McCall English Shepherds

3 Girls Available

2008-05-18T06:34:00.000-07:00

I have three great little girls availables.

Happy, Cleo and Jewel

You can read about them and see videos and pics on my new blog at
www.blog.englishshepherdcentral.com

Hope you will visit my website also to learn more about English Shepherds at
www.englishshepherdcentral.com

New Puppies

2008-04-04T09:10:00.000-07:00

Birth Announcement

Ringo and Gabby had 7 new puppies born March 13, 2008

There are 6 girls and 1 boy. Everyone is doing fine.

New Pups Arrive Feb 12, 2006

2007-02-25T14:35:00.000-08:00

Gabby and her daughter, Daisy, both had pups on February 12, 2007.

Gabby had 12 pups.. 4 girls and 8 boys. Gabby was a perfect Mom and had her pups in a crate in the lab. Everything went perfect.

Daisy had 5 pups ..2 girls and 3 boys! This was a surprise! We diden'tt know she was pregnant till the last minute. She was working cows, jumping around acting normal. And then we realized her teats were swollen. She decided to have her pups under the old bush hog in the woods.. one of her favorite spots as a pup. Unable to dig them out, we had to wait till she thought they were ready to be seen.

At about 3 weeks we moved Gab and her pups to a stall in the main barn. Daisy thought that was a keen idea and decided to move her pups into the next stall down.

What a sight! The pups are now up and about. Yesterday after pictures we built a play yard for the pups and turned both litters in together.

Corley's Jack

2007-02-05T07:12:00.000-08:00

Corley's Jack is closely related to Ringo. Both dogs have the same mom, Princess and their sires are full brothers.

Over the years, we have heard repeatedly from Bill Corley about how pleased he is with Jack. Our last update just after the New Year, 2007, is

"We are doing great and Jack is three and a great dog."

For more information about Jack, visit the website

http://www.mofoxtrot.com/twinspringsfarm/shepherds.htm

Drugs to avoid during Pregnancy and Nursing

2007-01-23T08:17:00.000-08:00

Here is great source for drugs to avoid during pregnancy and nursing.

My philosophy is to avoid all drugs if I can during the 62 days of pregnancy. I try and vaccinate if necessary prior to breeding. Also I try to deworm prior to breeding but, as we all know, stuff happens..

There is also the risk of drugs passing into the milk and affecting puppies while they are being nursed.

This page, by Dr. Holly Nash, includes all sort of drugs from dewormers to salves to antiobiotics. Note that there is a column for "Safety Studies in Dog not Available" . Be sure to check that column when checking on the safety of a product.

I have found that this information contradicts some of the advise given by my local vets especially when it comes to dewormers.

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=0&cat=1303&articleid=856

Whelping Advice

2007-01-23T07:48:00.000-08:00

Even though I have been breeding dogs for 35 years, I, oftentimes, feel like the maid in "Gone With Wind" who exclaimed

" I don't know nothing about birthin' Miss Scarlet".

After years of foaling out mares and studying Equine Reproduction, I feel like I know a little about broodmares but brood bitches ... help..

I frequently search the internet for birthing information

For those in the same shape as I offer the successful fruits of my internet search.

RX for Whelping and Ceasarians by Barbara J. Andrews is full of good advise. Ms. Andrews also provides an insight into the natural needs and behavior of the whelping bitch.

Timing Is Everything: Breeding Strategies and the Estrous Cycle, Part 1 Part 2 written by Arliss Paddock is also full of good information for the breeder. It is available on the American Kennel Club website.

I think both these articles dispel the notion that you can pre-determine the breeding date for your girls. I still get calls from folks that want to breed their dog on the 11th and 17th day after they come in heat.

It just doesn't work like that.

Interestingly, some horse folks think the same way. They think they are going to breed their foaling mare on the 12th day after foaling. That only works if she is ovulating on 1th day. It is all about the individuality of the female.

In horses, we are lucky because we can watch the egg on the ovary and see when it is going to ovulate. In dogs, we have to follow our instincts just like we used to have to do with horses.

Listen to the stud dog. He is the best indicator of when the girl is ready to bred. I breed my dogs very much like we bred horses.

I give the male the opportunity to breed the female. Sometimes this is quite a while because some stud dogs like some stud horses only want to breed under certain circumstances. For example, some males doesn't want to bred when people are around or they only like to breed at night.

If the male covers the female, I skip a day and try to bred her again. I continue this program until they no longer are interested in breeding.

If she doesn't accept him the first day, I give them the opportunity to breed every day until the first breeding, then I skip every other day till the end of the breeding period.

