Sierra

Sierra was abandoned on a farm along with several other Australian Cattle Dogs, and was immediately rescued by Mandy of Morningstar’s Mountainside Rescue. When I first met Sierra at Mandy’s house, she was very timid and scared, trying to make herself invisible under a table in the corner. On the 2.5 hour drive home from Pennsylvania, Sierra began to come out of her shell, but it was still nearly 4 days before she felt comfortable enough to leave my bedroom closet and join the rest of my pack. Very soon after she began to trust me and to see how good life could be.

Although Sierra had spent her whole life outdoors, she had good house manners. She loved people and was very easily trained—she was completely trustworthy off-leash in four days of arriving at my house. And within a few months, she became quite playful and confident, herding the other dogs and barking at them for fun. I struggled with wanting to keep her for myself but I eventually adopted her out to a very loving family. Sadly, Sierra died after being hit by a car in August 2011. This spunky, lovable little dog made a tremendous impact on me in the five months that I fostered her.