I grew up in a household with a number of pets including a dog and got my first border collie, Ruff, when I was 13. He was still around when I got married but spent most of his time with my mother. We didn’t feel it was fair to have our own dog when our family was growing up as we were both working but used to mind a friend’s retriever sometimes during school holidays.
After my husband had to take early retirement due to his health we decided the time had come to get our own dog and one of my husband’s work colleagues introduced us to the Border Collie Trust. We then adopted an inseparable pair in July 1999. Sadly we lost Jess (formerly Gromit) to cancer in 2004 at only 8, but Shep (Herbie) was with us until 2010 having survived peritonitis at nearly 13. Another collie called Sam followed but sadly we had to return him and the Trust was unable to re-home him due to health issues. Later in 2010 Ben joined us and although he wasn’t an easy dog he was much loved and well known locally until we lost him at 13 in September 2022.
When I retired in 2007 I spent some time helping at the Trust both going to shows and also at the kennels. Eventually other commitments meant I had to stop for a number of years. Earlier this year we decided to adopt another collie and Pippa joined us at the beginning of April 2023. She is proving to be a fantastic ambassador for the Trust and has made many friends. When I saw the request for new trustees in the Spring edition of Border Collie World I took the decision to apply and was honoured to be accepted and joined the board in July 2023. I hope now I will be able to give more time helping these highly intelligent and special dogs find new homes when they are in need and making the time they have to spend in kennels as rewarding as possible.
Margaret Gosling