MERLIN, MY BLIND COMPANION

“Majic Merlin Melvin” was a tri color sheltie that was blind but much loved. We had let our lovely courtisian, Cassandra, teach a friends shy shelty male, Yankton, to breed. Merlin’s dam, Cassie, was 10 years old at the time of his birth and had uterine inertia. The vet decided a C section delivery was necessary when she was several days overdue. Merlin was the only survivor from that eagerly awaited litter. He was Yanton’s first pup.
Cassie washed and cuddled Merlin but did not come into milk. We tube fed Merlin puppy formula every 2 hours. He developed an under eyelid infection when he was four days old. Not getting any colustrum at birth had left him vulnerable. There were no commercial colustrum products available at that time. Merlin’s eyes were damaged when he slashed the swollen eyelids open with his dewclaws to relieve the pain.
Merlin compensates for his lack of sight with keen hearing and busy nose. Merlin confidently lead the group of dogs on the half-mile-long woodland trail by the river where his co-owner Marilyn Castilaw, took him walking. Merlin’s ability to hold a cognitive map of places and obstacles is astonishing! Merlin is completely comfortable navigating Marilyn’s and our home and yards. We have six fenced dog yards, each about the size of a city lawn. Merlin knew to a step where the fences, trees and dog houses are in all of them. He often stood on his hind feet and uses his front feet to see if gates or doors are open. When trotting in unfamiliar territory, he picked the front feet up very high and reached each of them out beyond his nose to check for obstacles. That saved a lot of wear and tear on the head! City streets, country rooads, horse barns and friends’ homes were all taken in stride when Merlin had the security of being on leash with one of his people. Merlin relied on subtle cues in unfamiliar territory and walks close enough that his fur just barely touches. He adjusted his steps to match the handlers. The verbal cues “step up” and “step down” help with curbs and stairs.
Expertly maneuvered long whiskers let Merlin gauge the depth of water in a bowl, check to see how far open a crate door is and precisely locate toys and snacks.
Merlin loved to lay beside his sire, Yankton, under Marilyn’s piano and listen to her play. Favorite toys were a sheepskin doll, a ball with a bell in it, socks with knots and a small throw rugs. Throw rugs came in for a terrible shaking with lots of sound effects! Sleeping in Marilyn and Tim’s bed with his head on the pillow was a real favored spot of Merlin’s. Next best was the biggest, softest dog pillow in the kitchen at our house. Merlin enjoyed exercising the starlings that try to steal dog food. He hears them land and chases their wing sounds when they take off.
Merlin was an apt pupil for obedience, homing in on my voice and coming directly to me when called. We play “find” and “tag”. Merlin could find me by homing on the scuffing sound of my shoes on the ground and the noises my clothes make brushing together. Left in an unfamiliar area alone, Merlin would sometimes barks and seem to use the echoes of his voice to guide him around obstacles.
Merlin had a special bond with his dam. They ran wildly with Merlin positioned at her hip and letting her guide him. Merlin was a very gentle personality. The Siamese colored Manx cat, Elmo, and he were affectionate friends. They napped together and washed each others faces and ears. Merlin laid down and carefully mouth rassled with his half brother, Rush, when Rush was just four months old.
Razmataz is a sable merle pup that visits us once a week and is occasionally boarded here for a few days. Raz and Merlin are good friends.
When Raz was 5 months old he was at missing at bedtime one night. Our six dog yards covering about an acre are securely fenced. I started checking the dog houses, continuing to call Razmataz. Then I checked all the hidey holes under the bushes. Next I looked behind the dog houses and began to be really concerned. Merlin kept running around me, barking his alarm bark and then running back to the front yard by the irrigation pump. I had checked that area early on. After following him back once, I told him to be quiet. Merlin just got more and more excited. He started jumping at the fence, barking and then coming back to me. Irritated with his antics I took him to the house and locked him in. Grabbing a flashlight on the way out, I went back to the search. It dawned on me that Merlin’s actions were very unusual. I took the flashlight and went back to where Merlin was jumping at the fence. Shining the light on the area just beyond the fence showed the big clump of tiger lilys on the rock bank of the creek wriggling. That caught my attention! Forcing a hand thru a two inch by four inch fence square I moved a handful of lily leaves. Under the leaves a completely wet, bedraggled and shaking Razmataz was crouching. The small ledge he was huddled on was barely big enough for him. The rock ledge was above a deep, fast moving creek down a steep drop. Raz had apparently been snooping around on top of the irrigation pump platform and fell thru a narrow gap in the boards. He would have been swept over a waterfall before managing to crawl up to his precarious perch. Raz wasn’t about to get back in the water voluntarily to cross the creek to come to me further down where I could help him out. I tore down some guard fencing on the pump platform. Next put a noose around Razmataz’s neck. Using the noose to steady Raz so he wouldn’t fall off, I ventured across another fence and out on the rock ledge. The footing was too hazardous to try to carry the pup back the way I’d come. I picked Raz up and dropped him over the fence.
When I took Raz in the house to dry him off, Merlin rushed to him. Merlin licked his face, whined happy noises and danced! You know, none of the sighted dogs had paid any attention to Raz’s plight. After deciding I wasn’t calling them they had just gone on about their own activities.
We loved Merlin dearly and were always glad he lived with us. He was special and will be sorely missed! !

James M.