Ultimately, it is about knowing a lot about the breeding attitudes of your stud dog and the breeding females.

Foothill Sam (Ringo's maternal great-grandfather)

2006-09-18T07:11:00.000-07:00

Foothill Sam died December 30, 2001. I had the pleasure of spending the last six weeks of his life with him. He was the epitome of what an English Shepherd should be.

Linda Satterfield was generous enough to let me have Sam for his final days. We hoped that he might be able to father pups out our our female Tessa. Unfortunately it did not happen. Instead Sam spent his last days on our farm helping us feed horses, gather cows and train cutting horses. He always asked if he was doing what was right. If he was making an incorrect move, he was always ready to learn how to make it right.

He never complained and tried to get along with all the rest of the dogs. At nine years of age, he could jump into a wagon stacked 3 hay bales high and balance on the top bale. He would drop down and "shepherd crawl" around the cows. We saw nothing that would indicate that he was in any way impaired in his movement.

Sam began to go down shortly before Christmas - and was diagnosed as having kidney failure. Still every day, Sam would come to the arena and help work the cows however he could. Some days he would hold a corner. When that got too much, he would come and lay in the middle of pen and bark at the cows if they tried to escape past him.

Sam did not want to die. He fought hard and would not give up. I would be proud for someone to say that I had as much kindness, generous, willingness and heart as Sam had. Sam and I worked hard to overcome his condition. The day Foothill Sam died was the day the breed lost one of the great ones. He is a dog I will never forget.

Libby, Queen of the Universe

2006-09-14T15:34:00.000-07:00

Libby is Ringo's sister and owned by Karen Cline. Here is what Karen has to say about her:

Libby is certainly not the dog for everyone, but she is an incredible dog, in my opinion! She is a complex mix of traits with a very dominant alpha personality at the top of it all. She is the bossiest, most courageous dog I've ever known. However, her very wonderful biddability offers balance and makes her easy to work with - so long as you're someone for whom she has respect. She is exceptionally friendly toward all people, but she will not work or "perform" for just anyone. If she's not going to work for you, you'll probably think she's deaf. I have a son that she can't hear unless he has food in his hand. Sometimes she can't even see him if he doesn't have food in his hand. He doesn't understand much about dogs and Libby knows it and exploits it. LOL

If you don't know Libby, you might be inclined to think she didn't listen to anyone. When I correct her, she doesn't cower or give any physical sign of submission. It does not matter how strong the correction. Her response is more like, "Oh... gotcha!" However, it is obvious that she takes the correction to heart, as I rarely have to correct her twice. She would do just about anything to please me.

Her bossiness and dominance is reserved for the animal kingdom... and not people. She is incredible with children, despite the fact that we do not have any kids in our home. She proved herself as a protector of children when she was just 12 months old. We were at the ranch and out in the middle of the pasture, when she stopped my border collie from attacking my five year old neice (totally out of the blue). Libby saw what was happening and placed herself between Chim Cham and Maddie, and made Chim Cham back down. However, before the adults could get there, Chim Cham decided to try one more time. I yelled "DOWN!" but Chim Cham did not obey. Libby's enforcer personality came out immediately, and she put Chim Cham into a forced down and held her on the ground until I could get there. Chim Cham is much larger and more stockily built, but Libby had no problem putting her on the ground.... and no problem holding her there. By the way, Libby had only seen Maddie once or twice before... so this was about protecting "a" child rather than protecting "her" child.

In obedience class one night, a young, goofy golden retriever escaped from his handler and was doing "zoomies" all over the ring. We had an Aussie in the class that had dog agression issues, so many people were trying to catch the golden before he got too close to the Aussie. Libby watched several people dive for the golden, then in exasperation, ran across the ring (she'd been on a "wait" while I walked across the ring for a recall exercise), grabbed the golden, and held him for his handler. I was really afraid that she'd hurt him... but he didn't have a mark on him. She just wanted him to know that we *do not* run in class. LOL

Because Libby has such a strong enforcer personality, we have to be very careful of disciplining (or even correcting) other animals in front of her. She will take it upon herself to discipline the other animal for you. Heaven forbid you tell another dog it's "bad". She'll offer to spank it for you. She reminds me a bit of a mafia hit man... "You want I should handle it, boss??"

