Sadly, Sandy went to the Rainbow Bridge 3/07........she was a special little girl who touched a lot of lives, and will be missed greatly.Update on Sandy, May, 2003
After a year like the last one, it’s High Time that STAR got an update on Sandy, so here goes……...
Sandy began 2002 as an older gal with an older owner, who decided it was time to train! In mid-January agility (from books and videotapes!) began for us in a newly constructed training yard on our property. March was spent earning her first obedience title (a CD and with High-Scoring awards and placements to boot!), but by April Sandy was in the ring doing what she lives for – agility. Our
first time in the ring was our first success and only one year later, at the very same club’s trials in the very same place, Sandy “double Q’d” at the Excellent level – completing her Excellent Standard title and beginning her Excellent Jumpers title! In between earning her 6 AKC titles in one year, Sandy found time to earn a second CD obedience title under Australian Shepherd Club of America rules and to hike 23 miles, including a charity dog walk, and thus earn 3 Back Pack Dog titles. She also did some sheep herding,and maintained her Therapy Dog title as well.
In spite of veterinary concerns about an aging dog’s approaching problems, Sandy chooses to NOT ‘act her age’, thus making her aging OWNER stay ‘young’ too! Plans for 2003 include completing that AXJ title and the next level of obedience (CDX title) and readying for a Tracking Dog title. If we accomplish all of this, Sandy will be awarded her Versatile Companion Dog 2 title. And what a blast it has been getting here!
How Sandy ended up a stray on the streets of Houston, I will never know. Someone lost a wonderful dog but thanks to the wonderful, caring people of STAR I was lucky enough to find this dog on the Internet and bring her home to stay! Now Sandy has a following from folks of all ages and walks of life – they want to clone her! These rescues give SO much in return for SO little. Hug YOUR rescue today!
Rest assured, if Sandy were there with you, she would give YOU one of HER patented “Sandihugs”.
Candyman update (Oct. 1999):
Candyman and
I have been quite busy!! We have found one agility instructor
who is learning clicker training by letting
Candyman and I use it in here agility class. He clicked
and targeted sticked through the weaves in two five minute sessions.
He volunteerly sniffed through the chute while we were talking
(he was clicked when he poked his head out the end!) The tire and
tunnel are obstacles he has been playing with at home for months.
This is wonderful mental and physical exercise for both of us. We
are also working on Stop, Drop and Roll and then he crawls...This will
be for fire safety illustrations. Candyman has spent one Friday with
me at a junior high school where we will discussed over-coming disabilities
and hardships. My Muscular Dystrophy and Candyman's history fit together
and really speak to kids. The next day, we spoke to a church youth
group in awareness of Disabilities Month. Candyman is a living example
of love, work, and understanding. His history from the pound to Rescue
and to me provide a framework of the possibilities that exist when many
people come together.
What began with someone seeing potential in
a neglected, disabled animal is resulting in a new life for
this canine and for his human. He has opened many doors and
many more eyes to the value of our canine companions. Abused and
neglected children whose trust and health has been damaged by
their past find Candyman's history and his present kisses, snuggles,
and tricks to be a safe zone in which they can share their own history
and pain. The fact that he still struggles with interpreting other
dogs' body language and is still insecure with strange dogs shows the
kids that they are not alone in their own trust issues. But as the kids
see how patience and positive reinforcement help Candy through these
issues, the kids again see that neither he nor I are perfect, but are
indeed works in progress.
(August, 2000) The Candyman: 2 years and 1 month After Adoption
2 years and 1 month ago today
Candor was transported my way.
This Aussie was big and rambunctious,
But he rode peacefully in the truck,
(Letting his energy build up).
As the next two weeks went by,
In his excitement, he busted my nose
and blackened my eyes.
When they said he need to learn some
manners,
They certainly told no lies!
Fortunately, I knew a few tricks
And began teaching manners with just
a few clicks.
The Candyman is quite a food hog.
