Day 9: Winnie's Breeder

Well, today was the big day. I was going to track down Winnie's breeder in some small town in Northeastern Missouri. I was starting to get real nervous. This area is very rural and very remote. I got a late start because I was doing some business work that morning in the hotel.

So I plugged into my GPS the address I got off the USDA approved breeders website (This does not necessarily mean it's a good breeder). Near the town I started to get directed to smaller and more remote roads. (See pic.)
My GPS was not working well...I would be directed to dirt roads that dead-ended into someones homestead- I backed up and got out of there as quick as I could. I finally figured out to stay off of anything called a "county road;" this meant it is dirt and likely a dead end. Okay, after driving around for almost an hour, I drove by the place. It just looked like a lot of the other farms out there. I had a work telephone conference scheduled so I went to town to take care of that and get a sandwich. The "town" didn't feel too friendly...small and rural. If felt like my little CA-plated sports car with the luggage tube on top stood out like a sore thumb. I was feeling like an outsider - unwanted and distrusted ....and I was a bit scared to go up unannounced to that farm. But I said I would do this...and, quite simply, I wanted to know where Winnie came from.

So, an hour later, I go back and drive up the driveway...I don't hear any dogs. There is a house, cars, several "out buildings" and barns.
When I get out of the car, 4 guys with bloody knives come out of the barn! (Turns out they run a butchering/meat processing business). I say, "Hello! Are you Mr. so-and-so?" (I am not going to use real names.)
There is total silence in response. They don't seem mean, just distrustful. So I do my version of an "aw shucks" shoulder shrug and answer my own question, "Well I guess that depends who's asking." I immediately smile, walk forward with my hand extended and start gushing that I got that great dog bred by Mr. so-and-so and I had come all the way from California to tell him so and see his dogs. Well, I'm such a goof, that people lighten up. The man explains the dog breeder was his brother who sold all the dogs a few years ago and moved to Illinois. I'm pretty crushed. But then another young man there(I think it was his son) reminded his dad they still have two dogs. I ask the names and it turns out one of the dogs is Winnie's dad, Roscoe!!! So, meet Roscoe in these pics.
Roscoe is in a cage, but he is clearly socialized and friendly.
They let him out, and Winnie and him are introduced.
He is little and cute. He lets me pick him up and the family tells me he's a sweet and calm guy. But on closer inspection it turns out his fur is coming off in places and his teeth are terrible- his canines stick out close to right angles from his mouth.
I'm trying so hard to be friendly that I'm not right then judging these people. We make small talk a little more. I determine they are Mennonites and they tell me abit about their 180 acre farm. Winnie does her tricks for them..they are more amazed than amused. I thank them and leave.

Thinking about it later, I think they treat dogs like livestock; favored livestock, who they play with and let out of cages, but still livestock. I try not to be too judgmental. I conclude that at least this is not the bad puppy mills where the dogs are never let out of their cages and have broken bones and sit in their excrement. Humanizing dogs is most likely a symptom of our modern urban wealth. Who is to say that those in more rural impoverished areas don't have the right to treat dogs more like horses, sheep or chickens, as long as they aren't cruel. I don't know. But I try to see both sides.

I am relived and start driving. I end up driving through Hannibal, Missouri- the home of Mark Twain (also the home of "the unsinkable Molly Brown" on the Titanic). Incredible to see the "mighty Mississippi" which inspired so much of Mark Twain's work (that was his pen name, his real name was Samuel Clemens). I wander the town a bit with Winnie, seeing mark Twain's boyhood home (see pic) and a little bit of a museum.
We get some good coffee- finally, a real coffee house versus the brown water of gas station coffee! We follow the Mississippi River in to St. Louis. We get to bed late, but are excited about the herding clinic with Tammy Van Deusen here tomorrow.

Day 8:KS to Missouri

Today I woke up in this Kansas ranch house to the smell of Elaine making bacon and eggs just for me. I dressed and went out to walk Winnie. After meeting the ranch foreman, Jerry, I was summoned to the kitchen for breakfast by the traditional triangular dinner bell! Just like my grandmother, Elaine eats standing up in the kitchen while her guests/family are served with generosity.
Jerry has heard that I have horse experience. He asks if I am in a hurry and I said no. So, he says he would like me to help move some cattle this morning. We round up a group of heifers, pen them. Go to another field, round up 5 bulls and move to a field by the heifers (using natural magnetism to move the stock). Then we move the heifers to another field. They give me, "Secret," a nice, sensitive mare (no plodding trail animals on this ranch). Moving these cattle was challenging and fun! I had to use that "stock sense" from sheep herding to know when they were going to bolt and then whirl my horse to block and persuade. I was a little intimidated by the big bulls..but they didn't have horns, so it wasn't that scary. Here are pics of me with a bull and the heifers we rounded up and penned.

