Leaning Tree Australian Cattle Dogs & Border Collies: The Changing of the Seasons

Winter has arrived here in Central Iowa!!! Last weekend we enjoyed 50 degree weather this weekend a snow storm and windchills near to below zero. I have never been so ill prepared, sure hoping that Mother Nature will be nice to us this winter. This afternoon I will be busseling around moving livestock, setting up heated water tanks, pulling water buckets from dog runs and replacing them with easy to deal with dishes.

Before I set to work I thought I would post and long delayed update.

Last weekend we had a blast at the Yellow Rose Cattle Dog Trial over at Platte, SD. If you ever want to take in a trial this is a great one. It is held in an indoor arena with really nice but challenging cattle, along with some fun sheep for the open handlers to prepare for the Denver Stock Show and Rapid City, the figure 8 is a hoot. In addition, they host a Cowboy Christmas Craft Show and a little Cattle Congress with guest speakers. Many people, great shopping, awesome baked goods and smells, we ate way to much.

Wayne and I shared the handling job on Jake, he ran in the Open Cattle division and I ran him in Open Sheep. Both of us are pleased with our performances, the sheep proved challanging, out of approx 25 handlers, some big names, I think only 3 were able to navigate the Y-Chute, Laura Hicks, Pete Carmicheal & Bob Johnson showed us how to do it. Jake and myself made it through the Figure 8 and onto the Y-Chute making what I thought was a serious bid for a top run just to find a brick wall and timeing out, but we were in good company.

Wayne is kicking himself for not approaching his cattle run differently, they ran just over 30 dogs, taking the top 10 back to the finals. The most difficult obstacle was the Maltise Cross, he realizes know that if would have just settled for a low point count and moved on the the pen and exhaust with was worth an ample amount of point he may have been able to get to the finals. But, instead he and Jake worked hard to try to get that Maltise Cross mastered. But, that's ok, Wayne was pleased with his dog, and we were able to get on the road heading home, it was a 6 hour drive. According to Bob Johnson the finals did not get done until 10pm, we were home just after midnight.

We also took a couple of young dogs with for the ride. Weasel (Riley x Jake) was injured last week trying to take on one of Wayne's cattle dogs through the fence, she found herself being drug under the panel but didn't fit. Took all the hide off her front legs and tore her bads up severly. She's back nearly 100% now, no longer needing crate rest but she still have house privilages and she's riding it for all it's worth.

Toby (Bea x Jake) also rode with. On Friday evening Wayne had the opportunity to take him in on some roping steers, we also saw his litter mate Meg take her turn, she is owned by Val who lives near Platte and sets the cattle via horseback for the trial. BTW, Val does and awesome job!! Meg has been helping Val move calves off the feed bunks so she had an idea of what to do with the cattle, but Toby, he has never seen a cow in his life. You wouldn't know it though, off to work he went, first driving them with Wayne and then frustration Wayne by flanking around and driving them back at Wayne. Guess it's time to get a stop on the boy, and a left and a right...could we get so lucky to have it come easy and naturally...naa it's gotta be too good to be true.

I think we need to repeat that cross, sooner as opposed to later, so if anyone knows of someone in the market for a pup we will be taking deposits for the next litter. I'm hoping that we did not miss Bea's heat cycle, if we didn't she should be breedable in the next few weeks giving us February/March pups ready to go home in May/June.

BTW, my book by Tully Williams arrived, you gotta order it though I could see it being way over many peoples heads and I wonder if they would know it.... There was one dog that really caught my eye at Platte, it was a nice smooth coated female by the name of Abby owned by Bob Wagner. Some research revealed that he purchased her from Juan Reyes...he just so happened to be running a male just over a year old that could very well turn into this years Nursery National Cattle Dog Champion and I would not be surprised if he didn't make a run at the Open Finals, the dog's name is Zack, watch for him.... But we will see, I might be mistaken.

What is even more impressive to us, we watched older dogs that have more expirence with cattle get stopped in their tracks by those roping steers. In most cases a second dog had to be sent to help. Not with ours, thinking that they would be a much needed challange for Jake Wayne took him in before the pup, Jake went right to work with them, though he did emit some of his trade mark barks warning them before he would hit a nose, I kinda wish that would go away...

Puppies!!!!!!

Here's a fun picture for you, Ricky (Vicki x Jake) and one of our female Dottie x Tough Australian Cattle Dog pups those little white slugs I posted about a number of months back, oh yeah...they were born on the same day.

This is a Male

This litle red girl is a Snot, she's going to be a heeling machine, and has a heck of a temper

This is Mouse...he has earned house duty, his brothers and sisters think it's fun to make the mouse squeek, so he's been in playing with the big dogs. He's not a wuss, steps right up, but he has a soft bite and is not able to fight his way out from under the biting monkey pile.

I was going to place him in a pet home thinking that he was going to be too soft, but boy is he smart, and he is showing some traits that we want to explore further. Besides what else do I have to do but pick up after the little pack rat...as I have been typing he has brought me my boot, a towel and now the bathroom rug.