Sheepdog News

BevLive: The Finals, Day Three

Big nursery day for Amanda and I since she had Dorey and Feist in the final and I had Joe. To make a long story short neither of us won but I think I speak for both of us when I say our dogs rocked.

The open went better with Hemp having a great run on really nice sheep marred only by a very poor pen. Amanda and Monty had a better pen to end the day first in the preliminary round. Hemp was 5th. We both got both our dogs into the semi-final and I’m delighted.

The course has been turned so we are now outrunning all the way up into what had been the nursery field. Looks scary and fun.

Amanda’s Hazel was inducted into the ABCA Hall of Fame tonight so I went for the ceremony. Very nice recognition of a great dog.

BevLive: the Finals, Day Two

I was quite chuffed with Joe this morning. He ran quite well. A little cautious to lift and as usual pushed on a bit too much on the fetch, but overall a very good boy. He finished 8th in the preliminary round but ten points behind Lyle Lad’s leading score of 63. A lot of ground to make up since the winner will be determined by adding this score to tomorrow’s score.

Amanda and Dorey are in a much better position after a very pretty run that scored 159.

So the nursery final runs tomorrow for the 33 dogs that came out of the preliminary with the highest scores. Tomorrow is also the last day of qualifying for the open.

Today was very tough on the open field. There were only three really good scores with Ray Coapman’s 154 putting him on the top of the leader board. Hemp and I finally run tomorrow afternoon. I hope we haven’t waited too long. Been quite a while since poor Hemp has had any work.

It looked for a while on the open field as if the dogs just weren’t hearing well. I’ll sure know soon.

BevLive: The Finals, Day 1

Amanda is my hero today. She and Roz had an extremely difficult ewe and handled her so well they managed to end up second for the day.

Joe and I didn’t have near their troubles and didn’t do as well. Joe was a very good boy. He pushed on a bit a couple of times but really kept his head. All the sheep were facing him at the pen and refusing to go in. Since my poor navigation had caused us to miss two panels we really needed the pen. Joe kept his cool and pushed the hussys in. Our score isn’t great but I’m hopeful it will be enough to get us into the semi finals. In any case, I’m over the moon with my boy.

The sheep don’t look that difficult but brought some to the top dogs down today. They move freely but don’t bend much at all and need the dogs to push to change their line of travel. They are usually hard in the shed, doing a lot of spinning around as the handlers try to line them out. The flock is quite mixed in appearance, running from Cheviot types to Suffolk with much in between. They remained quite even as the day warmed with the highest score in the heat of the day. They definitely penned easiest on the morning though. Remember these are just my opinions, and I expect everyone here would have a different take on the ovine part of the competition. One thing we’ll all agree on though is that the second drive gate is incredibly hard to judge. Wasn’t helped that some sheep ate one of our prime landmarks.

BevLive: The Finals Begin

Well, we’re all gathered. Seems like there are more handlers I don’t know every year. Was a very big handler’s meeting at 5:30.

Not too surprising a course. 400 yard outrun. A bit tight on the top from the dog’s perspective as there is a pipe line on one side and an unmoved field line on the other. The field is quite flat but very pretty with a nice Oregon view beyond the irrigated trial field.



The local committee had a wine and cheese reception for the handlers after the meeting. Was very nice of them.

BevLive: Double F Sheepdog Trial

I spent the last two days at the Fontaine’s trial in Chiloquin, Oregon. Great trial but no cell coverage.

The trial was on a slightly rolling harvested rye field, very yellow and stubbly. The sheep were incredibly naive yearling black face crosses (Suffolk or Hamp). They were really something. Very, very hard to lift off the top. They would try to out run the dog back to the setout and managed to succeed about half the time. Once lifted, the top part of the fetch was mostly them trying to run faster than the dog so they could get away back to their buddies. The cross drive gate proved a very difficult panel between the sheep breaking for the exhaust and the deceptive lay of the land.

Shedding was hard as the yearlings were difficult to read. Few folks reached the pen. Those who did found the sheep fun to work with there but, you guessed it, generally difficult to pen.

I was proud of my dogs as they all managed to get the sheep down the field, no mean accomplishment where two thirds of the dogs got no scores.

I quit with Joe at the pen on the first day when he took a completely uncalled for bite at one of the sheep who broke away. It was an act of frustration and while I sympathized with him I felt I couldn’t let it go. Today he ran great. He had one ewe fight him hard all the way around and he never lost his patience and managed a very clean finish. A miscommunication on the cross drive, caused I think in part by windy conditions, cost us dearly but didn’t affect my pleasure at his good work.

Tom won the first day with a great run with Sly who made the sheep look easy. When I left for the Finals field Vergil was leading it Scott.

It was an extremely challenging trial and a lot of fun. I’m a bit regretful that the sheep were so hard just before the finals. I hope my boys can manage to change gears for these sheep here and not go out loaded for bear. Still, this trip has been aimed at giving Joe experience and this was sure “Experience.”

Amanda: travel and adventure

September 21

It was a surprisingly long drive from Sonoma to Alturas. Sandy Milberg will be relieved to know I took my rig through the truck wash in California’s Olive capital. We dined cheerfully here.

In the morning I sent the young dogs around some sheep

But then Michele and I drove to Ashland, Oregon, to the world famous Shakespeare Festival. We went to “Animal Crackers”‘ not a Shakespeare play, but one written for the Marx brothers, many years ago. It was funny. Beforehand we went to a wonderful restaurant with a remarkable wine list, in Jacksonvlille. We spent the night there and returned to Alturas this morning. Joni Swanke and Blake were here. Haley has arrived, and now we are getting together a party.