The third pic is Jerry and ranch hand Leeann in front of one of the bulls we moved. We worked for about 2 hours.
They wanted me to stay that afternoon and help out some more! But I said I had to get on the road. Elaine didn't charge me for the "trail ride" because she had watched me work the cows and appreciated my help. This is a place I would definitely stop by again. I recommend it for everyone driving through Kansas that wants a taste of real Kansas life and not just a Super 8 motel. Sunrockranch.com

Back on the road. I get an email from my sister who just started reading my blog. She tells me my brother-in-law Tom lives in Kansas City and gives me his number. I do a quick check on the map and I will be in Kansas City in about 1.5 hours. So I call him and make a deal- if he shows me the best BBQ in KC, I will treat! Well, Tom is a foodie and KC has the best BBQ in the world (even I know that) so it was going to be a guaranteed good time. Tom lives in a cool converted historic building in downtown KC. We leave Winnie there with his cats (poor Winn, what she puts up with) and Tom drives me to Oklahoma BBQ. No lie, this place is in a Shamrock gas station (see pic).h Tom tells me there is usually a line about 20-25 people deep. But it is mid-day so we walk right in. M

y mouth is watering as a write this....those ribs were tender and juicy on the inside and a bit crunchy on the outside. The flavor permeated the meat and the sauce had a perfect sweetness but wasn't heavy.
I ate more than I should of...but hey, how many times do you get to eat the best ribs in the world. The manager pointed us to a prestigious magazine article on the wall: "13 Places to Eat Before You Die." Along with famous restaurants in Paris and New York, number 13 was Oklahoma BBQ in Kansas City!
Feeling full and happy, I head out to the address I have for Winnie's breeder. But my gas in low and it's getting late, so we stop and stay the night in Chillicothe, Missouri. It is the county seat and has a downtown with many historic buildings with mainly thriving business and -no lie- this town is the home of sliced bread! (The desk clerk at the hotel affirms this is the town where they invented the machine that slices bread). Tomorrow, to track down Winnie's breeder on my way to St. Louis.

Day 7: Co to Kansas

Wow- this makes a week on the road. I miss my husband and kids a bit, but I know they are well. I try not to get too sentimental (I avoid country music and sad movies while on the road).

Today was driving through eastern Colorado and western Kansas. Yesterday, there were thunderstorms and floods. Today there are blue skies with large and interesting clouds (they look like shelties chasing sheep). (see pic.)

Eating on the road. You are not really hungry because you've done nothing but sit in your car. But you feel you MUST get OUT of the car. The last thing you want to do is continue sitting down in a closed-up restaurant. Winnie and I have a routine. We find a McDonald's (they are everywhere around interstates) and get a chicken salad and an iced coffee in the drive thru. Then, we go find a park or just an open space. In this part of the country, there are wide open grassy fields wherever you are.
We have a picnic- I eat the salad and I feed Winnie some chicken. Then we run around in the sunshine for a while. I recommend some kind of slip-off shoes when traveling - it's nice to rub your toes in the grass.

Kansas- apparently there are tons of famous people from Kansas. Every town has signs urging you to pull off and see where X was born, lived or died. I did pull off at Russell, Kansas. There is really nothing there except this water tower (see pic:):


One interesting thing I saw in this part of the country - entire fence sections made with stone posts. Really...tall, rectangular pieces of stone placed every 10' or so, wrapped with barbed wire to make fences, sometimes for miles. How determined do you have to be to hew fence posts out of stone, drag them to the proper place, dig a hole, secure it and make a fence --- for miles. Makes me proud to say my family is from Kansas.