Libby can get along with other dogs if they are willing to accept that she is the reigning Queen of the Universe. The "problem" is that not every dog is willing to bow and scrape. :) She generally does not start fights - at least not in a way that is obvious to most people - but she will not back down from one. She does have a way of ticking off other dogs just by her presence, however, so I always have to watch with new dogs to make sure that things don't get out of hand. This was demonstrated recently at Lynda's farm when Libby accompanied us to pick up Melody. Things where going along pretty well, then all of a sudden there was a donnybrook with Gabby and Libby... and Ringo and Daisy jumped in to help. There are just signals between Libby and other dogs that are about impossible to see... until suddenly a hockey game breaks out. Lynda's lovely girl, Gabby, ended up with a pierced lip courtesy of Libby... but she gave as good as she got and Libby went home with a third nostril punched in her nose leather. LOL Fortunately, everyone was easily called off and it was over as quickly as it started.

Libby is not bothered by sights or sounds. She sits in the back yard watching fireworks on the 4th when all the rest of the dogs in the neighborhood have gone to hide. She'll look over at me with excitement as if to say, "Hey, did you see THAT one??" She's also not bothered by guns. I have only found one thing that frightened her - a 5' timber rattler and I think that it is a good thing of which to be afraid. However, even with the rattler, she did not run or back off - she just kept her distance while making sure that no one else accidentally got too close to it.

Libby has so many "gears" I don't know if I can describe them all. I have used her to move bulls that my border collie could not begin to work. She has all the grit you'll ever need for close work with large, rangy stock. Libby is a naturally low heeler, but she will go to the head when necessary. She doesn't bark much when working, but will if it is needed and will grip when it's appropriate. She definitely takes it down a notch when working sheep. She has caught and held chickens and rabbits for me when I needed help catching one. In those instances, she is super gentle and does not use her teeth, but holds them with her paws and/or lays on them. She tends to use her front feet a lot like hands. She uses her feet to open and close gates (and crates), which is quite funny to see. My son calls this tendency of hers "being foot-y". She also passed this trait to her daughter, Sera.

Because of Libby's strong personality, I have some challenges in choosing mates for her. I have to choose a dog that will temper the Queen of the Universe tendency, but maintain the excellent working qualities and the biddability. The combination of Boo and Libby was excellent in this respect. Boo has subsequently been neutered - and so there won't be more from that match. (No, despite a friend's attempts at starting a funny rumor, Libby did not neuter him herself ;) The combination of Libby and Sir is still in the "wait and see" stage since the pups are just now three months old. However, my initial observations of the litter and reports from their new owners are encouraging.

She is an incredible mother and it doesn't matter the species. She tried to raise the cat's kittens at the same time as she had a litter of 12 pups. Obviously, the lowly cat was just not equipped (in Libby's mind) to be as good a mother as Her Royal Libbyness. ;) We are very fortunate that our cat tolerates Libby being Libby. Libby has also been known to attempt to resuscitate a dead newborn rabbit, and when she failed to do so, she openly grieved for it.

While Libby is always friendly to people, there have been two times when she made it clear that she would take no prisoners if she thought I was in danger. On two different occasions, while walking along Tulsa's Riverparks trails just after sundown, I've encountered men that seemed to have bad intentions and they gave both Libby and I the "heebie geebies". She immediately went into protective mode and made it clear that if they got any closer, they might lose a limb. In both cases, they turned and went another way. I've never known if she was reading the men herself or if she was keying from my interpretation of their actions. It doesn't matter to me.... she's proven that she'd protect me, and I won't walk in the park without her unless is it broad daylight (and even then I take one or more of the dogs "just because").

Finally, I have to comment on her intelligence. She seems to understand **everything** I say... and she watches everything I do. I recently had told Sera (out of Libby by Rott's Boo) to go outside, but Sera had found something interesting to sniff and seemed not to hear me. I turned to Libby and said, "You need to go tell your daughter that I said to get herself outside!" I really didn't expect Libby to do anything.... I was just talking. However, she immediately left my side, went straight to Sera and gave her "the look". Sera dropped her head in submission and skeedaddled for the back door. Libby just looked at me and grinned. Smart alec!

I'm very grateful for having Libby in my life. Like I said, she's certainly not the dog for everyone, but we adore her.

--
Karen in Oklahoma
Concharty English Shepherds http://www.concharty.com

Great Dog Books

2006-09-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

If you own a dog or likes dogs or just like great books about dogs, Cesar's Way by Cesar Milan is the read for you. I wish every dog owner that I sold a puppy too would read this book. In my opinion, Cesar Milan knows more about dogs than anyone I have ever known.

Personally I have studied Animal Behavior (horses in particular) since 1970. Behavior is universal. Understanding the uniqueness of different species is an interesting challenge.

