My journey started BEFORE me. My parents competed in Obedience with their collies in 1955. At age 5, I faithfully went with my mom to dog obedience class every Monday night. When I was about 10, they gave me one of their retired collies. Sadly, she died within the year. At that point, I promised myself I would get my own collie when I grew up.
When I turned 19, I finally got my first collie from Florence and Mel Roberts. Gay Acre’s Poppin Perrier Am/Can CDX. It was 1980. Perry was an awesome dog. I competed only in Obedience as that was about the only “performance” sport there was. Conformation or Obedience…and there wasn’t a ton of crossover. Back in the day, dogs had to jump 1 ½ their jump height so he had to jump 36” on the high jump and 72” on the broad jump. It was fairly common to travel to Canada to acquire a Canadian Obedience title so off we went and eventually earned our Canadian CD and CDX. He was also the beginning of my annual photo Christmas cards.
In 1983, I brought home Gay Acre’s Policy Change, Can CD, CDX. Polly was a really, really nice dog. She had a little feisty side and if I had her now, she would have gone far in performance. In the late '80s, we started hearing a bit about this new sport, Agility. I took a couple of classes with her which she really seemed to enjoy. I attended my first Collie Club of America National Specialty in Chicago in 1986. That’s when I decided that the next collie I got would also show in Conformation.
In 1990, I moved to Denver with Perry and Polly. Using her new found skills in Agility, she would immediately walk on fallen trees as we hiked in the woods.
At our first herding instinct event Polly showed keen instinct. Perry and Polly laid the foundation for my future in owning a versatile collie.
I lost Perry while in Denver and moved back to Massachusetts with Polly in 1992. When I decided I was ready for another dog, I began my search by attending shows and watching collies in the breed ring. Peg Vohr of Mariner Collies was at many of the shows I attended. I introduced myself to her -- numerous times, so she would know I was sincerely interested in one of her puppies. I knew nothing but I watched her show CH Alfenloch Mariner Amazing and knew that’s what I wanted.
In 1995, CH Mariner's Poetic Justice, CDX, RN, OA, NAP, AJP, HT, VA was born. Poet was life-changing for me. We started training in Obedience, of course, and by then, Agility was gaining popularity. I attended CCA in 1998 in Virginia Beach where Poet’s father Am/Can CH Fantasy Mariner Anchorman, NAJ won the National. We started competing in Agility and Poet loved it. In 1999 we started showing in Conformation. I received a letter from CCA explaining the Versatility Award! Gee, all I needed was a Herding title. Thank goodness for Shelley Wurst. She had begun herding with Tristan, her collie. She agreed to show Poet for me so we could get his HT and subsequently his VA. Words cannot begin to express how much I adored Poet. He was so confident and loved everything. My first Conformation champion, my first Herding title, my first Versatility dog.
In 2000, I brought home CH Mariner's Sea Sharp, HSAs, OA, NAP, NAJ, NJP, OF, NPF, CD, RE, VX. Maestro was a beautiful dog, super athletic, incredible herding instinct and power…and hated dog shows! I was spoiled – Poet had been so easy and loved going to shows. Maestro loved all the sports and could be spectacular…when he wanted to. He taught me so much. He taught me about show stress, he taught me how small gains can feel like you won the lottery and most importantly he taught me my goals are not what it’s all about. He finished his Conformation championship early and we earned some Agility titles and once again, Shelley Wurst handled him for me in Herding so we could get his Versatility Award. All that by the age of 2…and we literally spent the next 10 years slowly chipping away at a few more titles. My fondest memories are bringing him to CCA in Pennsylvania in 2012. He competed in everything at the age of 12 and had a ball. He was a soulful dog that taught me so much.
In 2004 I saw a picture of a puppy, and shortly thereafter visited Kris Provenzano and brought home Suede, CH MACH2 Provenhill's Persuasion, CDX, BN, RE, HSAds, HIAds, MXC, MJB2, MXP2, MJP3, MJPB, MXF, MFB, MFP, T2B, GV. Suede took me to a whole new level. I was told it was time for me to learn herding and show my own darn dog! Let me tell you, Herding is probably the most difficult sport. It’s hard! And for me, REALLY hard. I’ve shed more tears in herding than in any other sport -- tears of frustration but also tears for accomplishing my goals. Suede was my first Herding dog and I eventually earned an Intermediate title on both ducks and sheep with him. Those accomplishments mean a lot to me. He was also my first Agility champion and qualified for the CCA Grand Versatility. It’s not easy training for Versatility when you work and have a limited income. We did it step by step, day by day. We took the journey together.
2008 brought Peyton to my world. Ch Miillknock Blue By Ewe, CDX, BN, RA, HSAds, AX, AXJ, MXP2, MXPB, MJP2, XF, MFP, T2BP, VX.
Can a dog have a sense of humor? If the dog is Peyton, the answer is yes. There has never been a dog that has made me laugh throughout our lack of success. Though I learned a lot with Maestro about show stress, Maestro stressed down. He got slower in the ring, he sniffed the floor, etc. Peyton is on the other end of the spectrum – he stresses UP. He barks, he leaps in the air; he will look around for something to grab and bring it to me. He is one of the most intelligent dogs I have ever had and he has taught me, that just like humans, we don’t all learn the same way. I think dog training needs to evolve beyond a set formula for all dogs. Just like humans, some dogs are more verbal, some are more visual. We choose puppies based on looks and structure. We look for confidence; we look for puppies that are outgoing. But do we look to see if our training style is compatible with the learning style of the dog? In human terms, if I’m a mathematician, communicating with an artist could be difficult. I have learned with Peyton that he is absolutely brilliant and my training needs to make sense to him, not me. I now try to figure out how a dog thinks before I train something.
The last bitch I had was Polly in 1983. My preference is a sable boy. Not a bitch, not a Tri…and what did I come home with in 2013? A tri bitch, of course!
Ch Millknock’s Tri the Next Chapter BN HSAds MXB MJB MFB T2B2 VA, pictured below, is that tri bitch.
I chose Sequel because she thinks like I do. I did some puppy “tests,” and she responded in a way that made sense to me. We were on the same page, the same wavelength from the very beginning. I feel like she is the dog I’ve been training for, the dog I’ve been waiting for and the dog that is going to take me to another level of training and understanding my dogs. And when you have a dog that makes sense to you and vice versa, you start to understand training on a different level. You understand why consistency is so important – every day and in everything you do, at home, in training and in the ring. No shortcuts -- train the behavior that you want because trying to make it easier for your dog actually makes it harder for your dog. Lack of structure equals lack of commitment for both of us. I feel lucky and blessed to have her in my life. She is my Sequel.
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