I had a Wheaton Cairn Terrier for 14 1/2 years. She was so smart and what a sniffer she had! I bought her a new harness because her old one was getting tattered and ratty looking. She wore the new harness several time over a couple of weeks then one day she went over to the cabinet I had stored her old harness in the bottom drawer. I had never put her harness in the drawer before that. She began to scratch at the drawer and wouldn't stop. So I opened the drawer, she stuck her snout in the drawer and grabbed the old harness and dropped it at my feet. She wanted to go for a walk, using the old harness. She had not seen me place the harness in the drawer but she sniffed it out. True story. I miss her tremendously.
I am sorry to hear this. Rest in peace, Shona. My chihuahua mix dog died in April. In the past, my vet recommended a Cairn for me. How did you find your Shona? How do you think I should find a Cairn?
Hi, my experience with Shona was that she was a very intelligent dog, but a bit like a strong willed toddler, she needed gentle and consistent guidance and training, and a clear, regular daily routine. She trained me as much as i trained her. She was energetic as a puppy and as a young dog, verging on excitable, and very obsessed with food, so i had to dog proof the kitchen. She loved having an open crate with her bed in, under my desk, so she could go sleep in this snug den during the day, but at night she preferred sleeping on my bed. She had an amazing sense of empathy, thousand expressions on her face, and followed me everywhere. On walks, she had to be on a lead, cos cairns have a strong instinct to chase anything that runs, or follow their nose if they smell food. Up in the hills, she'd walk off lead, and she'd stay maybe 20 meters ahead of me, with good recall if she knew i had a tasty treat in my pocket. In her older years she mellowed into a really great dog, intelligent, loving and gentle. She was a great dog to have as my children grew up. I miss her hugely. Despite her food obsession, which could make her a little mischievous, she was a pure joy, and a loving companion.
My Cairn, Jedi-Master Willy-Gilly, could keep time in his head. Not just the daily clock for food and walkies, but got to know and protest the fall-back time change every autumn.😂 Then, in 2010, he spent 2 weeks waking me up by grabbing my right ankle through my bedsheets (he slept at the foot of my bed). I had no idea why until, after 2 weeks, I was sitting cross-legged ang noticed a lump below my ankle. Yup, Lymphoma,and when I pointed to it and asked him if this is what he was tellingme about, he came over bonked it, gave me the saddest look ever, and never woke me up again. He literally added 15 years to my life. ❤❤❤
I am now a professionally trained mindfulness coach, qualified in November 2021, and with 2 years' experience as a mindfulness coach. Please check out my Azur Living Mindfulness channel 🙂
Hello dear Rose, yes I am well, but have been very busy with several projects over the year, and have hardly played my guitar at all since I uploaded this.
What a great dog treat toy, we had our Miel for 14 years, she loved all dogs her best friends were 2 Burmese Mountain dogs, she would grab them by their heads and lick them silly.
I've been binding a few Cairn videos,and all I can say is among Cairns, my old dog has to be the least inteligent of its kind. He could be clever on occasion, he hid a napkin collection from my mother's hovering for months (he used to collect all napkins we had during parties and then would spend time tearing them apart), but my dad was not a good dog owner and let him become the "owner" of the house, which is not a good thing to do with a Cairn, they become quite bossy. But, he was an amazing little guard dog for 4-10 year old me, I've had him as a pillow when I was sick and he would chase away other animals who he deemed could threathen me.I was likely the runt of the litter to him. I miss him. I was 10 when I discovered I had dog fur allergies and we gave him away. He was 6 when he was given to a new home and a family and he lived until 16.
Yes, she is. Now she's nearly 15, and still ready for anything, maybe a bit slower on walks, maybe sleeps a bit more, but still 100% the most wonderful companion.
Very bright and social dogs ... need a master with firm rules cause they will try to take over. Very trainable .... perfect for rambunctious boys ... loves active playing. Lots of fun memories. My Carin had bad allergies and a form of epilepsy called "star gazing syndrome" ... i swear that dog could see ghosts and even snap at them.
keeps her engaged, active and switched on - and as you can see, she is very happy. Giving her a big treat for no work doesn't really give her any incentive to use her intelligence, and is ultimately less rewarding. I learned from the puppy trainer that small rewards and plenty engaging activity makes for a happy dog.
Thank you for such a kind comment Helen. The words are mine, and the photos, and art work. The guitar playing is mine too, and i didn't exactly write the music, i just improvised live while i was reading the words. One take.