Being able to speak and related to another species is a life long passion. Cesar has this passion for dogs and I envy this knowledge. Cesar is a teacher and willingly shares his knowledge for the betterment of the relationship between humans and horse. This is truly the mark of a "whisperer".

Marley and Me

I think this is the title of the book. What a great dog book! While I think that Cesar might could have helped Marley, this book scored a 10 with me. It made me laugh. It made me thoughtful. It made me cry.

Even though Marley is a lab I think this book could help us all understand our dogs better. Salute! Marley!!

Here are some other dog books that are highly related:

Childproofing Your Dog (and it's sister book, Dogproofing Your Child), by Brian Kilcommons.

*How To Raise a Puppy You Can Live With, by Rutherford and Neil

*Don't Shoot the Dog!, by Karen Pryor (she is the queen of clicker training)

*Culture Clash, by Jean Donaldson (this is not so much a training book,as one oriented towards understanding dogs)

*Calming Signals: on talking terms with dogs, by Turid Rugaas

Spellman's Jake

2006-09-13T09:50:00.000-07:00

Hey there Lynda!! Long time no speak...I hope that you and your family (and all your animals )are well. I wanted to fill you in our Jake... He is a dream! Exactly what we'd hoped for, Lynda. He is such a good, obedient dog (even our vet and trainer/sitter have commented on what a great dog he is) and playful when appropriate. I've attached 2 photos, a few months old. I think he looks just like his mom, Gabby. He has her beautiful silky coat and coloring. My only concern about Jake is that he doesn't have enough work to do. We don't have any other animals (except for the gerbil who just died...) and although we try to play with him and I try to get him on a good walk as often as possible, I'm afraid he's bored!!
So, now I am thinking about getting him a companion! And when I saw that Gabby and Ringo had another litter I just had to inquire.........

What are your feelings about having 2 dogs in the same household? I'd love another dog just like Jake if that's possible. My vet recommended a female to avoid the male/male issues. What do you think? How is your new litter doing? I would love your input whenever you get a minute.

Thanks!
Pam Spellman

The Spellman's now have two English Shepherds. What lucky dogs! Maybe Pam will send us pictures again. I'm afraid I lost the ones that she referred to!

Ivermectin and other Lethal Meds for ES

2006-09-11T15:18:00.002-07:00

Ivermectin is a wonderful drug which is used in many products to eliminate parasites from dogs, horses and other animals.

Problem is, many English Shepherds are highly allergic to it.. In fact they are so allergic that it can cause death.

I know of at least 2 dogs from Ringo's family that died after a treatment of ivermection. One was his sire, Augtu, who died several days after a treatment for heartworms. One of his sisters also died from a dose of ivermectin.

Karen Cline, another English Shepherd breeder, sent me a link to a site with more information about this problem in English Shepherds.

Please visit this site. http://www.busteralert.org

The most interesting thing to me was that dogs with this genetic problem also may be sensitive to other drugs.. which may kill them. Information about this can also be found at the above website.

Karen had a life experience with drug interactions which eventually caused the death of an English Shepherd. I hope she will share her experience with us.

Check out the website of the University of Washington for information about this condition and available testing to determine if your dog has the MDR1 mutation...

http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/depts-VCPL/

You can never know too much!

Snow aka Atticus

2006-09-11T15:16:00.000-07:00

Snow is a happy, energetic pup with a very curious mind. He is always up for a walk in the woods or just happy to follow me around.

Snow caught a ride to his new home in Austin with a couple of college students from Texas A & M. Just before he was ready to load into their car, he ran out to the edge of the back yard and jumps into the calf pasture. There he found a big puddle of water mixed with calf poo. Of course he must have jumped in because the next time we saw him he was jumping up and down and racing back to us.. happy as could be and covered in muck.

applauding his exuberance, I let him fly around and roll in the grass. Then I herding him off to the bath tub for a quick bath.. which he also loved.

Snow is going to spend his life with Linda. I am sure they would have a great life together.

Here is a recent comment from Linda:

He is just an incredible little guy. We are having so much fun. Sometimes he knows to sit and sometimes not, but we are working on it.

He is feeling great and plays hard then flops down whereever he is and sleeps.

I think I am going to call him Atticus. As in Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. He is smart and noble and loyal. He continues to charm everyone who meets him.

Mindy aka Melody

2006-09-11T14:38:00.000-07:00

Mindy is one of the "big" girls.. She is always there! Never in the way.. Never intrusive. There. Watching. Figuring out stuff.

