Jeb

4 year old Sable male

Jeb, January 2009!

Jeb in 2004

Update on Jeb: January 2009

My three sons cannot think of living without Jebodiah even though they thought they would never love another dog as much after the deaths within months of Teddi and Lady, another Rough Collie. We, the Dan Nicholson family, benefited greatly with the adoption of Jebodiah, also known as "The Big Guy", "Jebo", "Jebbie", "Deary" and other names.

Jebodiah is large at 95 pounds and twenty-nine (29) inches at the shoulder with the corresponding strength, endurance, and agility - many witnessed Jebodiah's ability to clear six (6) foot fences when needed. Owners of Greyhounds amazed at Jebodiah's speed and agility herding their own Greyhounds back to their owners as Greyhounds 'sight' dogs.

Jebodiah charms everyone he meets and is cheerfully known in the neighborhood as "Mister Meet and Greet". Visiting nursing homes and hospitals, hence his many aliases, he warmly greets everyone. Physicians will note where Jebodiah may lick a patient as they found out by accident he 'senses' the location of tumors and cancer. Just a few months after adopting Jebodiah I brought him to a hospital to visit some relatives. During that visit nurses asked if I would let him visit with a blind young man. The nurses brought the young man down in his bed and Jeb went to the bed side immediately allowing the young man to pet him. I noted Jeb sniffed oddly around the young man's arm then started to lick his arm in a certain place. The nurses told me a few days later the doctor's found cancer in the same spot Jeb was licking him.

Oh, Jebodiah also rescues people. On a walk in the dog park, off the leash territory, running along a river some friends and I busy with conversation while all our dogs scampered about ahead of us. Suddenly we heard a woman scream then ran ahead to find out what was happening. Other women comforting the woman who screamed explained that Jebodiah jumped into the river reaching a toddler then grab the toddler by the diaper and pulled the toddler to the bank. Once reaching the bank, Jebodiah stood between the toddler and the river. The toddler was drenched and crying but the mother of the child who first thought Jebodiah was attacking her child thanked me profusely and every few months a package of rawhides arrives at our door for Jebodiah. Other rescues followed.

"The Big Guy" also known for his gentleness, softness, and tenderness. Many neighbors ask for Jebodiah to sleep over at their houses particularly if one of their children not feeling well. Many can tell stories of finding Jebodiah stretched out on a floor with children laying around and on him with Jebodiah not moving a muscle while the children sleep. The neighbors also readily ask if Jebodiah can "childsit" as they know Jebodiah will keep their children on the lawn and not let them venture away from the immediate property - part of a Collie's innate breeding. Again, during a picnic people watched Jebodiah pulling a baby by the diaper back to the gathering after the child crawled away while the parents distracted. People tell stories of observing young children punching him, pulling his hair, or grabbing his muzzle without a whimper from Jebodiah!

Jeb likes sports! One of my sons is an Assistant Dean of Students and coaches football for a local high school. One day during a football practice he forgot Jeb loves to play keep-away using a football. My son motioned with his hand and Jeb thought my son wanted him to take the football so off runs Jeb grabbing the football in his mouth. The entire football team tried to catch Jeb without success! Every player collapsed in a heap from chasing Jeb and my son speaks with pride of the "best practice" conditioning his players! Jeb walked over to my son when all the players stopped chasing him, sat at his feet, and placed the football at his feet. He barked at the players as if to say "Hey I'm not finished playing yet!"

My wife amazed at the display Jebodiah puts on when she returns home. Jebodiah stands on his hind legs and paws at the air with his fore legs when my wife walks in to the house from a trip. Although she often takes Jeb on errands with her, she still amazed at his display of affection for her. A true pushover, my wife attempts to ignore Jeb but Jeb often finds a way of getting her to smile and talk with him.

"Talk", owning other Collies and raised with the many Collies my Grandfather used for herding dairy cattle, I cannot remember a Collie with such a vast 'vocabulary' ! Jeb 'taught' me his speak for different animals, people, and situations. Without looking he tells me who comes to the front door or what animal on the deck and patio outside our house.

In short, I just wanted all the people involved with caring for him then allowing Jebodiah's adoption to know he found a very thankful home. Not only my three sons and my wife but all my relatives, friends, neighbors and many others fully appreciate Jebodiah. Thanks for enriching our lives by caring for then allowing his adoption.

Intake Bio for Jeb

Jeb (Jebediah) is a tall, stately, four year old, neutered male. He stands a statuesque 28 inches at the shoulder and weighs 99 pounds. In spite of his size and dignified appearance, Jeb is still a puppy at heart. He is extremely playful and loves to romp and chase with the other collies at his foster home. You would expect a big fellow like Jeb to try to dominate the other dogs but, in fact, he is quite the peace maker, always deferring to the other collies. He is always ready to initiate play and loves to bring his favorite toys to his foster mom so they can play fetch.

Jeb's size and energetic personality were the reasons that his former owner reluctantly had to give him up. He didn't seem to realize his own size and strength, and when the activity level got high, he was just too much dog for the small grandchildren in the family. Although Jeb is not at all aggressive to either people or dogs, he does have a very strong herding instinct and that, coupled with his size, means that he should probably not go to a family with small children or small animals.

Jeb is well behaved in the house and is given the run of his foster mom's home. He is smart, eager to please and knows all of the basic commands. He went to obedience training as a young dog and was one of the stars of the class, finishing fourth in a class of 25 dogs.

Jeb loves human attention and petting. One of his favorite tricks is to slip his muzzle under your arm and then, with a toss of his nose, flip your hand onto his head in a not-so-subtle "pet me" move. He also loves to be groomed and will even offer up his tummy for brushing and combing.

Jeb is looking for a forever home that has plenty of love but no small children or little animals. This gentle giant is ready to lavish some lucky family with a BIG helping of collie love.

Jeb is being fostered in the Duluth, MN area