stockdogranch

Hi. Your best best would be to look at the USBCHA website (www.usbcha.com) and look at "sheep" then "upcoming trials." Find one in your area (that is a relative term--can be a couple hour drive), and go check it out. There you can talk to people who are generally very friendly and helpful and can give you lots of info! Hope this helps, A ET: Oh--and it can be a weekend activity, but first you will need to find a mentor and take lessons....that is often a slippery slope :-)

I don't get it, Ironhorse. You asked about this breeder, and were given numerous reasons why they are NOT a good choice, with thoughtful, lengthy explanations as to why. You were also referred to two excellent breeders in your state, and you seem to choose to ignore all of that information, as it sounds like you are still planning on getting a pup from this breeder. What am I missing here? A

Ironhorse, if you are in Mo, I would talk to Lyle East of Serendipity Stockdogs. Great guy--good, solid working dogs. A

Hi. Never heard of them (not that I know *all* working bc folks). But in looking at their website briefly, they advertise a LOT of colors and talk about people looking for agility and flyball prospects. Not a breeder I would consider. Period, A

Heartful, it is up to the breeder to register the entire litter with the ABCA. A

Burger balls. Raw hamburger with the pills wrapped in the middle. One pill per burger ball. Make them small enough so they just cover the pill. You can give him one or two first with nothing in them so he doesn't get suspicious. Alternate between a loaded one and an empty one. He will soon look forward to his burger balls. A

Those will be great dogs, T--both Janet and Mary have outstanding reputations for their guard dogs. A

Yes, what Denice said. I believe their dogs are related, A

Not super close to you, but a VERY responsible breeder of EXCELLENT LGDs is Mary Falk of LoveTree Farm in Wisconsin. A google search will pull it up. Well worth the money to ship to get the right dog. She gives a health and working guarantee. A

Sorry about everything that went on. I had one with an illio injury once, and I just kept her in a x pen for a good 6 weeks. Healed just fine. The ortho vet showed me some stretches to do with her prior to working thereafter. Mostly it was having her on her hind legs and "dancing" with her, A

I'm with Liz on this one. A

Thanks! A

Well said, GentleLake! A

I agree with what Julie said. I generally also use the "older" lams for being worked by dogs (these are Dorpers, BTW) . By the time they are big enough to be worked (maybe 4-ish months or so), they have been moved enough with the whole group to be aware of how to respond to the dog. They are fun to work. I used to have a situation where I would turn the whole group out to pasture from the night pen each morning. The mothers would be in such a hurry to go eat that they would race ahead, and often a gang of lambs would be left behind, clueless. (The mothers with brand new lambs would always lag at the rear of the group, and wait on their babies, but once the lambs were a few days old, food took over for the moms.) Some of these lambs would be as young as maybe 3 days or so, some up to a week or more. I would often have a gang of maybe 12-15 of these squirrely little goobers. I have found that many dogs will chose to ignore lambs this young--they simply don't want to mess with them. I guess maybe their energy is weird. But if you have a dog that chooses to see them, and move them, it is a blast. I've got one dog who is now 5 who has handled young lambs like this really well since she was less than a year old. She will drive them to where their mothers are. But the lambs are really squirty, so the dog has to really be on top of things, doing a lot of flanking to keep them moving in the right direction. This particular dog will give the lambs the softest little heel nudges if necessary to keep them moving, and even little gentle nose nips when they try to double back (which they will do again and again and again). This is really a fun project, just frustrating when you need to get in the vehicle to get to work. This is not a project that goes quickly or even smoothly, but if you have a dog that can do this, it's way cool, A

Haha! Always the funny guy. Hi,Charlie! Miss you! A

Bill, what a wonderful tribute! Thanks for sharing, A

When this discussion came up some years ago, someone recommended a book called Punished by Rewards (Kohn, 1999). It is not new, and it is about humans, but it is a most excellent read. A

I had one, Sabre, develop Mitral valve disease at 12. With meds, he made it until almost 14. Then Riddle was just a couple of months shy of 15 when I had her put down just before Christmas. When she was young, she got Iams, as it was still a good food back then. Over the years, I tried a number of different foods, some better than others. Canidae for a while, before they changed their recipe, then Strongpoint, then TOTW. And then to Nutrisource, which is what I am currently feeding and have been for over a year now. I also fed partial raw for several years, until I had too many dogs to keep up with it. I doubt their food has that much to do with it; I agree that it is more likely genetics. Riddle had some arthritis and some dementia before she had a vestibular incident that signalled the end. I think keeping them fit and active as much as possible will help with longevity, just like with people... A

It is reconciled by MONEY. Period. There are far more people wanting to take lessons with and consequently run Poopsie in those arena trials with knee knocker sheep than there are serious folks wanting to really understand, train, and run the true working stockdog, A

Yea, there was. And this is what prompted the rule to have no ACK judges for either sheep or cattle Finals, A

Dunno about cats, but I moved form SoCal to Nebraska with 8 border collies and 2 LGDs, plus sheep. The border collies were used to riding in the back seat of the pickup, so that's where they were. The LGDs were in the stock trailer with the sheep. All made the trip just fine. Now I'm back in SoCal for 10 days, and brought 7 of the border collies with, again, in the back seat of the pickup. But as I said, they are used to riding the the pickup a LOT, A

Sounds like a great home! A

The consensus is that if these are now "suggestions," then it is a slippery slope to becoming a "rule," for one. And it's the who-are-they-to-tell-me-how-many-pups-I-can-produce mentality. It is mostly a cattledog demographic, and there are some who are vocal who I know are pretty high volume breeders (would likely be on the list). They claim to be breeding working dogs, and most of the pups they produce probably will work, but in my opinion, they are not breeding to produce the best working dogs they can. And just because a dog will work does NOT mean (at least to me) that it should be bred. Some I know are breeding for color (and claiming working, as well). Some are just breeding unproven dogs from dogs who worked, but as we all know, that does not mean the pups will be great ones. Some suggested that it will cause people to register their pups in family members' names, and so, that is a way the ABCA can generate more money by having more members. Really. To be honest, to me it really sounds more like a kid who has been told it should not do whatever having an immediate knee-jerk negative reaction. But I doubt they will change their minds, A

Great--I'm glad many are on board with this. I was just reading a lengthy thread on fb full of folks who think this is an awful thing :-( A

She looks good. Good for both you and her! A