Once upon a time, there were two extremely sick 8-week-old border collie mixes. Part of the Frozen litter, they were named Hans and Anna. Beth Higginbotham and her husband, Tom, had been fostering for 4 Paws 4 Rescue for more than three years and agreed to foster the sickly pups.
“We had to give them baths every day and keep them separate from the other animals,” Beth Higginbotham recalls.
They carefully cared for Hans and Anna, handling them with gloves. A few weeks into their stay, Tom Higginbotham brought up the idea of adopting the puppies, and the rest is history.
Hans and Anna are now about 2 years old and aren’t sickly anymore.
“They are polar opposites,” Higginbotham muses. “Hans is easygoing and loves everyone. Anna is afraid of everyone and everything.”
Higginbotham says they do a lot of training with Anna, both for socialization and for athleticism.
“Since she’s a collie mix, she’s extremely athletic,” Higginbotham says. “She jumps through hoops and is great with obedience commands.”
Anna has to start and end her day with a hug from Beth Higginbotham and will press her head into Beth’s shoulder.
Hans, although he loves everyone, isn’t as athletic as his sister. Higginbotham says he’s more inclined to be a couch potato than jump through a hoop.
The dogs love to go camping, something they first experienced this past summer. They also enjoy going for walks, chasing squirrels and trying to catch moles in the backyard.
The Higginbothams are fond of herding breeds and had a collie before the brother and sister duo.
“We lost her at 16, and Anna was extremely attached to her,” Higginbotham says. “That was adorable.”
Though Beth Higginbotham has never dressed up dogs before, she says these two are an exception. This past Halloween, Anna had a yellow saddle costume with a cat, so it looked like the cat was riding her. Hans had a surfer riding his back.
“We had kids who had visited earlier in the night come back later with their parents and grandparents just to see the dogs in their costumes,” Higginbotham says. “It was hilarious.”
The Higginbothams continue to foster for 4 Paws 4 Rescue, but it’s mostly been temporary fostering since they adopted Hans and Anna.
“We’ll transport and drop off, help with paperwork if necessary,” Higginbotham says. “There’s always something to be done.”
This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.
Robyn Elizabeth Dexter 