That'll Do Bet

In case folks haven't figured it out, I LOVE that freaky little Border Collie of mine. Yup, I have a lot of dog souls that I love and own big pieces of my heart - but that silly little, bad-breathed, dirty-toed, slightly neurotic, waffle-loving creature is in a league all of her very own.


For those of you that don't know, Bet's former family, the Glens of Alta-Pete Stockdogs, are EXTREMELY accomplished in the herding world and Bet's half brother, Don, is practically a legend. Bet comes from herding ROYALTY but she just didn't live up to her potential and that is she how she ended up being available to us when I was looking for a Border Collie to use to free run my puppies.

I've written HEAPS over the years about that and her job at the kennel, so I won't go over it all again here.

In her travels with me over the last 6 years, she has come in contact with sheep numerous times and made it VERY clear that that was all in her past and not something she was interested in.

All that changed last month though. In a fluke incident she was in contact with sheep again and this time decided that she wanted to give it another go.

Because I don't say 'no' to her well, we have made the trip across the valley to my friend Lisa Wright's Landing Trail Stock Dogs about once a week since then for lessons. This weekend Lisa was putting on a seminar and off we went again.

I'd like to say that Bet waited patiently and politely as other dogs were worked....

....but that would be a LIE!

She whined and barked and fussed like a sled dog at hookup. She spent most of the time waiting locked in a crate in the van (yes, it was cool, cold actually, and the tailgate was open) like a REAL DOG.

When it was her turn, for the amount of training she has had, she did a GREAT job. Seeing that drive and learning to control it is as much a rush to me as watching my sled dogs learn to run in harness. Purpose-bred souls doing their purpose.....in my world it does not get much better. 

Lisa working Bet for a bit yesterday.

At the end of her session, when I pat my leg, say 'That'll do Bet', and she looks up at me with that tired satisfaction that I see so often in the eyes of my Siberians, things are RIGHT in my world!


Oh, and she got waffles for breakfast this morning. Did I mention that I don't say 'no' to her well???