[Vinson]

Adopted

Username: Griffin Torrens
Name: Aki / Howl to Pumpkin Moon
Gender: Female
Height: 20 in
Weight: 40 lbs
Color: Liver Based Red Eryth Sable Marbled King Irish White
Genotype: AyAy bb Ccch DD erer hh Ii kckvi mm sisi tt UU ll

Notes: Edits do not pass to offspring. This collie cannot compete in conformation in the title program.
This collie may only produce a maximum of two puppies per litter due to its genetics. Pumpkin patch marbled king passes at 2%.

Pumpkin Patch

What's a fall tradition that this collie holds close to their heart?
You may answer in writing or art, with a maximum of 400 words and/or one art piece with a short blurb.

Ends November 1st at rollover (1st->2nd)

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This collie is part of this year's Fall Festival! You may only win one of this year's Fall Festival collies, but may enter for as many as you'd like.

[Dr. Paine]

Username: Dr. Paine
Name: SSV’s Pottsfield Welcoming Committee // Enoch
Gender: Male
Name Meaning: After the figure in Over The Garden Wall; the name itself means ‘dedicated.’
Prompt:

One could describe Enoch’s favorite fall tradition as pumpkin carving, but that wouldn’t quite be doing it justice.

Nothing says 'fall' for Enoch more than when his owner brings out the big wheelbarrow and an old wooden cart that Enoch pulls. They spend a solid few days, just the two of them, hauling their pumpkin harvest- plenty of tiny ones for decoration, the delightful sugar pies, and naturally, great orange globes perfect for jack-o-lanterns! Sure- there are plenty of modern methods, and those are good for the bulk of things; but Enoch loves this unique one-on-one time with Johnny, far away from the other dogs and cattle.

There's a big carving day once all the pumpkins are brought in- everyone gathering together with plenty of treats and fresh cider, bonfires lit at sunset, all the dogs playing and competing (and perhaps sneaking a few delicious pumpkin chunks or wedges of a dog-safe pie). There's contests for the most impressive carvings and a beautiful display and those are all well and good, but afterwards? That might be his favourite part of all.

His owner holds back a number of particularly fine pumpkins each harvest, and spends several days engaged in intricate works- not just hacking into the flesh but carefully peeling it away, coaxing a remarkable array of value and tone. The subjects vary year by year, for every Halloween sees a light for every person and pet of the Mistyoak community who's passed in the last year. Their name, of course- but also a portrait, flickering bright and warm in the cold nights; a reminder that no matter the distance or loss, some part of them will always remain within the community. And as each carving is worked, Enoch hears about them, all the stories and scraps of information his owner could gather- funny stories, long-whispered rumours, secret tragedies and accomplishments. Enoch commits them to memory, and though dogs can’t yet talk or write, he shares these stories with the other dogs through the long autumn nights, keeping old memories alive and informing newcomers of those who’ve come before. (349/400)

[werepickle]

Username: werepickle
Name: MSK/Sweet Apple Pie ‘Melora’
Gender: female
Name Meaning: (optional)
Prompt:

Milo Thatcher

A warm autumn breeze brought along the smells of the musky earth and freshly baked pies. Melora’s nose tingled as these familiar scents flooded her mind of her youthful days. Slowly stretching she padded towards the house and was soon enveloped in a blanket of warmth and the smells of sweet spices. ‘Hey girl’ a warm and gentle voice spoke. Peering around the bench she spotted Milo as he stood covered in flour listening to jazz. ‘Unfortunately there is no apple picking today, the orchards became too flooded’ a frown appeared on his face as he noticed as Melora’s tail slowly came to a halt. She watched as he slowly turned around and soon presented her with a special treat ‘Shhh it’s a dog friendly pie’ Milo whispered as he placed the small pie off the floor. Her nostrils were met with the tantalising smell of baked apples and pastry. Memories flooded her mind ~ the crunch of the leaves as she ran through the orchard, the musky earth underneath her paws, the crisp apples as she gently picked them up, the smell of spices as they flooded the kitchen ~. Relishing in the memories she soon can back to the present and slowly tucked into the pie savouring each bite hoping it would never end. Sadly her hopes came to an end as the dish was soon empty. Her heart soon felt heavy as she ambled outside the smell of rain heavy in the air. Sauntering over to the old apple orchard, once beautiful now flooded and desolate she howled in grievance for past memories and the life of her old owner. A small drop startled Melora as the skies opened and she sat in the rain hoping the rain would wash away her sorrows. Soon tired of the rain she ran to the safety of the house and before entering shook herself loose of the rain, before entering and picking up a tattered apple toy before claiming a spot on the kitchen floor. Toy between her paws she let herself fall asleep as the warmth and sweet spices flooded her memory. (354 words)

