Finals strategies

I promised to do a Finals wrap up blog, so here it is. I'll do it in two sections, one a more personal one and a second detailing some of the strategies i picked up and used since i do try to keep this blog at least somewhat educational (for myself and my poor memory as well as for others!).

First off, it was the most amazing week of dog trialing. I almost felt as if i should just stop right there, it'll never be topped. But you know that ain't happening, right?! My good friend Lauren was right there for most of the week and called it "fantasy week at the Finals" and it surely was. It was an amazing high. My dogs worked so well, i could not possibly have been more proud of the job they both did. They performed like the champs i've always known them to be, each winning their day in the qualifying rounds and not missing a single sheep through a single panel over 6 runs. I'm still awestruck by the job young Bill did and the trust he showed on the final day when i was asking him to perform so far above his training level. It's truly humbling what these sheepdogs are capable of.

The people at the Finals were absolutely amazing. I felt like i was riding a wave of good wishes and congratulations the whole time. I was just blown away by it. So many smiling happy faces who were genuinely happy to cheer us on and hanging in there on every whistle. Wow, it still gives me goosebumps. The level of competition was amazing and i have to say i learned an awful lot just being in amongst it and watching and studying. I try to remember that especially in this particular endeavor, "you don't know what you don't know until you know it". I think i know more now, or at least i'm aware of the more that's out there. All in all, it's been a surreal experience. The addition of the webcast and the Twitter feed added to the experience in ways i doubt anyone really expected. I've heard from people all over the country (and some overseas), both in and out of the sheepdog trial world, offering congratulations and telling me how much they enjoyed seeing both dogs run. Pretty mind blowing really.
Okay, so on to the trial strategies part. I have to give credit again to the competitors at the Finals. I was fortunate enough to draw up late enough in the Open that i could watch a lot of really good handling in both rounds, and formulate my own strategy based on what i was seeing work. Bill and i didn't have a real chance to do more than try to conquer the bad ewe he had in the Nursery, but i sure used things i picked up once we got to the Open.

Carla King ran very early in the first round of Open and went out and laid down a gorgeous, calm run to post a high score. The sheep responded extremely well to her quiet, gentle handling, especially at the shed, where she just calmly folded off her shed sheep. I hardly think they even noticed they'd been split! I tried very hard to emulate Carla's handling and quiet manner, easing the sheep around as gently as they would allow.

I noticed that one dog seemed to really settle his sheep and take a bit of the fight out of them by pushing them off a little hard to the right after lifting. It was almost as if he said "no breaking to the left, got it?" and they just bent to his will from that point. I decided to try that, giving up a point or so in hopes of keeping some others on the fetch. We had gorgeous online fetches the entire week, as well as very good drive lines, from the Nursery right up to the double lift and i think this was part of it.

I picked up my strategy for the very tricky turn at the post from watching a good friend compete. It seemed he was pushing the sheep offline to the right at bit so he could do a series of small turns/flanks rather than one large sweeping move around the post that would give the sheep a head of steam that the dog would have to try to stop. My dogs were happy to use this method and it seemed to help break the sheep from bolting. Once i had the sheep turned, i decided to have my dogs settle them a bit before letting them continue down the driveaway line. I'd stop the sheep and let my dogs eye them up a bit, trying to build some rapport and trust between them all, and also show the sheep that they weren't getting away from my guys. It didn't always work, i know Zac had some runners that hit that panel at a dead run, but it mostly did, and i think it also helped the dogs master the sheep when it was time to turn onto the crossdrive. They'd already explained to the sheep that they were in charge and there was no need to test them.

Another strategy i picked up watching a top competitor was to go through the panels a little deep rather than going for the tight turns we normally aim for. It's not worth risking the miss when you're trying to get to the next round. Another thing i picked up, and this was from my own mistake in Bill's nursery run, is to keep my fingers up so i can keep whistling when i need it. I'd dropped my hands to shout "lie down" before a panel with Bill, and when i needed a fast flank, he couldn't hear my voice command. Something to remember at trials with spectators, where there is applause on making panels.

The final strategy i picked up goes back to Carla's run, where she folded off her shed sheep so calmly. The sheep were bad for clumping up and not separating if they were pressured, so gentle handling was needed. I didn't manage to do it every time, but when i could, it did work very well.

I think that about covers the big stuff on strategies. It was quite the week, both as an experience to treasure and also for the education. Can't wait until next year in CO!

Finals Top 17

So on to the final day we go with Bill. I was disappointed to not be running two dogs in the Finals, both because i felt Zac would do well but also because it would have been fun to try it twice. Little did i know, but i'd get 2 shots at it anyway.

It was a much better weather day for a dog trial, overcast with cooler temps. Bill and i drew up 6th, a pretty good spot to run in usually. I might have preferred a little later draw just so i could watch and study earlier runs but at least we weren't 1st or 2nd. I was really concerned about getting Bill to do the turnback to the 2nd lot of sheep. He only has the start of a proper turnback in his repertoire. He understands the verbal "look" command means to turn around and look for sheep behind him. I've blown the whistle to him a couple of times to start teaching it to him, but always follow it with voice as he doesn't know it yet. He's been on a few turnbacks to sheep that were in sight, up to maybe 150-200 yards or so, and i did send him back to sheep that he couldn't see, about 50 yards away, once or twice at the farm, just before heading to the Finals. I didn't want to do a lot of turnback training just before the fall trials, since it tends to make dogs look back a little too easily on fetches if you've been working on it. Better to train it during the off season. Unfortunately, Bill was hurt during the past winter off season and missed out. So, it was with some trepidation that i stepped to the post. True, it was an honor to just make the cut, but i sure did want to try the course. I was pretty relaxed though. Someone (wish i could remember who!) had made a comment that Bill trusts me and he'd go back, and i took a good deal of comfort from that thought. It's true, we've gotten to be a pretty close team and i've tried to always be fair and not ask for more than he can do, and he does trust me.

The first group of ten was spotted about 600 yards out, in the upper left corner of the field. I'd already sent Bill out 3 times to the left, but to sheep spotted at 350-400 yards and in the middle of the field. He seemed to see the sheep though, and i set him up to run wide, and he went out very well, nicely wide, looking and kicking out as he went. He landed well, pulling up on the pressure, which was downfield to my left. Lift was nice and we started the dogleg fetch online. I had him hard on the pressure, pushing the sheep off to the right a bit to counteract that huge draw, and his fetch was nice, to the panel and through. We settled the sheep at the drop post, but as soon as i flanked Bill over to the right, the sheep broke hard left, as they did on all of the dogs. It was about as hard of a turnback as you could possibly set up. The dogs had to fight to keep the sheep off the exhaust and then just let them run off, and every dog of the day had trouble turning back, even some very experienced ones. I started giving Bill the whistle and following it with the "look" voice command. He was a good boy and released the first group well but just couldn't figure out what i wanted, as he couldn't see any sheep behind him. It took quite a while (felt like hours!) but after trying a few different things, i finally got Bill looking further upfield. He'd already crossed over, so it didn't matter how i got him out, i just needed to get him there. He started upfield, and i'm not sure if he was running back and thinking about the first group, or trying a come bye outrun to the right corner, but, i saw him finally see the sheep, stopped him and redirected him around to the proper away outrun. I could maybe have left him on the come bye path but i was wanting him to do it right and was doing a bit of training out there. He took the redirect very well, kicking out and landing perfectly on the sheep. The sheep took off like crazy towards that exhaust draw but Bill kicked around and caught them, and we kept them online, to the panels and through. That sure felt good!

Okay, so double lift finally accomplished and we continued on to the fetching. Bill did a beautiful job keeping the second group on the fetch line to the post, holding that hard pressure. Unfortunately, by the time we'd evened them up to the first group, the first group had disappeared from sight and were right up against the fence. I sent Bill down in there to try to fish them out (yet another blind turnback) but he came out with only about half. I couldn't see what happened, maybe he got confused by the people and dogs down there that were trying to keep the sheep out in the field, but he did let some get away. I think he should have been able to manage it but i couldn't see, and the groups had been held out in sight on the field on the previous runs, so the judges gave us a rerun. It was a big relief that we would get to continue on and try the course, but oh no, another double lift!We waited about an hour and stepped back to the post. The first outrun, lift and fetch were nearly identical to the morning one. When we got to the drop post, i had Bill push the sheep a few yards to the right, in hopes that maybe they'd stay but unfortunately they took off again when i flanked him around to set up the turnback. I wondered afterwards if a little more time holding them on the spot might have helped, but i doubt it. I started the whistle/voice routine again and though Bill did cross over and need some extra flanking to set up, he did go back and quite a lot easier than the first time. Again he landed well, fetched straight and the sheep were through the panels and coming towards the handlers post. This time, our first lot had been held further out in the field where we could see them. I decided to stop Bill and let the second lot run over to the first, with a plan to send him around them all. He had a hard time understanding what i wanted when he got there though. It was odd, but the groups stayed segregated even though they were really close to each other. Bill went around the back group but then locked in on the front group and was going to let the back one go. I had a heck of a time getting it worked out with him and we lost precious time, on top of all we'd lost on the first turnback (time started at 18 minutes on the second run, when i sent Bill to join up the groups). Finally we got it together and did the turn around the post and began the drive. It was actually more tricky than i expected, since there was a cheviot looking ewe with a friend who wanted to run off, and then a couple of really heavy ewes wanting to stop and stand at the back. Bill had to work really hard and do a lot of running from front to back to keep things together and moving. We wiggled around a bit getting the panels with those troublemakers but hit both panels and the drive was pretty decent all around, if a bit slow.

