Sheep Dog Trials

Over the weekend we attended a local Sheep Dog event held by a friend of ours. The Colliding Rivers event was this year being used as a warm-up event for the National Sheep dog Trials being held here in Oregon at Klamath Falls in late September.

Sheep dog trialing is a lot different in Oregon than it is in Arizona where Jen first started doing it. Back there you run your dogs in a small arena-like enclosure, but here in Oregon the courses are large, covering dozens of acres and include hills, valleys and of course a lot more obstacles. The comparison is like show jumping and cross-country with horses.

Over the last few days we have started bringing Hamish, our youngest dog up to the fields so he can have a run around with the sheep. Marlowe is already well versed in the intricacies of sheep handling and Byron has been back on the sheep for a few months now since he was given the all-clear after his double hip surgery. It's fascinating to watch them. You can see them thinking about what they are doing and just like people each has their own personality and of course methodology. Marlowe has drive and determination and his concentration is unequalled. Byron can balance the sheep perfectly, and Hamish seems to have the enthusiasm of Marlowe. We have high hopes for him as he is a relative of the dog that came 5th in the UK Nationals last year, and descended from a line that has won that title on more than one occasion.

We'll be heading down to Klamath Falls overnight when the Nationals begin and hopefully we'll pick up a few more pointers, but it will also be an opportunity to meet up with some of our Arizona friends who got us started in this all those years ago.

Rest in Peace, Bandit

This morning, before the sun had fully risen into a glorious clear blue sky, we buried Bandit under an apple tree, here on Catesby Farms. In all my life I have never known a dog to have had such a long and eventful life as she did. When the body was no longer willing, nobody told Bandit she had to stop, so she didn't. Just yesterday she was walking around the back yard barking at the other dogs, keeping them in line and telling them what she thought, as she always did.

She lived a long and happy 18 years and experienced more than most dogs ever will. Having lots of other dogs around kept her young at heart and gave her the determination to keep going. She lived out the final year or more of her life as a farm dog, as all good dogs should, and now will always be a part of the farm, keeping an eye on the sheep and watching over us.