I brought Mindy to my husband for analysis. He was sitting watching the evening news in his favorite chair. It was pretty much a new situation for Mindy. She had been in the house a couple of time for pictures and other stuff but not long and never in the chair.

Here are my husband's comments ( he is a rancher and cutting horse trainer with a Ph.D in equine reproduction..if you can imagine) :

" Awesome Full of "quiet confidence" confident about new situations.. not intimidated at all.."

He put her outside after his anlysis and she met me on the way back to the house.. I grabbed her up and she delighted me with a great big smile.. and then when I put her down she pulled at my jean pants.

A delightful, secure puppy...

who now has a new home in Oklahoma with Renee and her family. Renee's family has a long history with English Shepherds going back several generations.. Her sister, Karen, currently raises English Shepherd and has one of Ringo's sister as the Mom of her puppies.

Mindy is going to be the member of the Rhodes' family and is destined to be a further Mom of some great English Shepherd pups.

Here is a picture of Melody 2007 sent by her family

Redford

2006-09-06T04:54:00.000-07:00

Today Redford leaves on his trip to New Jersey to join the DeSantis family. He was up for his road trip to Little Rock where we met with Betty. Betty takes my English Shepherds to the East Coast. She loves English Shepherd puppies and they arrive at their destinations a tad spoiled.

Redford is a delightful boy, full of play and happy, happy, happy. If someone is pulling on my pant legs, chances are, it is Redford.

Redford is a member of the triplets that look alike in the face. Imagine Redford, Sundance and Missy - But now he is scheduled to be the center of attention in a family with 2 teenage boys. I am sure that all that energy and play will come in handy.

Cissy

2006-09-05T11:42:00.000-07:00

My, my Cissy. What a life!! Miss Cissy is now living in St. Louis.

Flew out of Arkansas in a private plane in the arms of her new owner, Mr. Dave Sinclair

Cissy's job description involves working on Dave's cattle ranch, playing with his grandchildren, and, I bet, delighting customers at Dave's Car Dealerships.

First comments from Dave's secretary:

"Just wanted you to know I was privileged to meet "Cissy" this morning. Although I believe her name today is Missy. Mr Sinclair said the grandkids were coming up with names all week-end long, so there is a chance she may not remain Missy forever. He brought her into the dealership today. The two of them were smiling ear to ear. I just want to thank you for all the patience in getting Cissy her new home. Thanks again"

So, if you are in St. Louis, stop by Dave Sinclair Ford, Lincoln Mercury, Buick-GMC, Oldsmobile Kia and Daewoo to visit Dave and "Cissy"!

Tell them "Lynda sent me"!

Sundance

2006-09-05T11:10:00.000-07:00

Sundance was the hardest pup to identify because he had a twin brother - Redford. I kept thinking they were the same pup.

And if this was not confusing enough, he has a twin sister, Mindy.

11 pups are hard to keep track of and if you have twins or triplets it gets even more difficult.

What a lucky pup Sundance is! His family, Lisa and Mike, flew from Seattle to Houston and vacationed for some time before heading up to our franch about 7 hours north of Houston.

They didn't know which boy pup they wanted so they "tested" them. Sundance won their hearts. He was very interested in interfacing with Mike as well as Lisa. This was really important to them as their other dog, an 8 year old ES mix, had issues with men.

This older dog had been rescued by Mike and Lisa and probably had some negative experience with men in the past .

What great parents Mike and Lisa will be .. and so brave. They loaded Sundance, Happy and Missy up and headed back to Houston to fly all the pups back to Washington for two other new families in the same area.

Along the way they spent the night in a motel with the three pups, arriving back in Houston to crate 2 pups and deliver to Cargo and then carry one on the plane with them..

Arriving back in Seattle midnight of the following day.. what an adventure.. perhaps they will share some of their experiences with us.

The following day both of the pups were picked up by their new family and Sundance began his challenge of "wooing" the grumpy "ole" girl, Siouxsie

First comments from the home front:

"Our Siouxsie was not liking all the new faces in the household, I think it will be a while before she warms up to Sundance, but he sure does like following her around.

Thanks and thanks so much for a wonderful little puppy. It was a pleasure meeting you the other day."

Thank you, Mike and Lisa. It was a great treat to get to meet and spend some time with the family that is going to sharing the life with one of my pups.

Missy

2006-09-05T10:58:00.000-07:00

Miss Missy has the best personality. She loves to be the center of attention. Is very photogenic. She has the biggest smile and is very social.