On to the shedding ring, where time was running low and i had a very tired dog after four 600 yard outruns. He had this "whew, i'm beat!" look on his face. Even fresh, Bill is still a little punky on his shedding since i haven't pushed it with him (one of our winter projects) because of his age. The sheep were being pretty cooperative though, bunching up some nice groups of uncollared ewes, and Bill was hanging in there pretty good. We got a couple of nice cuts, got down to about 3-5 uncollared ewes left and might have gotten it done but time ran out. All the time spent going back cost us there. But we still ended up with a 339 and 8th place!

I was so thrilled with my young guy. He worked his heart out and i was so impressed with how well he handled the sheep. They were big, strong, opinionated ewes who pushed dogs around all week. Straight lines were hard to come by and Bill had not just two, but four beautiful fetches, and also a lovely first leg of the drive. It was a very difficult turnback and he DID trust me, and listened and tried so hard to figure things out even though it was way, way over his head. He was calm, cool and kept his composure and the things he knew how to do, he did extremely well. And the things he didn't, he hung in there and worked out. I'm so very, very proud of him.


Next up, the Finals wrap up...

2010 SemiFinals

What a ride. I'm still pinching myself to be sure it was real. Or maybe just so i can stay awake now that we're home - it was quite the trip to come down from!

Bill drew up 15th and Zac 31st in the semifinals round. We were running 5 sheep, 2 with collars. The course was a little bigger than in the preliminary round, with slightly longer drives and a 450 yard outrun. I worried with the earlier draw that Bill might be at a disadvantage since the afternoon sheep seemed generally better, but i needn't have. He ran beautifully, settling his sheep and mastering them, keeping them calm and cooperative. We were to shed off 2 plain, then pen and then single a collared ewe. We were very clean around the course with reasonable lines, shed and pen went well. We again had a missed attempt on the single but did get it. I'm not surprised Bill had trouble with the singles, he's still not completely solid on the shedding so we haven't done much singling yet, trying to remember that he is still a youngster. Final score was 174 and he ended up in 13th place, qualifying for the big show - the top 17 double lift Finals!

Zac ran later and like in the first round, had a real smoker going. He had a difficult ewe in the bunch but really mastered her around the course, showing great confidence and poise, and listening really well. He was totally on his game for the trial. We got around cleanly and into the shedding ring, and i just couldn't get the sheep to line up as i needed. The collared ewes kept staying in with the uncollared, and i couldn't get 2 plain ones together. I stayed smart to start with but then got caught up in pushing them onto Zac. I should have known better and kept things looser as we'd done in the first round. Finally the ewe that had been eying up Zac and giving him grief broke off and he nailed her for a DQ. Heartbreak as i was so looking forward to running him in the top 17 as well. I know he'd have done well, even with that nasty turnback, because we practice it. It was very disappointing but we'll just have to work on that gripping and plan to be back next year.

It was a bit of a nerve wracking day waiting to see if Bill would make it through. I thought he probably would but you never know, and there were some great teams running at the end. A really cool thing was that the semifinals were being webcast. I heard from friends and family all over the country who were watching it all in real time. How amazing is that?

Next post is on the Top 17...

Open Finals, Day 1, What a Day!

What a day! The Open has begun and the running is tough. The committee moved the course a bit off the draw but someone forgot to explain to the sheep that that should have helped a bit. They are really pulling hard off to the left of the field, beyond the first drive panel. It's been a tough job all day getting that line with the sheep, and that's after fighting like mad to hold the fetch line. Whew. There were some really good dogs running today and it was very hard to even leave the viewing area because there was always someone running or on deck that i wanted to see.

I ran Bill late this afternoon in the #31 spot and i couldn't be any more proud of my young guy. I sent him left after waiting what seemed like forever for the sheep to be spotted and settled at the set out point. There was some breaking and jostling around but finally they did settle and off Bill went.He went out beautifully, bending in exactly the spots i'd have hoped for, and ending nicely deep. Because i felt the proper place to come in was around 10:30-11 o'clock, behind the lone tree on the field, i hit him with a steady whistle just as insurance, though it felt like he was making that decision just fine on his own. He came on quietly and with authority and the sheep folded off the top, straight at me. I started hitting the away whistle fast and furious as i wanted him set up on the left side and he took them pretty nicely, actually pushing the sheep a little off to the right. The fetch was pretty much straight and through the panels. The rest of the fetch was nice, turn around the post was pretty good though a bit wide. That really difficult first leg of the drive was just that - difficult - but it went well and we managed to stay online. The sheep stalled a couple of times but Bill just leaned right into them and they'd move off. I was loving how flexible he was being, locking in and pushing but still taking all my flanks and stops and walk ups right off. Through the panel, nice tight turn. The cross drive was a little more wiggly and lower than i wanted, but i didn't want to get too picky about it at that point and just kept it flowing over and through the panels. Return leg was pretty good and the sheep were nicely settled coming into the ring. We kept it calm and quiet and folded 2 off for the split, then eased them into the pen pretty easily with Bill just taking that job over for me as he walked them up and pressed them in. Deep breath and back to the ring for the single and we got a nice gap where i called Bill in but he hesitated and it closed, so a missed attempt. Another deep breath and we got a good one right at the edge of the ring. The judge took some time calling it and i fretted that they thought we'd left the ring but finally, whew, he called it!

I couldn't have been more proud of my young boy, he was a real champ out there. The strategies i'd planned to deal with the draw worked well because he was working so well with me and the sheep were listening to him. And even better yet, when they announced the score, we'd taken the lead with a 187! I don't know if that'll hold up for 3 more long days with all of these amazing dogs and handlers here still to run, but we'll surely make it to the semi-finals where we'll get another go at the sheep. Oh geez, now i have to figure out what to wear as it'll be televised on the live streaming video feed. At least i know what Bill will wear - he's going commando, LOL!
(photo above and in blog title by denise wall)

2010 Nursery Finals

What a wonderful trial going on here in VA. The organizers have done a fabulous job. Great field, great sheep. The sheep have been a good test of the dogs without being too much for the youngsters.

It was a bittersweet sort of day for me with Bill. I was so excited to run him and felt he was very ready and poised to do well. Unfortunately the luck of the draw got us. The sheep have been mostly very good but we had the misfortune to draw one that was a real stinker. She juked and jived and tried every trick in the book to get away from the moment she stepped on the field. We were doing a right hand drive and the sheep had been breaking all day to the left, and honestly i started wondering how the heck we were going to deal with that ewe on the crossdrive before we'd even brought her off the top end.

I sent Bill to the left on his outrun and he ran out very nicely, wide and deep. I'd planned on stopping him around 11 o'clock to counter the draw to the left but he came in there on his own, walking in with calm confidence. The sheep still broke to the left a bit but Bill took my flanks well and caught them. They got a bit offline but not too bad considering how hard it had been all day to hold them. We got the panels pretty easily and kept them online the rest of the fetch. This whole time, that one stinker of a ewe was breaking really hard to the left side about every 10 yards or so. Bill did a terrific job catching her and putting her back in, over and over and over, while we both worked hard to keep the other 3 online and sticking close enough to not lose them while the bad one was breaking. And i mean she was breaking hard! The turn around the post was dicey but we got it done. The first leg of the drive had been tough all day, with the sheep not wanting to line out and go straight downhill. Bill did a pretty nice job with the line, even though that ewe was breaking harder than ever, and her friends were starting to think about ways to take advantage of Bill being so busy with the stinker. We got them nicely through the panel and then the race was on! We had to take the sheep in the direction they wanted to go, and go they did, hellbent. I managed to time it exactly how i wanted, will Bill on the top side of the sheep as they flew through the panels. I had to give him a hard down command and went to voice, which meant i was giving that all important flank command by voice just as the crowd cheered like crazy for the made panels, and Bill didn't hear me. That little error killed us (i think he would have heard a whistled command), as the sheep got that extra jump ahead of Bill and ran to the fence where they so wanted to go. It was down over a hill and i couldn't see, other than that stinker ewe breaking off and heading uphill. Bill worked his butt off to bring the other 4 out but we needed all 5 - time ran out and we didn't get our drive score. In actuality, that 5th one had managed to get through the fence and into the big flock of sheep hanging out on the other side of the fence so there was no way we could have gotten it back together at that point. It was just heartbreaking because we'd worked so hard on such a bad ewe and Bill had done a stellar job. The whole crowd was disappointed, the cheers when we caught that panel and groans when the sheep got away were huge. It's hard to not get behind a little dog working so hard and doing such a good job.