So this night, I stayed at a working cattle ranch outside of Junction City, KS. The Sun Rock Ranch (also operating a bed & breakfast- 3 rooms only). They have about 3000acres and about 250 head. The original ra

nch house section where I stayed is built of limestone and is dated 1870. (see pics).
The ranch owner, Elaine, is super-sweet and made Winnie and I feel right at home. She put me in mind of my grandmother who hails from Kansas and passed away last year. Tomorrow, I am scheduled to go on a trial ride.(This post is late because I had a hard time making my internet connection)

Day 6:Hanging in Castle Rock, CO

Today was a re-grouping day in Castle Rock. The town is named after a large mesa right above town that looks like a castle. It is a real landmark you can see from far away. (see pic, but there's no snow now.) Today I did such mundane tasks as laundry, washing the car and taking care of work things. I learned today you need a lot of quarters when you travel. You need them for washing machines, vending machines for "nutritious dinners" and Diet Coke addictions, parking in cities and even car washes. I have also learned you kinda become obsessive about a clean car on a road trip. That is, of course, because your car is now your home...your caravan across the desert...your covered wagon carrying all your stuff across the plains. Although I know it's going to get real dirty again, today I vacuumed with a passion at the do-it-yourself car wash. Those industrial vacuums are awesome....you really don't even have to clean out your car. They suck up everything within a 3 inch radius. I mean big stuff(I'm not going to tell you what exactly).
After cleaning the car and a visit to the UPS store, Winnie and I went to the movies. We saw District 9. All I can say is everyone should see it and the guy who plays the lead should get an Oscar. Afterwards, Winnie and I headed into the historic part of Castle Rock for dinner at the Castle Cafe. The cafe and bar was the "hell-raising" capital of "this here parts" for more than 100 years. The menu says there were shootouts and horses were ridden by drunk cowboys through the bar. This being Tuesday night, it was quiet and Winnie and I had a glass of wine and salad. (See pic.)


Big news. When Winnie and I came back to the hotel, there was a pigeon in our room! He didn't fly but he was alive (likely exhausted from trying to get out, judging by the feathers and bird poop around the closet). I went and grabbed my key card and called Winnie to leave and alert the front desk. Then I thought, well this will take forever for someone to fix. And, hey, I've got a herding dog! I'm still freaking. But I put Winnie on a down about 6 feet off of the bird and go open the balcony door (which must have been how the poor bird got in). Luckily, the bird did not really fly. It got away from us a few times..and Winnie was about as nervous as I was. But once she saw it, she would do a "walk up" on it and together we were able to "herd" it out on the porch. Winnie knew she had "done good"..this was a real job! (I'm starting to talk like a rancher.) I was relieved. Too bad I didn't have presence of mind to take a photo of the ordeal! Not many herding pages have photos of dogs herding pigeons!

Tomorrow, we travel about 8 hours to Junction Cityh, KS. We are staying at a real working cattle ranch. (When I called for reservations, the lady rancher told me she has a sheltie!) I'm looking forward to getting on the road for more adventures with my dog.

Day 5: Private Session with Tammy 2 of 2

Okay, I know this is what many of us are waiting to read and see.....Winnie's meeting with Cloud! Tammy's herding champion and Winnie's future mate.

Anyhow, here are pics of them meeting and then Winnie flirting terribly with Cloud!
I think it will be a great match. Cloud has a wonderful disposition- sweet and calm and obedient. But a keen herder who has great instinct and can work independently on stock. I also saw him back down some very aggressive sheep! Plus, as explained before, he is the perfect color (tri) to mate to Winnie's blue merle color. Once I get Winnie's eyes and hips tested and okay'd, we will make some definite dating plans. I will want pups to go to herding homes, so let me know if you are interested. In the meantime, we are learning a lot from Cloud about being a star Sheltie herding champion!

BTW-Tammy says Winnie is the type of dog that can be a herding champion because she has so much drive and she is willful!! (I'm taking this as a compliment.) I think I did hear some sympathetic whispers today about how hard it would be to have this for your first herding dog.) Well, it takes one to know one. :)

Day 5: Private Session with Tammy Van Deusen 1 of2

Today, Tammy gave some private lessons at the ranch. I was there almost 12 hours, watching everyone work, listening, and trying to learn as much as I could about herding, shelties and dogs in general.
(This pic is Tammy talking to me about the dogs having the correct "attitude" before coming in the ring. Winnie looks a little too amped; she should be more submissive looking. Everyone wish me luck -this is our #1 task!)
Today the weather was cooler, cloudy and we had a bit of rain. Jerry Stewart gives great advice that you should always carry in your car rain gear, extra food and water for you and your dog, extra warm clothes and shoes, extra cash and a blanket. I've used those supplies several times over the last 2 years.