She now lives on Bainbridge Island, Washington with her family, The Ringos and a 9 year old Border Collie.

The Ringos were on a vacation to the east coast while Missy made the trip to Washington along with 2 other of her siblings.

First Comments from her new family:

"I wanted to let you know that we collected our little girl from Lisa’s yesterday AM. It was definitely love at first sight! All of us think she is absolutely perfect. She has settled in very nicely and seems curious about everything and pretty much takes it all in stride.

With something new, she will sit down and look or think for a few minutes and then seems to say well, that’s cool!

Last night was a little rough at first but she settled down when we put her in a box by the bed so I could periodically reach down and pet her. We will send some pics when we organize something from the hundred or so we have already taken! We are working on names…maybe Roxie??

Thanks for our wonderful puppy! "

Happy aka Rowan

2006-08-14T13:05:00.000-07:00

Meet Happy

She has a wide collar and a blaze face with a white stripe that connects her collar to her blaze. Her front feet are white and her back feet are white with high black and tan markings.

Happy is a very energetic young lady. She is very brave. Stands and observes new situations. Is usually in the middle of everything that is happening. Was extremely comfortable the first time in the house.. Settling right down in laps for petting and cuddling.

Happy now lives with the Foley family on Shaw Island, Wa which includes 5 children. Her job description also includes "putting up" with a larger--gentle--dog, two cats, 60 chickens, and a growing flock of sheep, and a few head of cattle and be good in dog-4H.

Also flushing out mink and giving chase to raccoons, fox and other things that may harm chickens.

What a lucky English Shepherd! A full life of challenging jobs.

First comments from the Foley's

"Thanks for everything. Happy is beautiful"

English Shepherds in Search and Rescue (SAR)

2006-08-14T10:19:00.000-07:00

For a long time, I have thought that English Shepherd would be excellent SAR prospects. Bred for their desire to please and to do a multiplicity of jobs including searching for lost livestock seem to be a genetic fit for the kind of attitude necessary in SAR.

Pushed to the back of my mind, these thoughts were stimulated by a request for a pup for possible SAR work. Now the need for more information has been pushed to the forefront.

Emailing a group of breeders, I received this informative email from Heather who is involved in SAR with English Shepherds.

"We came to the ES breed largely because we could not find another GSD that met our needs for a working dog and companion in one package. Ken and I
started with Lilly in '91, (Lilly is a GSD) with both of us handling one dog. We wanted to get her operational, and then get another pup to train so we could each field at searches instead of fighting it out..
I'd actually looked into the ES back in 1992, before we moved to PA. I liked the working Aussies on our SAR team, but hated tail docking; this was before show breeding had taken off among Aussies.
So the ES attracted my attention. I'd spoken on the phone to Marian, and had some brochures from her. Pre-internet! But first we relocated -- put off buying a pup -- and then we found Mel's breeder, so our second SAR dog was another GSD.
We started looking for a pup to take over Lilly's job in about 1998. Hunted for two years before finding another GSD breeder who had what we figured we wanted. A teammate was also looking for a first SAR dog at the same time, and really wanted a smaller dog, and one that could work without being crazed all the time.
I suggested the ES, and Barb did the research. She found Theresa, and I went up to Erie with her to check out the dogs. We both really liked Dust-Dee and Cocoa, and my instincts told me that they could throw pups that had the right characteristics of each parent. So I told Barb to wait until they had a litter -- turned into a pretty long wait.
There weren't any other dogs at Theresa's that I thought had "it" as far as making SAR dogs. The GSD litter and Cocoa's litter came at about the same time, but there were health problems with the GSD litter that worried me greatly.
When I went up with Barb for a first look at the ES pups when they were five weeks old, I made the call that we would be better off with one of these pups than with one of the survivors of the GSD litter. Pip and her siblings were a really nice bunch of pups. Ken was uncertain, but had to agree. So it was in some ways a really snap decision, based on the individual dogs more than the breed.
I've always counseled people who are hunting for a SAR dog to search among several breeds that are acceptable to them and pick the best pup from the best parents, even if that's their third choice of breed. So I actually followed my own advice!
Barb had first choice in the litter, and chose the most "medium" of the bitch pups in terms of temperament. That was the right call for her.
Ken and I chose the looniest of the five, the one with the most zest, drive, and chutzpah. I tested all the pups while Barb and her husband videotaped and assisted.
What I look for in a pup's background, regardless of breed:
Working parents -- in a job that selects for good character (junk yard dog or flyball don't count, for example)
Genetic health -- I took some gambles with Pip and more or less won, but
probably wouldn't be so trusting again
Parents who I would wish to own myself. Intelligent parents who can problem-solve
Breeder who is committed to socializing
Then, in the puppy itself, through observation and testing:
Sociable
-- no such thing as a too-friendly pup; discernment can come later, or not, I
don't care
Bold and curious about people, things and animals
Fearless in new surroundings -- you put it down in a new weird place, and he "owns" the space
Good following instinct
Prey drive -- not excessive, but must be moderate to high
Hunt drive -- almost can't have too much of this, if the pup is sociable
and cooperative
Retrieving -- nice to have at 7 weeks, but not the shibboleth it
is to some people
Cooperative -- will tolerate some restraint
Forgiving -- i.e. will follow after pain and restraint tests, will take a social correction without sulking
Bounce-back and persistence -- later to manifest as "fight drive"
Emotional self-control -- this shows up in the problem-solving exercises
Signs of intelligence -- also can show up in the problem-solving, but often
breeder's observation or my own is more valuable
A balance of all of the above -- for example, I don't want a pup with super-high prey drive who has medium or low social drives. The prey drive could become dangerous in that dog. If a dog is going to have one drive very high, others must be up there too, and the dog must not be stupid.
That's Mel in spades -- 95-100 in all the "forward" traits on the Volhard scales, 0-5 in all the "inhibiting" traits. Her social drive controls her prey, hunt, and fight drives.
A dog with a nice balance of medium drives has enough oomph to do the work, and will be much easier to live with.
Good solid sound physical structure, to the extent we can see it at this age.
Of these, probably the most definitive trait is the attitude when the pup is set down all alone but for a human stranger in a weird new environment. His attitude ought to be "Cool!

