Marley, our new vicious attack border collie

[Steve Foss]

We had to put down Mollie, our beloved border collie and companion of more than 13 years, before Christmas. Earlier this month, we came across a giveway for a BC, who we named Marley and who is, of course, a very cool dog to have around.

While shoveling the driveway, I accidentally found out that she loves to growl and snap and attack snow thrown in the air. For those of you who know border collies, you know that they are, shall we say, a bit serious in their outlook on life, and this snow game, is about as much fun as a border collie can have. Marley will spend hours attacking thrown snow.

We're thinking of buying a snowblower next fall to give her a real workout.

At the ready

Judging the distance

Back, back, back . . .

The kill!

[fishinchicks]

The first dog my hubby and I had was a Border Collie. She learned to climb trees and ladders in order to get at her favorite stick to play fetch with. This series brought back wonderful memories!

The intensity in Marley's face in pic #2 shows just how serious she is about this game. The whole series is great.

[MN Shutterbug]

That last shot is perfect timing. That was an enjoyable series.

[Finns]

Sorry to hear about your loss. I hope Marley can bring some of the joy that Mollie must have brought to you.

[HawgMan]

Hey Steve

My Brittany is the same way! Don't know what it is about air borne snow, but she'll jump 2-3 feet off the ground to try & catch it! I'll try & get a pic or two to post when I get my baby back from Canon....

Try roll'n a snowball accross the yard sometime & see what'll happen! Mine will attack it & then wonder what happened to it & search all over the place, Hillarious!!

[B-man715]

Great pics Steve! As a kid we had a border collie mix Great dogs!!

Your pics truly show how focused collies can be on something they want

[Brooky]

Glad to hear that you have a new Border Steve. Once you've owed a Border, you can't live without one. My Abby does the same thing with the snow while shoveling. She just goes crazy snapping at the snow in mid air.

Have fun with Marley. I'm looking forward to more shots of her.

[Steve Foss]

Thanks folks. I've seen a lot of border collies work and play, and Marley's the fastest one in a sprint I've seen. She's just amazing when she turns on the afterburners. She's got those typical border collie quirks, but that's why we love 'em.

Here's the exif data for the images, in case someone wants that.

Canon 30D, Canon 100 f2.8 macro, iso400, 1/800 to 1/1000 at f9, Av (aperture priority) mode, handheld

[Catmendo]

Very nice work Steve! Yes I'm well versed with these guys, ours is now 5 years old!

Sorry about the loss.......

[JayinMN]

Congrats on the new dog. She is a beauty and looks like a snow balls worst enemy.

[MARINERMAGNUM]

They are a pretty dog! Do they shed much?

[Steve Foss]

Do they shed much?

Yes.

[311Hemi]

Here's the exif data for the images, in case someone wants that.

Canon 30D, Canon 100 f2.8 macro, iso400, 1/800 to 1/1000 at f9, Av (aperture priority) mode, handheld

Thanks Steve!!

Were you at 400 iso so you could get those shutter speeds?

Seems like it was a bright sunny day and being a beginner I always feel I should be at iso 100 since it's so bright out. I guess the thing I really need to remember is to set the iso to achieve the shutter speeds/aperture settings I am looking for to create the shot I want. Thanks again, the exif data for these images helped!

[blk94fiveoh]

I love the eyes.

[Steve Foss]

Thanks, blk. They are a cool color.

Hemi, yes, 400 was to get the shutter speeds I needed. And f8 through f11 generally produces the sharpest images on my camera bodies, so when possible I go for that. She's moving just a little too fast in the snapping image for it to be tack sharp at 1/800 (did a lot of sharpening on her face), and I should have bumped down to f7.1 or f5.6 to get that extra shutter speed. With any of the last several generations of entry to pro level DSLRs of any brand, iso400 produces excellent image quality. Always better to keep iso/shutter speed up enough to get the shot sharp than to worry about IQ and end up with a ss too slow to get it because iso was down at 100.

Flipside on those really sunny snow days, of course, is at iso400 with a wide open aperture it's easy to blind the camera. Mine maxes at 1/8000, and on those days I often have to either stop down significantly or drop iso to get below 1/8000.

[Lisa Almquist]

What a great dog Steve! My grandparents had a black lab named Jubilee that loved to eat the snowthrower snow. Thanks for sharing!

[Birdsong]

Very cute--the vicious little thing. How is she with squirrels? Perhaps you would rent her out?

[Steve Foss]

Birdsong, we rarely have squirrels in our yard. I'll have to wait and see when we hit the lake cabin this summer. Mollie used to be deadly. She would lay down motionless for the longest times, and then would launch from the lay-down position to six feet into the air to try to snatch a squirrel off the feeder. I reckon Marley will be just as anti-squirrel.

Good times a-coming! Well, not for the squirrels and chipmunks.

[solbes]

Awesome pics Steve! I love that second one. Sad to hear of your loss, but great that you've moved on with a new friend.

We have an 8 year old Border Collie coincidentally named Molly. She is like our first born and shows equally strange, yet fantastic talents. I swear our dog knows the english language better than some high school kids. She always cocks her head to the side when you speak to her.

As far as the eyes go, border's herd with their intense stare, and not by nipping at the heels like Sheltie's do. Yet again prooving their intelligence; why waste the energy actually chasing individual sheep when you can stare down groups of them?

[Steve Foss]

Thanks, man!

I should add, however, that while border collies do seem to have an almost telepathic ability to move stock where the want them to go, we have seen them snapping and nipping at the feet of reluctant sheep and cows from time to time.

[hondarider550]

I wish you many years of happiness with your new border collie.

I had a black lab that would follow our combine in the field and he would be follow the combine all day long trying to catch the debris that is thrown out from the rear of the machine...

I miss that dog because he would be with me anytime I was out farming or working on the yard.

Enjoy...

[Bottle Fish]

I use to have a sheltie that would do the same thing. I still miss that dog.

I love the last picture, fantastic shot.

Build a snowman in the front yard and see what happens?