So it was a tough day but also in some ways a really rewarding one. Bill really got to show his stuff out there, and it really made me feel great to have so many handlers come up and compliment his work and commiserate over that rotten ewe. It was disappointing because i think expectations that Bill would do well in the Nursery were pretty high. I know i felt he would do well and i sure would have liked to have made the second round to run for the Championship. But as always, there's a little luck involved in sheepdog trials and you do the best you can with what you get. I think we did that yesterday. Now, perhaps the sheepdog trial luck gods could cut us a break when we run tomorrow in the Open...

Finals time!

Finally it's Finals! 2010 USBCHA National Finals, in Middletown, VA at Belle Grove plantation. The course is beautiful and the local host committee has stepped in and done a stellar job. The sheep look fit, a group of 650 border cheviot crossbreeds, all 2-4 years old. The course is straightforward for the Nursery, right hand drive of about 125 yards on each leg, outrun 325 yards. I'm on the Handlers Association trial committee this year. I was on it at the 2007 Finals in PA and enjoyed it a lot, so am looking forward to it again. Basically, the local committee oversees what is happening outside the fence - crowds, vendors, all the million things that go into making this huge event - while the HA committee oversees the action on the inside of the fence - setting the course, watching every run for any kind of controversy or decision making that needs done, keeping things flowing and fair for everyone.

Tomorrow we begin the Nursery at 8 am and will go through the first 54 dogs on the running order. I don't run Bill until 91st, so will be watching closely and formulating my strategies for sunday. I can hardly wait to see him going out on that outrun since i've been aiming towards this since the 20 07Finals, when Bill was delivered to me as a 7 week old pup. He sat himself down in front of me, looked me right in the face with this open, honest expression as if to say "yup, i'm your dog" and now here we are. He's definitely my dog!

Circle BR SDT 2010

The Memorial Day weekend trial at Dr Ben and Emily Ousley's in Lawndale, NC is one I've attended nearly every year since i first started competing at sheepdog trials. So that's what, 16 years or so? Time sure has flown but one thing remains the same - the Ousley family are just the nicest people you'd ever want to meet and they bend over backwards to make all of us feel like we're family too.

The trial is set on a field that rises out in front of you in terraces, and the sheep come from the large home flock of katahdins. For the friday afternoon Nursery class, 5 sheep were run. I ran Bill and he did a lovely job, running clean enough that he nearly won the class even though we couldn't get the sheep penned. He ended up 2nd behind Christine and her Rook son Kaige. He continued to run very well in the Open classes over the weekend, though i'd have liked to see him deeper at the top end of his outrun. This field tends to bring the dogs in tight but i thought he was even tighter than i'd have expected. We'll be working on that a bit before the fall trials, though i won't overdo it as i think he'll be one to loosen up naturally as he ages. I was happy with his work the whole weekend, as he was very consistent and had good control of the sheep on every run. He ended up in 10th place in the first round and just out of the placings in the 2nd, and nearly made the double lift based on combined scores. In our second run, we had a ewe that just didn't want to be penned and losing that 10 points knocked us out of it. I also ran Bill in monday Nursery class but decided to just try to train on him a bit rather than run competitively. I wanted to work on his outrun and did stop him to redirect but the sheep broke down the field, which was unfortunate.

Zac ran quite well at the trial as well, though his overenthusiasm did hurt us in the first round. He had a gorgeous go around the course but was overflanking at the shed and we never managed to get it, losing those and the pen points. He did place in the second round, 14th.

I stuck around on monday to watch the Ranch and ProNovice classes and ended up setting sheep for the PN class. It's always fun to see how the dogs look from that end of the field. An extra added treat was getting to see my Gael run for the first time with Kelly. She did great!

It was a great trial with a lot of dogs to run this year, over 70 Open dogs in each round. The sheep seemed fit and mostly pretty even. We'll head back over to the same trial site at the end of June for a trial to benefit the 2010 National Finals.

Rural Hill SDT

...or, Billy is a Big Dog. :-)

(photos by Denise Wall)

It was a really good weekend at the Rural Hill SDT in Huntersville, NC. I skipped this trial last year since Zac was hurt and didn't decide to go this year until the last minute, and i'm glad i did. I decided to just run the boy dogs since Jet has never run well at this trial. Actually, that's putting it mildly. Her worst runs ever have come at this particular trial, with some pretty spectacular wrecks in my memory. Some trials just don't suit some dogs, and past weekends at this one with speedy hair sheep, a flat field, and a strong draw to the set out pen have brought out the worst in Jet. I felt like it would be better to run Bill in the Open and get experience for him than to cross fingers and hope for less than ugly with Jet. She probably would have been okay this year since the sheep were very good and the draw not so bad, but Bill needs the time on the trial field.

Friday started with the first of two Nursery classes. Bill ran reasonably well. I sent him right and he was a little tight but okay. Before lifting, he took in a big sniff at the top, earning a good screech from me for it. It's that time of year, when it seems 90% of bitches are in heat. And 100% of two year old males are definitely in heat! He sniffed again going around the course but his lines were good and we ended up with an 82, one point behind the two dogs tied for 1st and 2nd at 83. It's aggravating seeing him sniff out there but i try to remind myself that he's young and full of hormones, and should mature out of it. Zac did for the most part and he was quite bad about it. After the Ranch and ProNovice classes ran, we did another Nursery class. Bill won handily by 6 or 7 points. I sent him left this time and he ran out beautifully. I'm continuing to run him in the Nursery even though he's qualified for the Finals so he can get more trial experience. One thing i plan to do as much as possible is to send him once each direction when we have two runs at a trial. I'm glad i did this weekend since it changed my mind on which way to send him in the Open. It seems Bill has switched from being better on the right to going better on the left. I'll be curious to see if the right gets better again. He did take one quick sniff on the second Nursery run, but seemed to get it out of his system as he didn't do it on his Open runs.

Zac ran in the Open early on saturday morning and laid down a really nice run. I thought he was a little tight at the top end, but otherwise the rest of the run was really good. We lost 1 on the outrun, 1 on the lift, 0 on the fetch, 5 on the drive, 2 on the shed (he looked back at the wrong group as he came through) and none on the pen, for a 91. At the end of the day we ended up 3rd. 3 seems to be Zac's number, as we've finished 3rd several times this year. Bill ran near the end of the day and did a great job. I sent him left and he ran out wide and deep and landed perfectly. Fetch and drive were clean. We had some trouble shedding since the sheep were hard to split and Bill's still not really strong on it yet. But we did get it done, then ran out of time as we got to the pen. Final score was a 78. If we'd had time to pen (the sheep were very easy to pen, walking right in), he'd have been well into the placings. As it was, he was just out.

On Sunday, Bill ran mid-morning and did a beautiful job. Outrun was again perfect to the left, lift and fetch very good with Bill doing an excellent job settling the sheep on the fetch. Drive clean, and then a very, very nice shed and clean pen. Final score was an 89 which held up in the placings for a 7th place. Zac ran in the heat of the day and was just too on the muscle for the sheep he'd drawn, upsetting them and not having very good lines around the course. After 5 good runs at the trial, i was a little disappointed to not finish on a better note with Zac but that's dog trialin', as they say!

All in all, it was a good trial and a good weekend. I was very happy to see Bill improving with each run and being so consistent in his work. I hope it's a harbinger of good things to come! Next up will be the Broken Back Ranch trial in SC in December.

Lexington SDT

We're home after a somewhat successful weekend at the Lexington SDT, hosted by Dave Clark and Cheryl Branibar. Dave and Cheryl are delightful hosts and i don't think there's anyone out there who works harder to make sure we all have a good time. The field is gorgeous, sheep healthy, judging good, set out even and well done, and the handler's dinner superb. They try very hard to cross all the t's and dot all the i's and it really showed. Thanks so much to both of them!

Friday was a misty, dreary day, and much colder than normal for this time of year. We met to run two Nursery classes in the afternoon, each with 8 dogs so qualifying two youngsters for the National Finals next year in Middletown, VA. I was running Bill and he did a very nice job, especially on his first run, which i thought was smooth and flowing and really sweet. He ended up second in the first class and won the second, so now is officially qualified. I'll keep running him for experience, but it's nice to have the qualifying done so we can relax on that. I was very pleased with his enthusiasm, coming off a bad experience at the Edgeworth trial last weekend. He seemed none the worse for it, and perhaps even learned a bit from it as he was more willing to take some redirects over the weekend.

