|
Link for information about Our philosophy and information about our previous litters |
I have known very many dogs and can say with firm conviction that of all the creatures the one nearest to man, in the fineness of its perceptions and its capacity to render true friendship, is a bitch. Strange that in English her name has become a term of abuse. -- Konrad Lorenz
|
Bodhi |
 |
Ch HC U-CDX Willow Run Know It All UDX HXAs ATDs OTDd "Bodhi" October 13, 1992 - April 30, 2007 Oh how I miss you my great big huggy bear The paw print you left on my heart will never fade |
| Bodhi was Susane's second Border Collie. He was bred by Diane Conroy in St. Petersburg, FL. Bodhi was a "Dual Champion" in AKC, which means he had a conformation championship as well as a herding championship in AKC. It's really Bodhi's fault that we sold our house in town and moved to our hobby farm - he managed to get Susane totally hooked on herding. And although we had some success on the trial field, he mostly taught Susane what to look for in a really good working dog. He was a great ambassador for the breed and he was the greatest companion anyone could ever dream of sharing their life with. While still actively helping Susane with the sheep, he was the best dog around the lambing barn. He would never harm anything and he was endlessly patient with the baby lambs who have no fear of dogs. Bodhi truly was a gentle soul. |
|
Kali |
| Kali is Chuck's second sheltie. She was bred by Joanne Griffin in San Diego, CA. Kali was to be Chuck's new obedience dog when Amy retired. But plans changed, and Chuck started working her on sheep where she was much happier. She has an AKC Started sheep title and an Open sheep title with ASCA. Susane ran her in agility where she earned her excellent standard and jumpers titles. She's now retired from competition and spends her time barking at the Border collies and anything else that moves. |
|
Ginn |
| Ginn is Chuck's first
Border Collie and one of the pups we kept out of our first breeding. She's a littermate to Duce. She's an excellent sheep dog and
is very talented on ducks as well. Ginn finished the
Advanced A course sheep and Advanced B course
sheep titles in AKC as well as the Herding Champion
title in 2003. She's also working on her MX and MXJ and MACH in agility. Ginn had a
very successful year in the Pro-Novice class in BC trials in 2003 and was
moved up to open in October 2004 where she got a fourth place in a class of
over 20 dogs her first time out. She took a maternity leave in
the spring and summer of 2004. Now at age 7 she's still running strong in open trials as well as any and all arena trials we care to enter in. She had her first taste of the really big courses this May (2007) when we went to the Best of the Badlands trial at Konnie and Sharon Norstog's place in Watford City, ND. Ginn did us proud by getting around the enormous course in both her runs - a real accomplishment since most dogs that run there for their first time have difficulties finding the sheep. The range ewes were a lot of fun to work. |
|
Duce |
| Duce is a litter mate
to Ginn and the second pup we kept out of that first litter. He's a very good sheep dog and he also really likes to work
ducks. He is also working
towards the Excellent titles in agility. Duce doesn't really like agility,
so as soon as he finishes the AX and AXJ, Susane has promised him that he'll
never have to run in another trial. Duce was also moved up to open in
USBCHA trials in October 2004. He drew a
really pesky ewe in his first trial in open that forced us to retire halfway
on the cross drive. Since that first time in open, we've improved our
record to now have earned our first USBCHA points (for placing 12th in a 67
dog open class at the C-24 trial in Fellsmere, FL, in February). In
2006, Duce and Susane placed well enough at the Portage, WI, Labor Day trial
that we had the opportunity to run in the double lift final. We didn't
get very far as Duce has never been asked to "look back" for sheep that were
over 400 yards away. Oh well. Rest assured, if we get there
again, we won't have that problem! :) Duce also managed to find (and bring) his sheep in his first attempt at the large course at the Bad Lands trial. In the second run we weren't as fortunate and I had to get on the four wheeler to go pick my dog up at the set out pen. |
|
Toss |
|
|
SC Touch Em All HSBs HSAs, "Toss" Currently trialing in intermediate in AKC, level III in AHBA and Pro Novice in USBCHA
Photo by Dick Bruner |
| Toss was the last puppy
born in our 2004 litter. She didn't really catch Susane's eye until she was about
four
weeks old. She stood out because of how she carried herself
and also because of her color and markings: she was quite striking.