Anyhow, today most everyone worked on the pressure/release drill in the round pen. A key thing I learned from Tammy is that most of us don't release pressure from the dog when it is right. This results in a "nagging" relationship with the dog...we are always pushing, pushing on him to move a certain way (pushing with the crook, the stick, our bodies, even our voice). As a result, the dog gets frustrated, angry,or shuts down, and, most importantly, the dog doesn't get a chance to learn to read the stock and learn the pressure bubble. This is because the dog is responding to our pressure and not the stock. A lot to think about and very different than most of us are working.
So this is the drill we did in the round pen. The dog is at 12o'clock, a few feet out from the fence, and the sheep are at six o'clock. You are in the center of the ring, you walk towards the dog, giving pressure with your body, a rake, a crook, whatever. You pressure the dog like normal in to the direction you want him to go (i.e. rake to right for away to me, and turning your left shoulder back to the sheep to "open the door"). Then, when the dog takes the correct flank in the correct picture you are after (i.e. do you want correct attitude, no barking, a square flank, a slow flank, a go out before the flank), you reward it by turning your back to the dog and walking across to the head of the sheep which the dog is bringing to you. Turning your back to the dog releases the pressure so the dog is more apt to go calmly (versus you pushing him with the stick which only makes him faster) and rewards him for doing the correct flank with a release of pressure and getting the sheep.
If the dog does not do the flank correctly, you "cover" your sheep- don't let dog have sheep. Tell dog to lie down. Come back and try it again. A big point is to not try to block dog from the sheep - just get your sheep and make a wall in front of the sheep. If you go to and block the dog, it desensitizes the dog to pressure and is not quite as clear a message as "these are my sheep and you don't get them."

Okay, it seems weird. And I tell you it is really hard for us humans to learn the new skill of releasing pressure versus constantly applying it. Today, however, I saw huge differences in dogs who suddenly were allowed to really work their sheep and experience the "bubble" themselves versus constantly being pressured by a stick or crook. They were slower and calmer and strangely wider. It is hard to replicate this by just reading it without a trainer to show it to you. But the concept you can employ: Release pressure when your dog is right and allow your dog to learn stock without you pushing constantly.
(cont.)

Day 4: Herding Clinic with Tammy Van Deusen

Today was our day to work with Tammy Van Deusen. These are pics of Winnie and I working with Tammy.

Tammy is from Indiana and specializes in herding shelties! She has bred and trained several of the top herding shelties in the nation. In our group today, we had more shelties herding than I have ever seen in one location before - maybe 5 or 6. Anyhow, it was very interesting to see other shelties work. Mostly, they are more calm than Winnie. I want Winnie to be calm but I don't want to give up her speed and keenness. I think Winnie is a lot like a Border Collie in speed and keenness, but like a sheltie in being erratic and not working stock for the sake of the stock (versus Shelties who are working to play or please their owner). I think this is the foundation for why I am confused on how to train Winnie and our up-n-down herding path.
It was pretty confusing to have clinics on a weekend with different clinicians each today. I think the best lesson I learned from my experience this weekend is how it must feel like to be my dog in training.....you are given conflicting information, you don't understand what to do, you are pushed and frantically re-directed across the herding field and you start to think you can do nothing right. Nonetheless, inspired by the fidelity and faith of my own dog, I too will come back and keep trying to figure out what they want me to do. :) (I have private lesson with Tammy in the morning.)
Okay, but I took some good notes and these are I think some great points to share and remember:
-learn to read stock is the best advice ever (I must get my own woolies!)
-upright breeds should not lie down on a stop. The rationale is they have no power when they lie down (versus a BC who still has "eye). Then, when the upright breed pops up after a down, they "pop" power and this can send stock bouncing. I think this makes sense, especially for Winnie who is so small. (We did an ASCA trial once and you could not see her in the tall grass when she laid down.) Winnie lately has been giving me a hard time about the down....maybe she is trying to tell me she doesn't want to because it will completely release the stock. I'm perhaps going to have to figure out how to train a firm stop without a down.
-don't enter a trial unless you are ready for the class above you
-don't be afraid to correct your dog during a trial (In the long run, it is money well spent) "You are not here for HIT, you are here to train your dog."
-a trial is to showcase your training (I like this one!!)
-train by working on individual skill sets at a time. In other words, train outrun, lift and fetch til perfect...then put dog away for the day and do this for several days until it is solid. Then train, for example, pen and only pen work until that is perfect, then put dog away. After you have worked and conquered the individual skill sets, you "stitch" them together and can practice a course. Tammy likens this to how you train obedience. I think I am one of those guilty of always wanting more and pushing me and my dog to challenges (bothe Winnie and I like challenges) before we have our foundational basics down.
-And Tammy also says, as I hear my trainer Terry always adamantly stating: "if the dog doesn't go right, it doesn't get sheep!"

Winnie is already asleep and I still need to hit the jacuzzi tub, so I will sign off.