The Deep End

I have a pretty well documented obsession with collars. When a new dog comes into my family, I spend hours looking for the perfect first collar - which is silly because I'm pretty much going to buy all the ones I like anyway. I won't tell you how many I have these days. It's well over the fifty mark, and I recent had to clear out a second drawer and divvy them up between "every day collars" and "special occasion." I have collars from a lot of different makers, but by far and wide, my favorite makers are Collar Mania and Ella's Lead.

Collar Mania has my everyday happy collars. They're low priced enough that it's easy to find excuses to buy them:

"Yay, it's Friday!"

"Yay, there's a sale!"

"Yay, I have opposable thumbs!"

You get the picture. The collars are also super sturdy and beautifully crafted. Silk lining? Check. Embroidered personalization? Check. Leather? Check. Fifty zillion different fabrics? Check. If you have trouble making decisions, don't go look at the website. Or you'll end up like me and buy all of them. Remember this collar?

It's from Collar Mania. I got it for Piper about three years ago. Except I'm pretty sure I got it for Rubi, I just didn't know her yet. Fate is funny that way. Here are a few more of my favorite Collar Manias:

Ella's Lead, as you can probably guess from the name, makes leashes as well as collars. I own a few of their leashes, and they're pretty dang nice (my personal favorite is the lead with traffic handle - great for maneuvering in crowds). If you ever feel the need to use your dog's leash to pull your truck, then these are the leads for you!

Anyway, my new addiction isn't Ella's Leads (that's an old addiction), it's their collars. Every time one of my dogs gets a title that was particularly difficult, I've started the tradition of getting one of Ella's Leads leather collars. Why? Because I can also get a matching bracelet!

Shuddup, at least I'm not buying us all matching sweaters. ^That's Piper's set from when we passed the CD, a title that was three years in the making, mostly because of repeated knee surgeries. And also because her handler is a bit of a nut job, but whatever.

So when Rubi passed her CGC, you can bet we were gonna get a new collar and bracelet. We both worked really hard for that, and we deserve good things. But what design to get?

Rubi has lead a charmed life in many ways. She lived passed her second birthday (most pit bulls don't). She always had a home and never ended up in the shelter. She eventually did find a forever home, even though most people wouldn't look twice at a middle aged dog. Who is reactive. And a pit bull. Girlfriend has lived the impossible life. So is it any wonder how her collar ended up?

Yay! for flying pig dogs! Long live the impossible! May we never stop conquering it.