We lucked out on the weather over the weekend. It was very cold but not raining as had been forecast going in, whew. I ran all three dogs in the Open. Bill was first up both days and i was really thrilled with him. He ended up running when the sheep were especially cranky, and handled them and himself very well. The outrun was horribly tricky, with many experienced Open dogs crossing over or not finding the sheep. Bill certainly had trouble as well, but got out there both times. His first outrun was relatively clean, just one stop and redirect and on he went. The second time, he ran deeper and came across the pen full of sheep at the top of the field, which perplexed him. After a bit, i got him to go on around where he found his group of sheep. I thought that was a very good learning experience for him. It was a bit rough around the course, as it was for everyone, but Bill got around both days with fairly decent lines. We had a quick shed to finish the course saturday and then timed out at the pen on sunday. I really loved how Bill worked and held it together, and the authority he was showing over his sheep. Confidence was just shining through and i couldn't have been happier to see that!

I ran Jet second on saturday and she pulled up terribly, terribly short on her outrun and it took forever to get her over to lift. It was very frustrating, to say the least. Zac ran third and had a beautiful run, coming at a time when the sheep were being extra cranky and tearing around the course like crazy. He ran out well (after trying to cross behind me on his send command, which cost us dearly on points), nice lift, straight, calm fetch and drive. Pen was clean and when i looked down at my watch to see how much time we had left, i realized it hadn't started counting down! (probably because i was fiddling with resetting it, etc after Zac tried to go the wrong way). I was pretty certain time was short, so started rushing around on the shed and couldn't get it set up before time ran out. Turns out i might have had time to get it set up, but it was pretty tight. Overall, it was a very good run and i thought the score would be close to the leader at the time, but we ended up 7th instead, quite a way off the leading score. I think i must have been seeing the lines a little differently than the judge but that's the way it goes sometimes. I'm certain she was judging the lines tighter than i'd thought as well (note to self: be pickier next time, dummy!). The cross behind me surely didn't help much either. Anyway, it was a nice run and i was proud of how Zac handled and settled the sheep.

The runs on Sunday with Zac and Jet weren't anything to write home about. The sheep were racing around and really tired of the whole thing, and neither dog managed much with the groups we'd drawn. It was kind of a shame to see the sheep get so bad, since the rest of the trial was so well planned and executed. Not many dogs actually got to do a lift since the sheep were racing off the top end so hard, and that's a shame since that's when the dogs need to set the tone for the run. I'm not sure what would have made it better, perhaps running four sheep instead of three - i've seen that help tremendously at a couple of recent trials. It would mean another trip or two around the course over the weekend for each sheep, but that might not be so bad if it could be a calmer trip and not a race to try to beat the dogs. Moving the setout pens to a position behind the setout point, rather than off to the side, might have helped as well. The pull to the exhaust was hard but might have been okay if the draw uphill to the setout wasn't there as well. That's all just supposition though, no complaints here. It was a very good trial.

Now off to the Watercress SDT in Limestone, TN this coming friday-sunday!

Trials and Catching up

I thought i ought to catch things up here, it's been nearly a month since i did. The last post about the dogs was right after the trial at Don McCaig's. The weekend following the trial we had a group lesson at Julie's, and little did we know but one of the dogs had picked up kennel cough at the trial. About 5 days after the lesson, Meg and Tug (formerly known as ZJ) started coughing, only 2 days before the WFAC trial. That sure threw a monkey wrench into our plans! With some careful planning and good common sense, we managed to get through the trial and to not pass it around to those attending, whew. Speaking of the trial, it really was awesome, and what great friends around here to come together and do such a terrific job. I ran all three Open dogs at the trial and they ran well enough. Bill was the only one to place, coming in 4th the first day. It's hard to run dogs and run the trial, so i was pleased enough with them. And Bill gets his first USBCHA points! Actually, if we need it, that could count as his first Nursery leg too - a top 20% placement in Open counts towards Nursery qualifying.

The day after the trial, the dogs that hadn't been coughing started up. Eventually all 7 managed to have kennel cough, but other than for Meg, it wasn't that bad, just a day or so each. Poor Meg coughed for 8 or 9 days and pretty hard. By the end of the week, everyone but her was done, so i loaded up Bill and Zac, and Joan brought along Brook, and we headed up to the first day of the Montpelier SDT. Zac ran very well but we couldn't get the shed. Had we run later in the day, i might have taken a cheap shed instead of getting stuck trying to do it properly. But we ran early and i didn't know proper sheds were going to be few and far between (not sure i saw more than a couple all day). Bill ran later in the day and got completely flummoxed by the heavy school sheep that just stood there with their heads down in the grain pan. He finally got frustrated and chased one off and grabbed it. I felt bad for him, he's just not seen anything like that before. Zac had similar trouble when he was young and got over it, and i'm sure Bill will too, but i sure hated seeing it. We spent some time working on it during the next week and he seemed to figure it out a bit.

So, on to the Edgeworth SDT this past weekend. I had all 3 dogs entered. I ran Bill first in both rounds and he didn't find his sheep either time. It was just too far out for him and without redirects and with only a beginning of a turnback, i didn't have a good way to help him. At the end of the trial, the Wilsons offered to let us help dogs that hadn't made it to the top, so i walked most of the way up with him and sent him to pick the sheep up. He was gimpy on one of his feet, so i didn't want to overdo it with him, but i wanted to be sure he got to find sheep. I doubt it will make that much difference but by next year, we'll have more tools in our toolbox for getting up there. I regret entering him but i doubt it'll cause any irreparable harm. I won't do it again with a dog that doesn't have the things i need to help him or her get out there.

This year, i finally got to run Zac at Edgeworth! He's been hurt the last 2 fall seasons, so hadn't run out there before. He had trouble getting out there but with some help, did get there at least. In the first round, i sent him right and it took 4 or 5 redirects, but he did get there. He lifted badly to the side but caught the sheep, and we got them online, and the rest of the run was really pretty. Lines were good, turns tight, good flow. The split and pen were extremely nice with Zac doing an exceptional job on the shedding. We ran out of time on the single, with it he would have been well into the placings. Zac's second run was pretty lousy. He didn't want to take the redirects and crossed over. He did take a beautiful turnback to finish on the left side (i'd sent right) nicely. The lift was straight and sweet but the sheep tore down the fetch like bats out of hell. It wasn't like Zac at all, he's a pretty pacey fetcher. I'm not sure if it was him or the sheep or a combination of both but it wasn't good. The first leg of the drive was similar, though at that point i finally had control on Zac so i know it wasn't him. Hearing was bad near the first gate and Zac took a wrong flank, causing the sheep to veer around. I decided to retire and so did one of the sheep - one of the rear ones finally had enough of trying to keep up with the running leaders and laid down. I had Zac catch the runners and settle them near the down one, and she finally popped up okay. Frustrating to say the least!

Jet had her usual good Edgeworth. She always manages to do pretty well there, and finished 2nd in each of the last 2 years, by one point each time. She ran out nicely wide both days to the right. She did pull up well short both times, on pressure (actually short of the balance point but covering it as she walked in). In her first run, she lifted well but the first half of the fetch was off, and then the rest of the fetch and the drive were nice. Her split, pen, single were really sweet. It's so much fun to shed with Jet - she makes holes with me and really partners up for the job, comes in like a bullet and holds like a brick wall. Her second run was the last of the day on saturday and the wind was blowing, making it hard for the dogs to hear. She still ran very well, the only real blip (other than being short up top) a bad miss on the crossdrive gates when she couldn't hear me. She ended up placing both days, the first time for that! She was 5th out of 60 dogs in the first round, and 9th out of 58 in the second. Go Jet! The trial was a lot of fun and i was very pleased with Jet and Zac for 3 of 4 runs. The first go featured a turn around a post about 100 yards from the handlers post to begin the drive, as well as a marked shed. I was very happy with the tight turns my dogs made at that post, and their shedding was gorgeous. I'll be looking forward to the winter trial at Edgeworth.

So next up is the Lexington SDT this coming weekend. Bill is entered in Nursery and Open, and Jet and Zac in Open. I'm not sure Bill will get to do all of that, he's got a sore foot so i'll have to see how he looks. I'll decide on the Open runs after seeing how he does both performance-wise and on his foot in the Nurseries. I want to back off a bit on him and not be pushing him on too quickly. I wasn't too happy to see him having trouble the last two weekends and don't want him having another bad experience, not so soon anyway. He'll be fine but there's no need to rush things with him.

Other than all of the trial stuff, i've been just having a blast with the puppies, Moon and Tug. They're great pups, happy and bright and funny. Tug especially cracks me up - he's a very playful little guy, just like his dad, and into everything. Moon is sweeter and more loving, and a better listener, wanting to do right. As much as i can't wait to see how they turn out as sheepdogs, i wish i could freeze them in place right now and keep them little! Meg has moved on to a new home. I'd decided to maybe keep her around longer but ran into a friend needing another dog, so decided to let Meg go to kind of help her out. But then she found another dog before Meg got over the kennel cough and was ready to go. While all of this was going on, a top handler stepped in and said she was looking and asked if she could see Meg, and bought her on the spot. I have a feeling we'll be seeing a lot of Meg on the national scene in about a year and i'll be crying the blues for selling her! But it's a good thing for Meg and for the rest of the Shoofly dogs too. It's easy to get spread too thin and then everyone gets cheated, and i was sitting here with four dogs at or under 2 years old. Too many.