Toss didn't turn on to working until October of 2004, by then Susane had
started to be concerned that she'd ever catch on. Of course, now
that seems silly, as Toss is by far the most intense of all the six
girls. In retrospect, it's a good thing she stayed here, as anyone
else might have gotten tired of her approach to "working": Let's see how
far we can go for a sheep ride! Now at just over two years old, Toss has
her first trial under her belt - a time trial with sheep. She came
in second by one second in her beginner class. Susane was very
happy with her as her calm, controlled movement of the sheep (and NO
GRIPPING!!!) caught the eye of several spectators twho wondered why she
didn't win... :)
Toss has continued to develop and improve. She's now the dog Susane uses most of the time for chores, especially when it comes to moving the whole flock into places they'd rather not go. She is VERY pushy, but has nice pace and her flanks are improving all the time. At the Bad Lands trial (where she ran in Pro Novice) she placed third in both her runs, and that's without even finishing the course. The sheep were quite challenging for the young dogs, but Toss showed what she's made of and had very little trouble moving the range ewes. |
|
Tag |
|
|
SC Touch And Go, "Tag" Tag is possibly for sale to the right home
Photo by James Stine - shearing time at Sheepy Corner, spring 2006 |
| Tag (Toss's litter sister), is supposed to be Chuck's dog (he picked her), but it seems that Tag
has other ideas. At least for now, Susane is working her as she
will not try her best when Chuck is holding the reins. She's a
funny little girl, completely calm under pressure (from the sheep), she
can move anything and she won't back off when challenged. BUT, if
she doesn't like what you're suggesting, she'd rather not participate. We do feel, however, that she'd make an excellent dog for a beginner handler - as long as that person is willing to be patient - as she'll never get into trouble by causing havoc among her stock. She calms even the lightest sheep but will also move heavy stock. She's decent on ducks, but she prefers sheep. Susane uses her during lessons where's she's really useful for holding sheep or recovering them if a student's dog loses them, but if she's not asked to do anything, she just lays and watches calmly until called to work. Susane also "plays" with her in agility a little bit. She's got great contacts and is a decent weaver; her weakness right now is jumping - she doesn't seem to see the point. :) |
|
Amy |
| What does one say about the best dog one could ever have hoped to own? Amy was Chuck's first ever dog - she went from Novice A to an American/Canadian OTCh in just over 3 years. Before her much too early departure over the Rainbow Bridge, she accumulated almost 800 OTCh points and was invited to compete at the AKC Obedience Invitational twice - the first year winning the Herding Group. Susane introduced her to sheep when she was winding down her obedience career and she got her HT title in style. |
|
Spike |
| Spike was Susane's second Keeshond. He became the breed's twelfth conformation Champion with a UD. He was a great companion, full of joy. He lived life to the fullest, and we were blessed to have him for a long time before he made the trip over the Rainbow Bridge. |
| WHAT WE FEED OUR DOGS: In June 2002, Susane made the decision to stop feeding commercial dog food and switched all four dogs to a home-prepared diet. This diet is mainly raw meaty bones (RMBs), ground meats along with some cooked grains, fresh, pulped veggies, raw eggs and canned or cooked fish added. Susane has to admit to being scared when she first made the switch, and Chuck was basically convinced that the dogs would all meet with death. Susane spent over a year studying and talking with others who have fed this way before making the switch. After a 24-hour fast, the dogs were ready to try it. The sound of them all crunching on their chicken backs and the way they ate (especially Duce who had been a very poor eater who regularly refused his dog food) proved the choice right. We never experienced any problems with the switch - no sloppy stools, no upset stomachs - and no pierced intestines! RAW chicken bones cause no trouble; it's when cooked that they're dangerous, as they become brittle and splinter into very sharp pieces that can cause severe damage. The dogs have now enjoyed their BARF for over 2 years - even their veterinarian has had to admit that the dogs' mouths are fantastic. Yep, CLEAN teeth and gums are two of the most obvious benefits to the RMBs, since there are very few carbohydrates in the diet, the teeth stay clean and the gums healthy. Another HUGE plus: No more "green clouds." The dogs all used to have gas all the time - a very annoying (to say the least!) aspect of having four dogs in a closed car or laying around the living room. Not to say that they don't occasionally get gas, but now it's rare rather than constant. The next big test was when we bred Ginn. She stayed on the raw diet throughout the breeding, pregnancy, and raising her litter. Her whelping was easy, the pups very strong and healthy. Ginn was a superb mom who continued to nurse her pups until they were almost 11 weeks old. We allowed her to wean the pups when she decided she and them were ready. The puppies were all weaned onto raw so now we have six dogs eating this way. It's not cheap, and it is a LOT of work, but it's worth it. We know exactly what they eat and that's a source of comfort. If you're interested in learning more about the BARF diet - the internet has a wealth of information and there are lots of good books on the subject. Here are a couple of places to get started: www.barfworld.com; www.monicasegal.com |
