Magic

Magic is such a sweet girl! Many thanks to Belgian Tervuren Rescue, Cindy Simonson and Glenda Fillenworth for allowing us the opportunity to love Magic. Her greatest joy is to help with house cleaning. . . especially keeping tabs on the vacuum cleaner. And she looks forward to her daily walk abouts.

Gone but Not Forgotten!

CJ’s Magic – August 12, 1995 to July 27, 2010

Today, with a heavy heart, I have made that awful decision on behalf of Magic. She will be put to sleep this afternoon after many wonderful years.

Magic came to our home in May of 2003 from rescue. She was frightened of my husband, but even though she was ‘guarded’ I was able to approach her and pet the top of her head. If touched anywhere else on her body, she would cry out in a painful yelp. Even my laugh made her run and hide which I thought was so sad. . .

The other tervs, Tucker and Taz could be with her and she was slightly interested. After a few days, she took Taz (at that time about 8 months) under her wing and really bonded. (Even today, Taz is her ‘favorite’). I believe it was on about day 5 or 6 of having Magic that I came home to find all the throw rugs piled in a large mountain in the middle of the living room floor with her lying in front of them. We lived in a rather large home with three separate levels and two stairways to navigate, so this took some time and effort on her part. I wish to this day that I would have had the foresight to take a photo. . . . Of course, my first response was to laugh which sent Magic to parts unknown. . .

We were informed by the person that turned her over to rescue that she had been chasing and harming the neighbor’s stock. I took her to herding practice and she showed no interest even though we tried several tactics. In 2008 I began taking her to herding lessons again after moving to Arizona. Surprisingly, she was interested and enjoyed moving the stock from pen to pen and even worked a bit in the round pen, very happy with herself. She never displayed any harmful behavior towards the stock. I believe these are the times she was the happiest. . . (Thanks, Sue!)

My training routine for years was a short time in the morning and a longer time in the evening with each dog. Each session, Magic waited patiently for her turn to train with me. She loved the one-on-one sessions even though she really didn’t participate in showing. (She did earn her CGC and Rally Novice titles, but the show atmosphere was not one that she enjoyed. And I have used her as the greeting dog for the CGC testing which she didn’t seem to mind). I will always remember her happy expression as her name was called to come out and train with me. We would heel and do recalls and a few rally moves. She really thought she was the “special” one.

Another favorite activity was going for walks around the neighborhood. She loved smelling all the scents on the ground and seeing the neighbors.

Going for rides in the truck was yet another great time for her. Didn’t matter where we went, she loved it all the same. In more recent years, she wasn’t able to jump up into the truck, so she would wait patiently by the open door for me to lift her in. Every so often, she would reach out with a paw and touch my leg and I could see how happy she was.

When Ellie came to our home in 2004, another chapter was added. Ellie was and still is a very precocious girl; very sure about herself and her environment. Magic has always enjoyed the young dogs, but Ellie tested her. Instead of getting into “bitch” fights like some have experienced, Magic had a certain “evil-eye” look which put Ellie on the submissive side. I enjoyed watching how such a slight movement could put a stop to any behavior Magic deemed inappropriate. The last few weeks, with Magic’s declining health and abilities, I was concerned that Ellie would seize the opportunity and take charge. There were a few close calls, but Magic still held the power. These last couple of days, with Magic not being able to get about; Ellie decided to totally ignore her, thank goodness.

Magic never enjoyed our grooming sessions and especially getting the shedding undercoat out. . . There were times I thought about just shaving her, but we always struggled through somehow and got the mission completed. Not exactly what is desired for the show ring, but presentable. She even gave in to the Dremel for nail trimming. Such a trooper!

I love taking photos of the dogs and especially around the holidays. . . we have collected a few costumes throughout the years. Magic is a pretty serious girl and found this part of living with us a bit weird, but she always participated. You can see by some of her expressions while being photographed, that she had to go to her “happy” place to get through the photo session.

In the next few weeks, a new puppy will come to live with us. I was looking forward to watching the interaction between her and Magic. Unfortunately, that will not happen. We were lucky enough to help a friend with a litter of puppies earlier this year, and even though they were not tervs, Magic was able to share some of her mothering skills with them. (Thanks, Adrienne!)

I will always cherish the years spent with Magic and so thankful she came to our home for us to love and be loved in return. Magic: a very special lady, full of dignity and grace with an unwavering sense of fairness.