I think that about catches us up on the dogs. Hopefully i'll have lots of good things to report after the trials the next two weekends!

Crystal Ball...

I was looking at Dan King's excellent photos of the trial this past weekend. This is a nice one that he got of Bill --

It reminded me a lot of one i have of Bill at 4 months old!

20th Occasional Highland SDT, part 2

(Here is a link to Dan King's excellent pictures from the trial)

So on to sunday we go. Zac ran 10th and the sheep were quite a bit better than saturday. He ran out nicely, stopping short of 12:00 but the sheep folded off the top end beautifully and straight towards me. I was extremely pleased at how nice the lift was, as good as any i saw all weekend. Fetch was pretty straight. Zac was weaving behind the sheep more than i like but the method worked surprisingly well - i'd have thought the sheep wouldn't like it, but when i held him back to straighten out, they slowed and weren't coming as straight. Zac was listening really well, even way out at the beginning of the fetch. Turn at the post went fine. First leg of the drive was wobbly but we got them through the gates. Crossdrive was similar but again through the gates. The single was gorgeous, with Zac flying into a very small gap and taking firm command of the shed sheep. The pen was good. All in all, lines could have been more tidy but it was a very good run with those kind of sheep and at the end of the day, Zac and I were 3rd behind Lyle Lad and Barbara Ray. I was very pleased with Zac for the weekend. He looked good and was learning the whole time.

Next up was Bill - yep, Bill moved up to Open! His Ranch run was so good that i thought we'd give it a shot. I knew his shedding wasn't quite up to par yet but it was a good chance to get some experience. The outrun, lift and fetch were really very good. I had to give Bill a couple of whistles on the outrun as he came up expecting the sheep to be further down the field than they were (from his 2 shorter outruns the day before). He took them well and got behind nicely, lifted with authority and actually rated the sheep very well on the first half of the fetch, not pushing in too hard as he's liked to do. He definitely learned something from his runs on saturday! The fetch was strong and straight, very nice. Turn around the post was good but the first leg of the drive very wiggly as the sheep didn't want to move off straight. The rest of the drive was pretty good. We were to do a single before the pen, and this is where things came to a halt. Bill did a very good job setting up the shed and was good and strong on the sheep. I got one small gap and called him in, and he flew in so fast it actually surprised me. The single moved towards him as he flew threw and he snapped at her nose as he blew past. If he'd stopped in the gap, it would have been a spectacular shed but he kept going on through and the sheep got back together. That's okay and really just about where he is in learning to shed. I've been trying to get him coming in with enthusiasm and to come in and on through since his preference is to come in slow and use his eye. He'll get it all put together soon. Anyway, that was our only real attempt and finally we timed out. It was a good first Open run and he certainly looked like he belonged in the Open class.

On to Jet's Open run. She ran out marginally better since i set her up to run out sideways but still pulled up in front of the sheep and then wouldn't flank once she got them going - they went way the heck to the left of the field. So once she got in range, i took the opportunity to do some schooling with her, making her listen and flank and stop as told. It was a good chance to do it since it was the sheep bringing out her problems and we don't get on those kind of sheep often. I knew she wasn't going to place as the running had improved a lot, not after that outrun and first part of the fetch. We got around the course in pretty good fashion and completed the single and pen. Hopefully it will help some with several trials coming up soon.

Last up was Bill's Nursery run. The gather was again very good, turn at the post fine though one ewe was giving Bill some dirty looks, but the sheep stalled out about halfway to the first drive gates and the one ewe started acting like she wanted to pound Billy. I let him try to sort it out for a little bit, but when he started looking nervous about it and avoiding her gaze, i went out to help him get things moving again, and we exhausted our sheep. It wasn't a great note to end on and i hated seeing him looking confused. Since Bill was the last dog in the class, we'd been asked to push the big group of sheep back up the field for the remaining classes. Before we could do that, Bill had to hold the group while the sheep owner caught up a couple to treat/cull. That was a lot of fun for Bill though a little confusing with people all around flapping arms and waving hands to catch certain sheep. Then we had to shed off about 2/3s of the sheep to take up top and that was a bit of a challenge, holding them apart. With that done, we marched up the field and Bill really enjoyed that. The sheep were hot, tired and hungry, and very hard to keep flowing, so he got to push in and do some nipping and generally really boss them around. They kept doing this swirling thing that less broke sheep will do, where they pack really tightly and move in a wave, in a circling motion. Hard to explain but pretty effective for avoiding predators (the weakest get swirled to the outsides) and for stopping forward motion. Anyway, Billy had never seen it before so he got to learn about that and to figure out how to sort that out. I'd felt bad about the Nursery run but this was a great way to end on a better note, as Bill's brain was about to pop he was learning so much.

So, that was the 20th Occasional Highland SDT. It was a very good learning experience for the dogs, especially Billy and Zac. The field was gorgeous and the sheep a good challenge. It's a heck of a drive up there (note to self: don't take the trailer across Highway 250 ever, ever again!) but was well worth it for the dogs' education. Now on to putting on our little benefit trial in 2 weeks and then the big fall trial season.

Catching Up, 20th Occasional Highland SDT, part 1

It's only been a week today since i last posted but it seems like a lot longer. A lot has been happening. The puppies are now 6 weeks old and about ready to move to new homes. Turns out there won't be a whole lot of moving since Julie is keeping Ranger and i get to keep the other two! I've been pestering Darci since very early on to let me buy ZJ so i could have both him and Moon to raise up and train, and she finally agreed to it (THANK YOU, DARCI!) at the last minute. ZJ and Chris were scheduled to leave this past Friday, hitching a ride out west with Finals bound folks, but Wednesday afternoon we canceled ZJ's ride. Chris is on her way out there right now, where Darci is anxiously awaiting her arrival. I know that's going to be a very happy reunion on both parts. I'll get the pups this saturday when i go over to Julie's to do the monthly group lessons. Now i'm trying to come up with a new name for ZJ and having a tough time with it. Early on, i thought he looked like a Turk. Right now i'm tossing around Zeke and Creed. I'll have to spend some time with him to see what fits. Who knows, maybe he'll just stay ZJ.

This past weekend i loaded up the camper and the new truck, and the dogs and i headed into the Blue Ridge mountains for the 20th Annual Occasional Sheepdog trial at Don McCaig's near Williamsville, VA. The trial was a benefit for the 2010 National Finals, to be held in Middletown, VA. Donald has taken out some fencing and opened up a new trial field and it's very, very nice. The outrun is about 450-500 yards, flat 90% of the way out and ending in a steep little hill, where the sheep were set for the Open class. For the Ranch and Nursery classes, the sheep were brought to the bottom of the little hill, making the outrun probably 400-450 yards or so. The sheep for the trial were rented from a local commercial flock of polpays and not used to being worked in small groups.

The sheep were quite a challenge for the dogs. Open ran first on saturday and in the morning, it was pretty difficult to get the sheep off the top end and started down the field. Several dogs retired quickly, unable to shift the sheep. Jet ran 8th and when we were walking to the post, i felt pretty sure she'd move the sheep, but some good dogs had had some big trouble already. Jet's outrun was terrible, one of the worst outruns i've ever seen her do. She went right up the middle and wouldn't redirect for anything, eying the sheep the whole time. We managed to lose 16 of our 20 outrun points without even a crossover. I told someone afterwards that i was sure the judge must only be taking 1/2 a point for redirects as i was certain i'd blown 32 of them! Anyway, the sheep finally shifted and Jet got behind them, taking them well offline for the first half of the fetch. The second half of the fetch was good and then we hit the place where so many good Open dogs on Saturday met the end of their runs - the beginning of the drive. Group after group would stall out in this area and either fight the dogs or just simply refuse to budge. Clean grips were being allowed though nasty ones would earn you a DQ. Jet actually didn't have all that much trouble shifting the sheep here, though they did test her some. She's got a ton of power and used it well to her advantage, not needing to bite to convince the ewes to move along. It's so nice to have a dog with that "under the hood" when you need it. The drive was pretty good, and the split, pen and single also decent, though Jet felt she should peek back at the left group on the sheds. With all the difficulties on the first day, she ended up finishing 8th, even with the horrible outrun. I can't be too upset with her, she's been laid up with an injury and just came back to work. All i'd really done was a bit of driving last week to make sure her leg was holding up okay. I guess she decided she liked just driving around and not having to run out!

