a Border Collie/Australian Cattle Dog mix. We actually didn't know her breed until she was about ten years old, when someone passing by knew what her mix was. This dog was an AMAZING companion. She was very protective of us as kids, and was always well behaved. My parents did everything they could when Katie got sick, and helped make her last few months as enjoyable as possible. Sometimes I think I see some Katie traits in Bailey, which makes me unbelievably happy. My parents' current pooch is Sophie, who is an Australian Cattle Dog. She is hilarious and has this great ability to avoid eye contact. She's actually diabetic, and requires two shots of insulin a day (my parents are extremely committed pet owners). I've included a picture of her below.
One other pet that deserves honorable mention is Amy. Amy was my cat while I was living at home. My parents brought her home from the Ottawa Humane Society when I was seven years old. She passed away this past September. I've included her picture here- unfortunately talking about her is not as easy as I'd like it to be. I suppose when you lose a pet, especially one that has been by your side for over 15 years, you have a difficult time soaking up the fact that they are no longer there. Amy's story was featured on Alone to Home back in November- writing in her story really helped the healing process for me at the time. Putting her life into words was incredibly therapeutic, and gave Amy a few moments in the spotlight. I hope to write more about her here in the coming months.