FERN: THE RETURN

Fern was my pick of the litter: an incredibly bright, active puppy with loads of drive and lots of love to give. She was the hardest puppy to let go when she left for a new home at 4 months old. Fast-forward to spring of 2022: after being away for two years, we recovered Fern from a traumatic situation, and she returned here to stay at Saxafrax. We have since been helping her recover a life of opportunities she has missed out on. She has made tremendous strides regaining her confidence, and thrives on chasing the other dogs around the pasture, begging for pets, and welcoming guests to the farm.

STRUCTURE & HEALTH

CHIC # pending. DM clear, OFA eyes (x1) and echocardiogram (x1) normal. Thyroid pending. Incomplete dentition missing 1 lower premolar on each side; scissors bite. Fern is stockier than most of her sisters, yet still quite feminine in appearance, especially in her head and expression. Ears are well set, tending large. Needs more underjaw, but otherwise a nicely balanced skull. She has lovely angulation, with just the right amount of shoulder layback, return of upper arm, and rear angulation to match with a long second thigh. Nice strong neck, strong pasterns, and tight hare feet. A truly perfect long straight tail. Her nice topline could use just a touch more moderation in the croup. Great width and good muscle.

Holter Results:

• 6/18/2022: 0 VPCs

• 6/7/2025: 1 VPC

TEMPERAMENT

Fern is barely recognizable as the traumatized dog who first returned to us these days. She is eager to approach strangers, both human and canine alike, to form a fast friendship. She has a lot of “puppyish” energy and keeps up with the younger dogs tussling, playing, and racing around the field. Her wagging tail is a daily constant. She lacks the mischievous gene that her relatives all seemed to inherit, and is easy-going in her daily routine. She is a proud hunter and dispatcher of squirrels, but has low lure drive. We are surprised at how gentle she remains with our indoor cats after not seeing any in her previous home. She is very talkative, and loves to make her opinion known when someone is laying in her favorite spot or has a chew she would like to steal. She does display mild resource guarding toward other dogs over high value items, which looks like a short growl or air snap, and has never escalated beyond this level of intensity. Although we don’t know for certain if this behavior was learned due to her traumatic experiences or has a heritable component, it is something we are cognizant of to making breeding selections away from.

BREEDING

Because of her trauma, Fern has been spayed and lives the life of a companion dog here.