Zac ran later in the order and i was a little nervous about him with those sheep. He has a different kind of eye than Jet, not more but a stickier kind of eye, and can sometimes have trouble shifting sheep as he doesn't have the same raw power to back it up that Jet does. He ran out beautifully though he landed short - there were trees behind the set out point and he was drawn in to them. He lifted well but did have a little trouble getting them moving freely down the field, flanking defensively to cover the draw to the setout and stopping the forward progress of the sheep. But he managed to work it out in fairly short order and had a beautiful straight fetch. Many dogs were pushing the sheep well offline to the left, either not hearing their handlers commands or overworking the draw (as Jet had done), but Zac handled very well, taking every command i gave. I had planned to take the sheep quickly around the turn at the post and very tight, in hopes they'd not stall out, but a lagging ewe ruined my plan. Her 3 mates went right past the post while she held back and i had to put Zac on her. Meanwhile the 3 leading ewes got very deep behind the post, forcing an even worse version of the stalling out confrontation i'd been hoping to avoid or at least lessen. Zac was very good here, actually much better than i might have expected. He kept on coming forward and his eye didn't catch him up at all. The ewes just wouldn't move off and finally he started gripping. At first it was okay, pretty decent grips but one ewe tried to go over him and he grabbed hold of her neck and held on, while she went crashing into the fence and the judge called out "thank you!" to end the run. All in all, i was quite pleased with Zac's performance. It'll be nice to run him this fall - he's been injured the past 2 fall seasons. He got a little frustrated there at the end but my dogs don't see this kind of sheep all that often. He learned something.

Bill was next up in the Nursery. I was nervous about him meeting up with this kind of sheep for the first time so far out from me, where i couldn't be on top of how it went and back him up if he needed it. He ran out pretty well though i gave him a couple of quick call in whistles to keep him from getting around some trees that would kick him too far out. He landed really well behind the sheep and lifted with nice authority. He came on too strong after the lift as he likes to do, bringing the sheep too hard, which made the sheep pretty unhappy. Three took off strongly while one split off and stopped. I thought that would probably be the end of the run but after many long seconds, Billy somehow calmly convinced her to rejoin the others, now something like 100 yards away. I was pretty impressed with him there. The fetch was decent but the sheep stalled going around the post and Billy couldn't quite figure it out. He came calmly forward but didn't have quite enough confidence and ended up gripping and being called off. After his run, i took the opportunity to exhaust the next few runs with Bill to let him figure out the sheep. They were pretty hard to get off the field and it mimicked the problems at the turn around the post very well. Bill very quickly learned to walk strongly forward to get the sheep moving and his confidence grew a ton in just moments. He was practically grinning he was enjoying it so much after exhausting only three runs.

A bit later I ran Bill in the Open Ranch class and he was wonderful. Nice outrun, lift, much better treatment of the sheep on the fetch so it was pretty straight and calm. The turn and first leg of the drive were wobbly but not too bad, especially comparatively speaking. Crossdrive and return leg were good and the pen clean. It was just a nice, smooth run and ended up winning the class. I was surely happy with the little man!

Since this has gotten so long, i'll do a part 2 later on. Sunday was even better for the Shoofly dogs and Billy made his Open debut!

Catching Up, Breezy Hill SDT

I thought i should maybe do a quick catchup post before i get so far behind that i can't remember what's happened! Things have been pretty hectic in off-farm stuff - trying to arrange some home repairs, thinking about buying a new truck, yada yada.

In dog and farm stuff, lots has been happening as well. Spottie has gone to live with Kelly Jerman so she'll have a second dog to work and trial. Kelly's just getting started in this stuff and Spottie should be a good teacher for her. I expect they'll do great together and we'll be seeing Kelly on the trial field in no time, with both Spottie and her young dog Jen. It'll be nice to be able to see Spottie on a regular basis since i see Kelly at least a couple of times a month.

This past weekend, the dogs and i went to the Breezy Hill trial in VA. It's been years and years since i've gone to trial there, even though it's only a couple of hours away. It was a lot of fun and the sheep were mostly pretty okay - not the crazy-ass barbs from years past! I ran Jet early in the Open class on saturday. She ran pretty decent but i screwed up the pen badly. The sheep needed some convincing to go in and i went to sleep on closing the gate or something - they popped right out for no good reason. I didn't protect the opening like i should have, oh well. Never did get the shed after they got all upset. Zac ran next and i was really thrilled with how well he worked. He was smooth and sharp and did a terrific job on a less than cooperative barb ewe that kept trying to break off. I knew before she even got to my feet on the fetch that she'd be a problem at the pen and she was - after some jostling around we did get the group penned but lost several points and came out of the pen with only a few seconds left to shed. I forced a hole quickly and pulled Zac through but again lost some points for a sloppy job, though getting a few is better than none for time running out! I didn't run Bill the first day. ProNovice is held in a smaller fenced area at this trial, with a lot of pressure and i didn't want to put Bill in that. At the end of the day, Julie Poudrier and Twist were 1st and Zac and i were in second place.

Since there was more time for running dogs on sunday (saturday there was a long lunch break for a VBCA club meeting, or a nap if you were me...LOL!), i decided to move Bill up to Ranch so he could run on the larger field. He did such a good job! He had a rogue ewe much like the one Zac had on saturday, one that wanted to break off all the way around the course, and he handled it extremely well, especially for such an inexperienced trial dog. She broke off hard at the lift and Bill very calmly worked the split group back together into a bunch and brought them up the field. These sheep always break hard to the right at the first drive panel towards the top of the field, and that threw Bill a little - i flanked him left but he wanted to go right so he could more quickly catch the sheep to keep them from escaping. It took a couple of commands from me but he did go the right way and caught the group easily, putting them back on line for the crossdrive. Crossdrive and return leg were nice and Bill did his usual lovely job at the pen. Bill ended up winning the class, a nice way to begin running the Ranch class! Zac was my first dog up in the Open and had a really lousy group of sheep. He worked so hard but they were just going to run and race around no matter what. We got around and penned, and then quit after trying the shed for a minute or so. It wasn't going to happen and it was too hot to keep working at it. Jet ran later and was good around the course but we gave up a bunch of points at the top end of the field when she pulled up on the setout pen and then was short on the set sheep too. After 3 or 4 redirects, she finally got around and lifted. Fetch and drive were okay, pen good, then with time running out, we missed an attempt on the shed. Neither Open dog placed on sunday. Bill was the dog of the day for sunday!

I'm not sure where we'll be headed next trial-wise. I'd planned to go to Canada in early August but now with Chris due to pup and a bunch of other stuff going on, i may not make it. It may be the end of August before our next trial. In the meantime, i'll be anxiously awaiting the Zac/Chris pups, sharpening up the Open dogs' shedding, and trying to get Bill ready for moving to Open too, possibly this fall. The fall trial schedule is really filling up and it's going to be a busy trial season!

That darned barb keeps trying to leave the group!

Zac says "Get the heck back in there with your friends!"

Zac completes the shed

Spottie and Weekend Update

I've mentioned a couple of times that i have Spottie back at home now. I'd placed her over the winter in a retirement/light working home, in hopes she'd get some attention and train her new novice owner in sheepwork but it didn't work out and she's been back with me for about a month. Since she and Gael have a slightly brittle relationship (get along okay but no love lost there), i'd like to try again to place her. She has a couple more issues this time around - first being she's on a very strict diet to get some weight off of her. She weighed about 38 pounds her entire working life and came back to me at 53 pounds, yikes! Anyway, i'd like to find a good pet home or light working home, possibly with a novice looking to learn the ropes of sheep trialing or someone looking for a well trained pet. Spottie would be fine as a spoiled rotten companion, doesn't need sheepwork to be happy. A few chewies and some toys and she's fine. If you're interested or know someone who might be, contact me. After the last home not working out, i'll warn you i will be very picky!

The weekend was good, no big events to report but a lot of work done around the farm. Mowing is finally all done and i'm making a dent in the thistles and other weeds that seem determined to rule the world, or at least my pasture. The back fenceline is finally cleared of the brush and trees that were laying on it. Garden is tilled and weeded and starting to produce squash and cucumbers. The farm looks so nice right now, like a park! I got inspired to work my dogs yesterday and they all did pretty well. In my mind, Bill seems like a trained dog but i do need to get out there with him and finish him out. His top end when sent left needs some work - he'll take any excuse to be tight as he goes around to that side. So i did a little corner work to open that up, and will need to do a lot more. His shedding is coming along well and he's starting to really get it. His eyes light up now when he sees me setting up and that hole appears. He's going to love it, you can just tell. I worked Spottie just a little bit (her fat self can only take a little!) and she was great, taking every little whistle. Sheep sure like her. Zac was a little wild but worked with great precision when i asked him to. Jet still seems a little off her game, a little uncertain. I set up the maltese cross and played around with it, that was fun with the lambs that have never seen it. Billy and Zac were stellar at it with those clean flanks and speed. It felt good to train them all, even if it was just a little for each.