[Skittleboo]

Username: Skittleboo
Name: Missy
Gender: Female
Name Meaning: “Bee”
Prompt:

Chilli dog Love <33
(256 words)



The autumn leaves rustle through the night, the wind howls ever so loudly, the rain gently drops on the windows as Missy Sleeps peacefully beside her owner. As the sun arrives on this new, beautiful day Missy awakes with joy, she pounces on her owner wagging her tail ferociously knowing that today is the day they do their fall tradition together,.. “Making chilli dogs!!”
It all started ever since Missy was a pup, her owner would make chilli dogs every fall, she sat there fascinated and intrigued by the smells her owner would make within the kitchen, after her owner was done cooking, the finished master piece was set right down on the table,, “pawfurction”…
As years passed and many Falls came as well as chilli dogs,, Missy’s owner Eventually let her help in the kitchen every fall,, It became a tradition for them as well as one on one bonding,, sometimes at the end of making the chilli dogs Missy was gifted one of these amazing masterpieces,, Not only is this a tradition for her but, you see her owner has to be in a wheel chair due to a horrific accident that happened, so ever since that day missy came into the home as a therapy, family and guide pet/dog.. Her owner is her life saver as for she is hers.. this tradition means a lot to them.. Missy’s owner provides many chilli dogs, love and care and Missy provides assistances during the tradition as well as her cute fluffy lovey self

[sleepyDandy]

Username: sleepyDandy
Name: Séance
Gender: Female
Prompt:


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxa little excerpt featuring Seance and Ayzel, about costumes!
______________________________⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡⋆______________________________

xxxxx"What are you going to dress up as this year, Seance?" Ayzel asks the lounging pup.
The sunbeam shining through the window fit the Collie perfectly, her orange fur seeming even brighter than usual. Seance raises her head and thinks for a second.

xxxxx"I don't know, really," she hums. "Last year I was a ghost, but the stupid sheet kept falling off!"

xxxxxAyzel laughs, her curled tail twitching to life. "Well yeah! You kept wagging it! Maybe if you didn't get so excited over trick-or-treating that wouldn't happen!" A paw stretches out and plants itself on the other dog's nose. Ayzel chuckles and shakes her head, shifting her weight so Seance's paw drops to rest against the ottoman she claimed as her throne. The two look at each other but Ayzel knows that no thoughts other than a potential costume are going through Seance’s head, and after a brief moment of silence, the Collie huffs.

xxxxx“I don’t know what I want to go as,” she says in a tone close to defeat. “I haven’t gotten that far.”

xxxxx“I mean, you do have a couple days left to decide. Surely that should be–-”

xxxxx“But what if it takes me a couple days to make my costume!” Seance cuts her off, her brows furrowing. It was clear that she was frustrated, and Ayzel couldn’t help but feel bad.

xxxxx“So let me help you,” Ayzel says in a softer voice. She steps closer and nuzzles against Seance’s fur, inhaling deeply as she lets her eyes close. She thinks long and hard, and after what, to Seance, felt like forever, she steps back and looks the other straight in the eye.

xxxxx“What if you dress up as a human?” Seance doesn’t say anything for a long time, her green eyes staring at the hardwood below them. Eventually she comes around and her tail starts wagging, a soft grin etching itself onto her face as she raises her head.

xxxxx“That’s a great idea, Ayzel! Hopefully our owners don’t mind if we steal their clothes!” Seance suddenly jumps up on the ottoman, wavering a bit until she catches her balance. She looks at Ayzel again and lets out an excited yap, bolting off of the ottoman and toward their owners’ room. Ayzel can’t help but let out a similar yap as she follows suit, very excited to see what Seance picks out for herself.

______________________________⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡⋆______________________________

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxwordcount: 398

[fleurs]

Username: fleus
Name: Lakota
Gender: Female
Name Meaning: After the Lakota winter squash ⎯ pumpkin.
Prompt: Every year ⎯ during the fall season ⎯ Lakota, Melinoe, and their owners visit the local animal shelter with baskets full of fresh pumpkin peanut butter biscuits and spooky skeleton plushies. Decorating the shelter with orange and purple streamers, hanging floating ghosts high above each kennel with the adoptable dogs' names etched on them, carved pumpkins sitting on tables with free items brought for potential adopters. Being a former shelter dog herself, Lakota finds these fall traditions to bring back memories of her past ⎯ and while she'd rather not remember her sleepless nights of hoping for a home, she knows how important the decorations could be for some of the shelter dogs. It brings a sense of hope to them, that even during the darker months (with spooky stories and masked trick or treaters) there was still good.