What'sthiswhat'sthiswhat'sthis????" as he explores every inch of space, and
occassionally "checks in" with the evaluator in a happy way. Tail up and
wagging, little S on his chest leotard.
I've picked three pups for myself (Moe picked me, and Sophia was shipped to us) and probably dozens for other handlers.
I've never picked a dud -- and this is a field with a very high wash-out
rate. Some have washed for physical problems down the road, often
accidents or things one couldn't have foreseen without a really good crystal
ball, but none have washed for lack of talent.
What I think the ES brings to the table as a breed are some things that are rare in other breeds:
Functioning off switches -- Handlers are always oohing and aaahing over Pip's
ability to switch instantly from rocket-powered to boneless.
Intrinsic ability to pack up with the handler in a smooth way while maintaining independent volition
Sensitivity to context (found in other herding breeds)
Self-controlVery high intelligence & good problem-solving"

Yes, those are the traits that we are trying to preserve in the English Shepherd. And one of the reasons that it is a rare breed.

Big Jake

2006-08-13T13:24:00.000-07:00

Meet Jake

Jake has an offset blaze to the right. A half collar to the right. The right foot is white and the other 3 have white toes with tan and black legs.

At 5 weeks, Jake was comfortable coming in the house and cuddling with Lewis, our 14 year old grandson. He is a social pup who is showing some alpha dog tendencies. He is interested on jumping on the other boys and being aggressive.

He also thinks it is great fun to climb on top of Wu, our Pug and "growl" and "play fight" with him Actually most of the pups love this pastime. Wu loves it!!

Ringo & Gabby Birth Announcement July 8, 2006

2006-08-13T12:25:00.000-07:00

Ringo and Gabby announce the birth of their 11 puppies born July 8th, 2006.

Six beautiful boys and 5 girls.

Picture at one week of age

Puppies at 4 weeks of age moved by their Mom to their new home - under the front porch steps of our house.

4 1/2 weeks of age

Play time with Lewis.

Kid-friendly puppies

Ringo, English Shepherd Sire

2006-08-13T11:24:00.000-07:00

Ringo is a a grandson of our famous dog, "Tessa" (McCalls Contessa). He is a terrific male.

He has a great on-off switch.
He shadows my husband and our teen age grandson. He is a watch dog but not aggressive to strangers.

As a working dog, Ringo wants to work the head but will also work the tail. He will get aggressive with the cattle if asked. Otherwise, he works quiet and laid off.

He also works horses and is never aggressive unless asked. He will herd foals along with their dams very softly and non-aggressively.

Ringos not interested in chasing chickens but will keep the squirrels in the trees and the deer out of the yard. He is very aggressive toward coyotes, barking in response to their howling and moving out into the field with the cattle if they get too close.