Circle BR SDT

We're home from the last trial for awhile. Memorial Day weekend always finds us at the Circle BR SDT, at the home of Dr Ben and Emily Ousley. This year was extra special as it was the 25th Annual trial - 25 continuous years! I was really touched by the speeches and dedications at the Handlers Meetings and the remembrances of trials and handlers from years past at the dinners. Ben and Emily are special folks and i feel lucky to have been at their trial for the last 14-15 years.

The trial kicked off friday afternoon with a Nursery class. The sheep were set about 2/3s of the way up the terraced field, about 200 yards out I'd guess. The drive was very long, the full course to be used for the Open on saturday. Sheep were katahdin ewes, pulled off their lambs just before the class started, and run in groups of five. Since the outrun wasn't too terribly long, i decided to run Bill and i'm glad i did. He ran very well, handling the sheep with ease, keeping a nice pace on the fetch and drive. I sent him to the left, which isn't his stronger side, but he ran out nicely, kicking as he'd crest each terrace and landing correctly behind his sheep. He didn't seem to be thinking as much about busting the sheep up after lifting as he'd been on the Ky trip. I'd worked on it some in the couple of days we had before the trial and it seemed to have stuck with him. I tried just steadying him instead of downing and that worked better, probably since he could feel less like he was giving up control from the stop. When the class ended, Bill had finished on top handily, gaining his second top 20% finish (with two 1st place finishes) and qualifying for the 2009 Nursery Finals. Yay Billy!

Jet ran early on Saturday morning. Other than some trouble with pulling up short on her outrun and needing 3 redirects, her run was just beautiful. It was nice enough that even with the outrun problems and losing 9 points right off the top for that, she ended up in 5th place at the end of the day. Zac ran later in the day and had a terrific run going right up to the driveaway panels, when for some reason the ewes just bolted and starting running. I'm still not sure what caused it - Zac seemed to have a really good hold on them up to that point. We didn't get them settled back down again until we'd missed both drive panels. Since i knew we were out of contention at that point, i just kind of schooled on Zac a bit on the return leg and shed and pen, in preparation for the next day's competition.

Sunday morning, Zac was the first dog on the field. Since the entry was fairly small at about 50 dogs, with plenty of time for running them, we were going to be doing a marked shed, pen and then single. Zac had a really gorgeous run around the course. When we got to the marked shed, we had a leader with a collar on (we were to take 2 of the 3 unmarked sheep) who gave us fits. She kept leading out and made it really hard to get the shed set up since she kept trying to leave the ring. After what seemed like forever, we finally did get it set up and Zac had a perfect shed. Off to the pen where that ewe again gave us fits, costing us 5 points. At least i thought our single of a collared sheep would be easy! Unfortunately, time ran out just as we got back to the ring, darn it. Final score was an 84 out of a possible 110, which kept us at the top of the leader board for a good part of the day. The scores jumped a bunch late in the afternoon though, and we ended up 10th, one out of the placings. Getting the single would sure have been nice. Zac ran well and we were finally working well together again. It's too bad it's come right at the end of the trial season but it was awfully nice to have my boy back to his old self. Jet ran towards the end of the day and had a decent run going but ended up having some problems on her drive and didn't get a very good score, knocking her out of contention for a top 3 combined finish and the chance to do the double lift.

Today was the novice dogs' day at the trial and i had Billy entered in Nursery and ProNovice again. Nursery was first and Bill was off to a great start on the course when he got confused. About half way down the fetch, i gave him a stop and he turned right around like he was looking back up the field. It looked like he thought he'd left some sheep, or something like that. It was really strange looking though - he'd take the down but turn his back to me. It took a couple of minutes before i figured out what was happening. There were swallows skimming along the grass, grabbing at bugs that Bill and the sheep were kicking up, and Bill was feeling pretty disturbed by them. I don't know if he thought they were dive-bombing him, or someone was throwing something or what, but he sure was confused by it and wanted to keep an eye on whatever was going on behind him! Needless to say, his fetch and drive were pretty "interesting", especially in combination with having drawn a group of sheep that wanted to tear around the field like deer. I decided to retire with him before the pen. Later on, he ran in the Pronovice class and had a very pretty run. I decided to send him to the right (he'd gone left the 2 times before) and he ran out very well, to the same setout point as for the Nursery class. Lift, fetch and drive were very clean (breakdown was 18-10-19-26 if i remember correctly). Unfortunately, the sheep didn't want to go right into the pen, needing some convincing, and time ran out, so no pen points. Final score was a 73, which held up at the top of the class until nearly the end of the 17 dogs. He ended up in 2nd place when the dust settled.

It was a nice trial and good finish to the spring trial season. The dogs have all run pretty well and Bill's had a terrific start to his trial career. Now it's time to put some attention into the farm and sheep for a little while. We may go to a local trial at the end of June, but otherwise there's not much on the trial calendar for a bit.

Bluegrass 2009, Day Four

On to our last day of competition at the Bluegrass - bet you thought we'd never get here, didn't you?

Bill was up first dog, first thing in the morning, on the Nursery course. I was determined to get a handle on him at the top end so we didn't have a munchity-munch repeat of his DQ the day before. I'd been looking forward to running him on those fresh sheep for ages, and an outrun-lift-grip doesn't afford much of a crack at it. I sent him to the right, and as he started down the backside of a small hill, i saw his feet and tail up over his head - he'd hit a hole or something, and did a complete somersault! He got up, shook his head, and went on. Before he'd gotten much further though, the sheep broke away from the setout person and ended up to the left side of the setout spot. I heard the judge yell "Pick them up and I'll judge from that spot". It didn't really matter that much, as i was going to be screaming my guts out trying to stop Billy the freight train once he lifted. Outrun and lift were 20-10, fetch was 7 (!). Seriously, i was doing some major yelling trying to keep Bill out of the sheep after the lift. Somehow, they got within the range where i have good control on Bill and we quieted down to the usual soft peeps on the whistle, but the fetch was very offline. It started out that way and we'd have needed to dogleg it to hit the panels, which were very close to the setout as it was. My goal was to get to run the course and avoiding the scatter and grip was essential, so i wasn't too concerned about the line anyway. From that point on, it was quite the gorgeous run. Driveaway and crossdrive were perfect. As we turned at the crossdrive panel, i looked at my watch and we only had 30 seconds left, yikes! So we rushed the return leg, making it a little offline, and Bill put them straightaway in the pen, with the clock going off as i closed the gate, whew! I didn't think it was all that great a run, with that fetch, but Bill handled the sheep very well. Late in the day, i walked back to the novice field just out of curiousity, to see if maybe we'd pick up a Nursery qualifying leg, and was surprised to find out we were leading the class with only a handful of dogs left to run. Apparently the sheep were pretty cranky on the novice field too. When the class was over, Bill's lead had held up and he won the class, getting his first qualifying leg on the Nursery finals as well.

On to our last run at the BG, Zac on the Open field, mid-afternoon in the heat of the day. He ran out and lifted pretty nicely for 17.75-8.5. Sheep started down the field but started stalling out. I couldn't see really well what was happening but i think Zac was shutting them down a bit and they were happy to stop, then started grazing and Zac just had trouble keeping them moving from then on. In hindsight, i wish i'd been more proactive on the whistle, but it looked like he was moving forward and trying to work it out, and i was leaving him alone (too much). As the sheep realized they could stand and eat, they got harder and harder to move. After what seemed like forever, Zac busted in, probably biting one of the sheep, and they finally came down the field but only 3.5 fetch points were left. Because so much time had elapsed, i rushed the sheep around the drive and we got 17 for that. Shed was okay for 7 points, then time ran out before the pen, total was 53.75 points. It was disappointing but Zac did his best.

It was overall a very good Bluegrass for the Shoofly dogs. I was really pleased with Bill's performance all week. He far exceeded my expectations and was growing and learning with every run. I expect next year, when he's still running those Nursery classes, to be a blast with a whole year under his belt. Jet and Zac ran really well, in the first round especially. Time of day was a big issue this year at the BG, and 3 of our 4 runs were in the late afternoon heat, not a very good time to run. But that's the luck of the draw and plenty of teams did well then too. In the first round, over 50% of the teams didn't manage a score, and in the second round, 30% didn't. I feel good that my dogs did get around all 4 times we ran. The biggest problem with the Bluegrass is that now i have to wait a whole year to go back! Huge kudos to everyone involved in putting on such a stellar trial. It's an amazing undertaking and the best trial all year.

