NvShadowBCs-Noggin' Doggin'

Tane'       Tane' Mahutah.  Pronounced "tawn-ay".  Named by Sandra his owner.  Tane' is 'boy' in the native New Zealand tongue.  Boy is Monty's nick-name.  Sandra has had a long love affair with Monty, Tane's sire. He is not my dog.      It was circumstance that Monty stopped by when my young dog Val was receptive on his way to the National Finals in Klamath Falls.  It was my first litter of pups.  Val is a nice Helsley bred dog whom I was starting the learning curve with at the time.  Tane' was delivered in my master bathroom.      This picture I snapped and sent to Sandra to let her know that her Monty had arrived.            Sandra and Tane' started their working relationship right away. If I would have put forth a tiny bit of effort, I think his ears  would have been pricked. But we didn't care.      ...

Kingston 80 acres pano-view Prelude 'Freedom lies in being bold.' - Robert Frost 80 acres Hope and Sandy ' What lies behind us and what lies before us  are tiny mattlers compared to what lies within us.' - Ralph Waldo Emerson A Thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever -Keats The gorgeous pastoral Milliken Farm Grass Creek Park Kingston ' The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.' -Helen Keller The sheep arrive Alf sets the course Very pampered happy sheep      The shepherd drives the wolf from the  sheep for which the sheep thank the shepherd as his liberator, while the wolf denounces him for the same act as the destroyer of liberty.  Plainly, the sheep and the wolf are not agreed upon a  definition of liberty. - Abraham Lincoln ...

Comfort Zones    My very good friend Dianne told me once to "get out of your comfort zone ".  I thought that was quite odd advice from a mentor in regard to a straight forward sport.  Sheepdogging should be readily learned and easily understood.  I thought it a bit late in the game for me to have to re-invent the wheel.  I was so wrong.  Since that moment while on my "journey", I stepped way out of my comfort zone, and have not ever looked back.  This stepping out  apparently has mirrored my personal evolution.     This year has been like no other with my little pocket rocket partner Feist.  In my second year as an open-handler I have been committed to teaming up with the little Maserati.   She has been equally committed in trying to understand our newly forged language.   Our communication skills are starting to emerge.  What a partnership we are starting to create.  Talk about be...

     I haven't had a chance to blog in a millinium it seems.  In March my madness was the Zamora, Sonoma, and Rio Vista triple-crown.  And although this year American Pharoah can claim our first triple-crown win in 37 years, I'm here to tell you that the California SDT triple-crown could be equally as challenging.      Zamora Hills SDT hosted by the Slaven/Wines Family is my sentimental favorite trial of all time. It was here that I tasted my first sip of the magic of Open Field trialing.  I have been drinking deeply from the wellspring ever since.  Big. Huge fields. Tough sheep. Great people.  Fair judge.  I was proud of both my open dog and my nursery dog.  Feist came away with a few points on her second run.  As a handler I was excited for the chance. Not paralyzed in fear and intimidation. As a sheepdog team we were shooting for consistency and experience.  My open dog only 3 years old and Tane' my ...

Chinese New Year   CHEERS TO MARCH MADNESS THE CALIFORNIA TRIPLE CROWN