September 22

The day here began with a group dog run. Joni Swanke, Haley Howard, Sandra Milberg and me. Most of us had problems we had to sort out. Not the sort of running where one us envied the other. I consider that a good sign. Last time I was here, my dog ran like a top and then betrayed every trust at the Nursery Finals. Roz.

Monty came back from his morning constitutional with blood on his face, Feist was tardy and I saw her at something up on the hill above the car park. I went up to look and there was fresh deer kill. Mountain lion! It looked as though my dogs might have chased it off, since it wasn’t buried anywhere, as cats are inclined to do. Lion dogs???

Michele called the trapper, Kent, who I had met when I was here several years ago. He brought a four pack of Cur dogs and we had a hunt on our hands.



The scenting conditions were less than ideal with a dry heat overtaking the ranch. He sent them out with tracking collars on. They were completely game.



Haley and Kent tracked. Experts. They circled lion prints in the dust, showing us that the lion had been close to where we had all been walking and very close to Michele’s house. The Cur dogs yelped a chorus when they thought they were on to something. We caught up with them eagerly, ready to identify the big cat, treed. The footing was difficult, over rocky lava rock ground and it was hot enough out, I was wondering how the Indians ever got to water in time when they got hot. Or maybe they had the good sense to stay out of the heat of the day and wait till later to promenade. The prospect of finding the cat was scintillating. The hunt, while it did not produce a cat, was exciting. On Safari in Alturas California.

Amanda: more fun in the sun

Sonoma.

Normally I am here for the bustling spring trial. Now however, it is quiet with me, lone parked, in the most coveted spots of the trial parking. The dogs can relax and run around like regular dogs, not road junkies. Monty’s toe is mending nicely. Feist is on red alert for the next sheepdog adventure to layer worldliness into her curriculum vitae. It is all new for her.

I have rarely seen Sonoma in its fall finery. Everything is brown except some shrubs that resemble lilacs, only giant red blossoms. I see spring greenery only, on my annual trial trip. But now, even the sheep have taken on the golden hue of the dirt and the grass.

This was a personal maintenance day–laundry, shopping for supplies, working dogs.

Sandi Anderson came by today with her beautiful bitches, Liz and Best. and a talented young boy, Top. We ran the dogs back and forth. Arthur Milberg made us a delicious lunch and we gabbed about dogs.



Interspersed here was the spa day, about which you have heard.

Today, being Tuesday, (it is hard for me to keep track of the days too) we joined Lorin Dewees and Diana Philips for some enjoyable dog work, west of Santa Rosa. After a Mexican picnic, in the sunny California weather, I parted company with them and went north to Healdsburg and my favourite California wine country on the West Side Road. I got some tomatoes, which were uncannily like mine. Imagine. Right in the heart of California. These are tourist pictures of the dogs at my favourite wineries. But they were happy to get home to Oak Springs Ranch.





Tomorrow i go to Alturas. Michele Howard.

BevLive: working dogs

Drove yesterday and again today. Got to Norm and Vikie Close’s place in Idaho around lunch time. Norm took Joe and my new dog and me to work sheep in a big mowed field. Did outruns of a few hundred yards. Was hot so we couldn’t do too much but it was very good to work Joe up close on broke sheep. Gave us a chance to revisit a few basics.

It’s beautiful here just east of Spokane, WA. Mountains and hills and trees to go with the thousands of acres of grassland. This is big country for growing grass seed so the fields are mowed and tidy but very hilly. Perfect dog training ground.

New dog ran great. Just got her from Bud on Sunday and I’m already way impressed. If anyone has an email address for Bud and Sarah can you share it please. Want to tell him how happy I am.

Amanda: anxiety before the Finals

Maybe I’ll regret not running my dogs more before the finals, but I don’t think so. Sonoma is nice. Really nice. If it works out, every one will be getting themselves to a spa before the finals.

BevLive: report from L&M SDT

Saturday

Nice day, not too windy and the wind was at our backs. As the day went on the wind disappeared and it got very warm, 90s. Sheep handled well for the open and so, for a nice change, did Joe. He listened and took most whistles the first time and handled himself and his sheep with aplomb, coming fourth–a missed panel kept him from winning. Needed a better navigator. Jean Gellings and Joe’s sister Star won with Jeannie Helsley in second and Tom and his nursery dog, Roy, in third.

The young dog classes in the afternoon heat didn’t go as well. The sheep didn’t hang together as well. There was only one score in the nursery, a win for Vergil Holland and Cap.

The heat got to me and I retired to the shade of my camper, missing the ranch class.

Great handler’s dinner prepared by Laura’s mom. Laura and her two sons did all the sheep spotting on horseback and did a great job. Laura’s husband, Mike, worked in the pen all day so we could have a great dog trial. Doesn’t get much more generous than that.

Sunday

A beautiful day for a dog trial. Started out cool with no wind. Alas, by the time the open ended we had a pretty strong north wind in our faces and I doubt the dogs could hear much.

My Awel started the day with a great run, ruined by our failure to pen. Was nice to have her run so well though. Joe had an unfortunate ewe who ran away from her four companions any time Joe wasn’t pushing her back to rejoin. He handled it very well, but the end finally came when the four ran through the second drive gate and the idiot broke for the setout. Oh well.

Hemp ran in a fairly strong wind and we didn’t really get together with the sheep.

Dennis had a nice finished run early with his young Tess and was winning when I left. The running was pretty rough all day with some sheep penning readily and others refusing the pen until they’d ruined a run. Still it was a really fun trial. Great field and hospitality and plenty of tough sheep.

I left as the young dog classes started and drove to Dennis Edwards place in Sundance, Wyoming. Tom Wilson and I are going to try and get a little dog work in here tomorrow before resuming our perigrinations westward.