Bluegrass 2009, Day Two

Day 2 of the Bluegrass, the busiest day we'll have, with 4 runs - one each for Jet and Zac, and 2 for Bill. Jet ran in the morning, 5th on the Open field. The sheep seemed to be a little more reasonable at this time of day but were still testing the dogs pretty hard at the top. Because Jet pulls up short on her outrun and the sheep wanted to bolt to the left, i sent her left. She did pull up, but it worked out okay considering the sheep. Outrun-lift were good for 17-8.5 (can't remember, i may have given her a redirect on the fly to keep her out). The sheep started their efforts to escape after the lift, bolting left, bolting right, splitting up, but Jet handled them perfectly and mastered them. I'd worried she might blow into them, but she was on the defense and holding tight. No one was getting away from her, by god. 50 yards left, 50 yards right, there was Jet, holding and turning the group and bringing them on. I really didn't try to handle her at all and let her figure out where to be, no flanks from me to interfere, just a few good hard steady whistles to keep up contact with her and keep her eased off the gas at least a hair. Our goal was to get the sheep down the field and down the field they came! We missed the fetch gate but the fetch was relatively straight after getting the sheep mastered, good for 10 points with the miss. We hit both drive gates but the lines were wobbly, 17 points. On to the shed, my particular nemesis at the Bluegrass (along with the crossdrive gates, though that seems to be mostly resolved now). I have always had a devil of a time shedding the sheep there, i think because i don't see sheep like that very often. Last year, i had a pretty nice run with Spottie right into the shedding ring, where we floundered for 4 or 5 minutes, never getting it done. I've been picking the brains of some folks (Pat Shanahan, Vergil, others) the last few months in preparation for seeing them and spent a good part of the first day of the trial watching sheds. I had my plan in place as the sheep came in the ring. If i didn't get a clean, on-the-head opportunity, i was going to run one off the front. I'd seen it done that way several times already and knew it wasn't being hit particulary hard by the judges, and i wanted to get to the pen after the shed and not give up that other 10 points. So we started manuevering around in the ring, trying to get a gap, and oh my, Jet was on fire. She loves shedding, particularly the setting up part of shedding, and every once in a while gets into this cutting horse "zone" - it's hard to even describe but there's pure joy and excitement over there on the opposite side of the sheep from me, and ain't no sheep getting away from that dog. Cut left, cut right, zip, zoom, aye yi yi. It's fun and exciting but the adrenaline is over the top. So, i decided to run one off the front rather than keep angling for the on-the-head single. Jet would have come through the slightest of gaps and could have had the most spectacular of singles, i'm sure, with the attitude she was showing. But i knew we had a decent run going and wasn't risking a disqualifying grip on the hold, not with all that adrenaline screaming in Jet's ears! So, seeing a nice gap open up, i called Jet through and held onto her with my voice to make sure she didn't put a toothy stamp on the shed - 7 points. On to the pen and one of my favorite moments of the whole trip. These 5 month old lambs were not about to walk into that pen without some convincing and Jet was spectacular. Actually, we both were pretty sharp there and it felt like we were in some kind of mind-meld, working so closely together. It was quite a high to close the gate on the lambs, good for 9.5 points. Total score was 69, which held up all day for a 14th place finish, my first placing in Open at the BG (finally!). Jet's been working so well and so sharp this spring and she was wonderful for this run.

Next up was Bill, on the novice field for his second Nursery run. I decided to send him left since he'd gone right 3 times the day before, and also we'd worked on the lefthand side at Vergil's. He was bit flat on the top, for an 18-8, but not bad considering how flat he'd like to be on that side. He was really listening well and the fetch and drive were well controlled and sweet, for 18.5 and 27 points. He continued to be a penning master with a full 10 point pen. Final score 81.5 (of 90) and a 10th place out of 42 dogs, up from 12th the first run.

Since Bill and Zac were to be up at about the same time on both fields, i ran Bill a little earlier in the PN class than we were scheduled for. I think we were both a little bit distracted, me by the looming Open run and Bill by having already run so many times with little time for hanging out and playing, getting some stress relief (the rain had set in the evening before). Still, it was another good run, just not quite as clean as the first PN run. Outrun to the right was perfect with a good lift for a 20-10. Fetch was straight but a tiny bit of offline just before the post for an 18. Driveaway was good but Bill got distracted by a smell at the drive panels and stopped for a quick sniff, resulting in a wide turn and wiggly return leg, so 23 points on the drive. Another perfect 10 point pen and final score was 81, good for 3rd place in the class and Reserve PN Champion in the combined standings, 2 points behind Scott Glen and Whiskey. I was a little concerned about the sniffing but he is a 21 month old intact male, so it's not all that surprising. Bill certainly doesn't lack for keenness, that's for sure. At this point he'd run 7 times in 4 days, an awful lot for one so young. I planned to give him lots of time playing with his friend Meg for the evening so he could relax and have some fun.

On to the Open field and Zac's late afternoon run. The sheep had gotten extremely cranky at this point. It was hot and they just weren't enjoying this game at all. I was pretty concerned about how Zac would do. He can get so into "defense" mode that he stops making much forward progress, or at least he had in the past at this trial. My plan was to just keep the sheep coming forward as much as i could and not worry about the line until the fetch panel. There's a dip behind the panels that i'd been calling "the valley of death" for two days - lots of dogs would work their tails off to get the sheep that far, and then one wrong flank or overflank, and they'd be back up the field like their butts were on fire. I wanted to get past that point before messing around too much with Zac. I set him up to send left and he kept looking at the exhaust sheep to that side. I still wanted to send him that way, thinking he'd be okay as he's a good sheep spotter. He sailed past the exhaust but for some reason, halfway up the field he hit the brakes, spun around, and looked back to the exhaust. Two lookback whistles and a flank later, he was on his way again but 8 points got slashed right there. Lift was pretty good for 8.5 points. Then the rodeo started and Zac did a really good job. The sheep were breaking left and right like they did on Jet (and everyone else), but Zac held them much closer to online than a lot of dogs, which surprised me. I was just hitting the walk up whistle, keeping him forward, and he did a good job bringing them. We missed the gates and had 11.5 for the fetch. Looking at the posted scores, this was one of the better fetch scores of the round and it was with a missed gate. Good boy Zac! I thought the drive was quite good. We hit everything and it was pretty smooth. I was a little surprised to only get 19.5 for it, but again, comparatively speaking, it scored pretty well. We had a devil of a time shedding, with a group that didn't want to split up at all. Finally i got one off the front and Zac came through for 5.5 points. We didn't have enough time left to make a decent attempt at the pen, so nothing there. Total was 57, which was disappointing as it felt like a decent enough run. But losing those 8 on the outrun and not having a pen killed us. With those back, it would have been a 75 and 7th place. All in all, it was a good run, better than i was expecting with the time of day and the way the sheep were running then. I think it ended up being the highest or second highest score of the afternoon. I was really, really happy with Zac and it was a good end to a good day.

Bluegrass 2009, Day One

(Part 2 of the trip blog - see below for the first section on Chinquapinwood SDT) Okay, so we're at the Bluegrass finally. When we left home, i still had Zac on the waiting list to get into the trial, but as of Monday morning, he was in. Neither of my Open dogs ran the first day, Wednesday, so it was all Billy's day. And a good day it ended up being. He was to run Nursery and ProNovice, with Nursery first up. The sheep were set about 275 yards out, with the field rising and falling all the way out. I sent Bill to the right since that's his naturally better side. As he was running out, i gave him a little whistle to keep him out. It would have been nice if i hadn't messed up and given the come bye whistle by mistake, but he took my intent and stayed out nicely. Lift and fetch were decent, as was the drive, and the pen was perfect (Billy is becoming a pen specialist!). Breakdown was 16-8-16-20-10 for a total of 70 and a 12th place finish out of 42 dogs. I was pleased with this considering his grip off in the second run at Hanley's, and also considering he's my Nursery dog for *next* year. The work at Vergil's had stuck, as Bill was listening nicely.

Next up was ProNovice and Bill ran early in the class. I was feeling pretty confident with the small course and Bill and i worked together very well for this run. It was very sharp and smooth, with beautiful lines. Bill left my feet a little too square and ducked around the pen, costing a couple of points right off the top, but otherwise, there wasn't much to pick on. He lost one on his lift, one on the fetch, one on the drive and nothing on the pen, for a total of 5 points off and a 75 out of 80. At the end of the day, we were tied with Scott Glen and Whiskey (a dog i nearly bought 2 years ago as a half grown pup, who would have taken Bill's "spot" before he was even born - funny how things work out!) and ended up in a run off. Judge Bruce Fogt asked for a silent gather to break the tie. It was just a short outrun and judging stopped when the sheep reached your feet. Scott went first and Whiskey ran out well but got a little confused at his very quiet handler. The sheep leaned offline to the right side of the course and ended up at the exhaust, and then jumped the fence, ending the run. Next up was Bill and i was feeling a bit powerless to stop him from his inclination to bust in after the lift. But he ran out well, lifted nicely, started the sheep straight to me, then wondered why i was being so quiet and slipped left off the pressure, allowing the sheep to start towards that exhaust pen to my right. Feeling them slip away, he made a dramatic flank over to cover and brought the sheep dead to my feet, winning the day! I know the silent gather isn't popular with many people, but i have to admit it was very interesting. It was a big first day for Bill and a very good start for the week.