Hello - and Baaaaaaaaa

[irenafarm]

Hey, I'm "off" today and checking out some new places to visit. I was referred here just now and it looks like fun.

I raise sheep on a little farm in North Carolina, kind of near Danville VA actually. I have two boys who I homeschool, and also have a business training Border Collies to chase geese or other nuisance waterfowl off public properties like runways or golf courses. My own dogs also work on the farm.

The resident dogs are:

Maggie and Zhi, the co-queens of the realm. Maggie is a 14 year old Finnish spitz mix and Zhi is a 3 year old Chinese crested.

the Border Collies Ben (almost 12), Cord (8), Gus (7), Doug the Dog (7), Rocky (18 mos), and the Tedlet (13 mos)

The Maremma sheepdogs who guard the sheep: Lu (9) and Tully (3). A Maremma is kinda like a Pyrenees only not quite as hairy.

Looking forward to conversation!

 

[Laurelin]

Hey! Glad you decided to check it out here. I'm sure you'll find a bunch of familiar faces.

 

[jess2416]

Welcome

 

[irenafarm]

Looking very homey - hope no one's thinking "there goes the neighbrhood!"

 

[Zoom]

Hi and welcome! Your bunch will fit in great here!

 

[LuvsDogs]

Hello & welcome to Chaz. My Border Collie, April, is 14 y/o deaf, going blind, arthritic & has dementia. I used to do obedience & agility training with her but I've always called her a frustrated sheep dog & regret not doing sheep herding with her instead.
Look forward to hearing more about your dogs.

 

[heartdogs]

Hi Rebecca,
The little speckled monstah in my avatar is Sequoyah - she wanted to be the stahhhh over here like Sioux was over there. Welcome to Chazhound - a very friendly place and full of refugees LOL.

 

[gradyupmybutt]

Hi Rebecca! Welcome to Chaz!

 

[Xerxes]

Becca, can you train my pharaoh to chase geese and NOT catch them, and to NOT eat their poo? Pretty please...that would be a great job for us.

Welcome to the forum, lots of familiar faces...at least a few.

 

[luvmyswissy]

Hi Rebecca!! (((hugs))) from River and the gang.

 

[milos_mommy]

Okay, seriously, WHERE ARE YOU COMING FROM?

Man you've got a housefull.

 

[RD]

Hi Rebecca! Fancy seeing you here.

 

[~Jessie~]

Welcome to the forum

 

[luvmyswissy]

Okay, seriously, WHERE ARE YOU COMING FROM?

Man you've got a housefull.

Please don’t feel like this is a cyberspace invasion, we come as friends. And your all so nice, not like our homeland. :yikes:

 

[irenafarm]

RD!!! Now I know I'm home, lol. Now I've got to go back and read all your posts, like a forum stalker. . . .mwah, hahahahah.

I think it's kind of like when the weather warmed up around 400 AD and the Visigoths were driven out of their previous territory by other tribes moving into their territory, because their land was overrun by mosquitoes. Or so the theory goes.

I don't know whether that makes me a mosquito or what . . .

 

[irenafarm]

Ed, that is why there's actually training involved for the BCs, too! They have to learn to mind so they don't catch them in fact - though I've had a few that did it anyway their first day on a "real" job - they just got so excited.

The trick is to be able to stop the dog in mid-chase to give the birds a chance to get to water. Once they are in the water, no dog can catch them - especially if they are able to fly.

This is the main reason Border Collies are used as opposed to dogs with even more prey drive or more water-oriented dogs - they listen better when they are in the middle of a frothing at the mouth adrenaline rush - or they do once they are trained to do so!

Some people have experimented with sighthounds and mixes to try to bump up the prey drive, but the problem is that once the birds are in the water, it's not as stimulating to a sighthound and the motivation to chase disappears. Swimming birds move slowly and are hard for a dog that is itself swimming, to see. The dogs have to learn to find the birds by hearing, smell, and even feel.

Well, that was probably TMI . . .I'm sitting here in bed fighting off a migraine and really need to rest!

 

[Lizmo]

Hey, I saw your avatar and was like "She's from the BC Boards!"

Welcome to Chaz!

 

[Laurelin]

LOL, I swear, they come in peace!

 

[gradyupmybutt]

If any one evil shows up, we'll let you know.

 

[Chewbecca]

BECCA!!!

Welcome!