We had lost a couple of small corriente calves before Ringo came of age. As a young pup, we did not let him go out of the yard to respond to the coyotes . Now that Ringo is older and in charge of the "night watch "crew, we have not lost any more calves.

Ringo definately controls the other shepherds when we are not present. He will gather them up and signal them as they proceed in a job like putting a cow back in the pasture in the middle of the night.

Ringo has a "perfect dog" attitude. He only wants to do things that make us happy. He watches all the time for signals from his humans as to what he should do. He is a pleasure to be around all the time.

Ringo is a very well bred dog that is registered with UKC.

Pedigree Information

Gabby, SuperMom

2006-08-09T17:59:00.000-07:00

Gabby is a delightful dog. She is always happy and always wants to please. She is an excellent mother and also has a strong desire to foster other young pups.

As a young dog, she loved to have Corgi puppies lay all over her. She would play with them and baby-sit them for hours.

As a working dog, Gabby is not an alpha dog. Gabby learned herding under the watchful eye and direction of Tessa (McCalls Contessa). Up till recently she has back-up Tessa as they work cattle. She responds to commands from humans and if she was confused looked to Tessa for clarification.

Tessa, at the age of 16, is nearly the end of her herding days and has passed the alpha torch to her son, Ringo. Gabby now backs up Ringo as they herd the cattle in and out of the pens.

Gabby's style of herding is to move the cattle with very little aggression. She will move up aggressively if prompted but, generally, she is a very soft worker.

Gabby never chases stocks. She never bothers chickens. She never tries to intimidate other dogs. She has an excellent on-off switch. Basically she is very social but non-aggressive.

However, she is alert to visitors and tells us of their arrival. She has extraordinary manners. She comes and sits beside people that she would like to pet her. She doesn't make an move toward them or touch them in any way. She patiently waits for them to acknowledge her and give her a pat on the head. This makes her an excellent dog with young children.

Her biggest goal is to be with us at all times.

Picture of Parmely's Roper and Boots (Parents of Petersen's Duke)

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Sire: Petersen's Duke

Tri- natural bob

McCalls Gabby

Tri-colored

Dam: Petersen's Dana

Sable and white - natural bob

The Nature of the English Shepherd

2006-08-09T17:18:00.000-07:00

Today's English Shepherds are descendents from the "farm collies" that accompanied English settlers to young America. These dogs served faithfully their master both as herding dogs and as family protection.

The English Shepherd is a complete all purpose dog - calm and steady, willing to please and capable of herding any type of livestock Of great importance is its bond with its owner and family.

English Shepherds are gentle and patient with children and loyal and trustworthy to their family.

English Shepherds are intelligent and have a keen ability to make the proper judgment call. For example, whether a people is a friend or foe or whether a situation is an emergency or a false alarm. They are willing to protect their family with their lives and there are many stories about English Shepherds saving people from wild animals and serious situations

Our family has a long history with this breed. Our great grandfather had English Shepherds (aka Farm Collies) in the early 19th century on our cattle farm in southwest Arkansas. Family lore passes down this story about his dog saving his life.

The men of the family were fighting a fire in the heavy timber on the farm. In an effort to contain the blaze, fire lanes were cut out. The fire changed directions causing the patriarch of the family to be caught in a closing ring of fire. His English Shepherd jumped through the fire, alerting his owner. They were both able to escape with the dog suffering minor burns.

As young adults, we, too, had English Shepherd and since the early 1970's, we have been involved in preserving the characteristic of this outstanding breed. Our dogs and pups are raised on a 265 horse farm just a little down the road from where Shep saved Jim's great grandfather.

Our dogs are an integral part of our family both in the house and on the farm. We own a horse breeding and training farm which specializes in cutting horses. The dogs are involved in moving the cattle in and out of the pens. They also help with the horses.

Working horses takes a dog who is keenly in-tune to people. They must work in a manner which moves horses but does not scare them. Our dogs also move cattle and work cattle in a training situation - during the training of cutting horses.

We have a very intensive selection on our breeding stock and the puppies are the result of years of selection for trainability, intelligence, natural ability to work stock, desire to protect family, and conformation.

We recommend these dogs to families in rural settings. These dogs are very intelligent and are bred to work for people. They are not hyperactive but do need exercise and a person to bond with. They will protective the family, the property and the livestock but they want to have one person who is THEIR person - the person that gives the signals and gives up the rewards for their behavior. These dogs are sensitive and do not respond well to physical punishment. They live to please you and a negative voice sound is about all it takes to correct a wrong response.

Dog information: McCall's Kyle by Augtu and McCalls Princess