[Rescue2001]

M

[Griffin Torrens]

Username: Griffin Torrens
Name: Aki / Howl to Pumpkin Moon
Gender: Female
Name Meaning: means Autumn / collies + my favourite Halloween movie
Prompt:

365 Words + Art

Aki let out a squeak of suprise, fur fluffing up in an attempt to hide the emotions on her face. If it were embarrassment or sadness, she couldn't say. It was bad enough she did this every year without fail, but to be caught was even worse.

"It's rude to sneak up on someone," she accused in an attempt to control the situation.

The silver collie tipped his head innocently. "I wasn't exactly sneaking."

Letting out a stubborn huff, Aki refused to meet his eyes. "Well I didn't hear you approach. I'd, uh, best get back then," she muttered, hoping to avoid any questioning.

"Wait," he called, making her flinch. "What were you doing?" Cautiously, Aki turned back towards the collie and studied him. His voice had sounded curious as apposed to judgemental, and his face looked friendly yet nervous. Entropy, she recalled, one of the more quiet collies.

She broke eye contact, choosing to look up at the sky instead. "Singing to the moon."

A pause sat heavy in the air. Yet when Entropy finally opened his mouth, it wasn't in laughter like she expected. " What song is it?"

He didn't ask why, just what, Aki realised with welcomed surprise. "It's a song my mother used to sing. I don't remember the words so I just make them up, usually about the past year," she told him softly, everything spilling out without her control. "I know it's stupid-" A fluffy tail brushed over a mouth and nose making her cut off with a sneeze. Entropy gazed at her with a playful yet meaning expression before shaking his head gently.

"It sounded sad," he whispered, a note of compassion in his voice. "Can I help in any way?"

Aki recalled the past year. It had been lonley and dull, but it was in the past now and he couldn't change that. She gave a slight shrug. "I doubt it."

"Can I join you?"

For the first time since she were a pup, Aki's autumn song to the moon was a duet. Their words may not have matched, but their hearts did. Perhaps next year she wouldn't be singing a song of sorrow, but of hope.

Aki & Entropy

Please don't use my art of you win! I'll be reusing it for a different collie 💖

[DarkestWerewolf]

Username: DarkestWerewolf
Name: Autumn Delight // Khaos
Gender: Male
Name Meaning: - insert fire Elmo meme here-
Prompt:

Ah Autumn…..

The gorgeous season that brings about change. The gorgeous leaves in a sunset hue, the breezy weather that is perfect for sweaters and a warm drink. Where the fluffy winter coats start to grow in and collies start to peak at peak floofness.

What a beautiful and peaceful season….

NOT

Khaos, like his namesake, loves to bring about chaos. Sure autumn has its perks of being the perfect weather for tumblr vibes but autumn also brings about rain and boy does Khaos love rain. The moment the rain cloud starts forming, his owner will do their best in barricading him at home. However, it wasnt whether he could get out, it was when he would get out. When Khaos finally escapes, hes out of the house leaping around the backyard in what can be called his version of a rain dance.

The moment the rain starts to fall, Khaos gets even more excited, jumping, spinning and dancing. He would bask in the glory of the rain. His movements agitating the puddles and soil beneath him, creating a giant mud puddle. Thats when it happens.
Khaos will take a dive into his self-made mud puddle.

If he cant submerge his whole body, its clearly too shallow and Khaos will dig to make it deeper. By the time the rain clears and the sun can be seen peaking through the clouds, Khaos has created his own organic mud bath. However, he doesnt understand why his owner is as pale as a paper and so close to tears. They always talk about the mud bath in town but why go there when Khaos created one in their backyard? Humans are truly weird.

However, this is his annual autumn tradition that Khaos will never fail to uphold. Its standard practice at this point. Khaos creates a mud bath and once he’s done, his owner will wash him while sobbing.

[Vinson]

Username: Griffin Torrens
Name: Aki / Howl to Pumpkin Moon
Gender: Female
Name Meaning: means Autumn / collies + my favourite Halloween movie
Prompt:

365 Words + Art

- snip -

everyone had some great entries, thank you all for sharing! I'd like to congratulate Griffin - for the story that stuck with me, and the depth that your art had. take care of Aki !