And now the quintessential clicker
dog.
To quelm his energy needs,
He learned the basics in agility.
To pacify his countersurfing and chewing issues,
He found solace with his Kongs and
Buster Cubes.
To aid in his mental activity needs,
Candy learned a few tricks for entertaining
the children he sees:
He sneezes, he rolls over and dies; wait: he's healed! (Lucky guy!)
What's that coming our way?: a stateboarding
Aussie to save the day!
He goes Boing! Straight up in the
air!
He seeks out the children who hide
everywhere.
For his canine socialization needs,
Candy has Callie and Casey (his Border
Collie friends);
Corey the Schnauzer (who plays dead
when done with that wild Aussie);
And finally his favorite friend is
Tucker the German Shepard (also a pound
refugee).
Candy is learning how to play fun and fair (that German Shepard girl
knows how to use those calming signals
with such an Aussie as he).
They even walk on a coupler together
as quaint as can be!
Candy has taught her quite a bit too!
She was 7 months old (breeder dumped
and shelter sprung)
And she needed a few pointers on potty-training
ways...
Candyman the Aussie saved the day!
Candy has shown her patience and how
to wait when being fed.
But most important is what the Candyman has done for me.
He has broadened my education and
blessed me greatly.
He brings much humor and much needed
exercise!
He braces himself when I've fallen
and need help getting up.
If ever I am down, his cold wet nose
and warm licks bring me right up!
Adopted May, 1997 by Celeste Rega of Ithaca, NY.
Sadly, after a long and loving life with Celeste, Maja went to the rainbow
bridge on 1/15/07. We are all grieving for the loss of this special
little girl, but she's now in a better place playing to her heart's
content.
She's a bird, she's a plane, no she's Maja the agility dog! My girl
came to me via the hard time, devotion, and determination
of Kristi Muck to help all the Aussie's she can. Maja first arrived
by airplane and when she stepped off my first reaction was
the shock at how open, loving, and ready for a mom she was.
She very quickly claimed her place in my home which was already owned
by my alpha Aussie-mix bitch Bridget. After a week of observing the
ropes at home and agility class she started to hold her head up
high as if to say "I have a place to call home and I love it." I could
look into her eyes and know that she was happy and some day would give
back. That some day came the following Fall when I took her out of
her crate at agility class and she took the teeter without hesitation
and then looked around for what was next. My instructors told me to
ILP her quickly and before I knew it we were trialing. After 3 novice
legs in a row with two firsts and one third, I knew that she was the
dog that we had asked for, of course, she would be just as happy as the
couch potatoe and we would be just as happy to cuddle with
her there. We cannot thank the gods above enough for allowing our paths
to cross so instead we hope to do as much performance as possible
so that people can recognize what wonderful dogs are available in
rescue. I often wonder who really was rescued anyway?
Adopted August, 2001 by Celeste Rega of Ithaca, NY.
What could be better than chocolate? A craving I have had often and when it comes to traveling to trials it is always packed. Chocolate, as many women know, will always make it better. This is why I decided to name my second rescue from South Texas-- Better Than Chocolate a.k.a. “Godiva”. She fulfills my craving for something small and sweet with a little caffeine in the same color as my favorite dark chocolate and she always makes it better. When I adopted my first dog Maja from South Texas, I was so pleased with what a wonderful companion and agility team mate that she is I requested another some day. Some day happened right after I closed on my first house! Not the most appropriate timing for a pup, but when you request a female high drive dog that is not for the first time dog owner and your order is up, you must collect. Godiva is such a sweet dog until it comes time for agility. In the ring, she is focused and happy but do not get in her path on the way to the gate for then she has no time to say hello. This girl is crazy about competing and has proven it by giving me 4 first place qualifying runs right out of the box. She may not be a typical looking Aussie up here in the North East but she displays the breed’s focused work ethnic with the cuddle bunny shadow personality during off time. Our pack is very proud to have been chosen to train and love this little one forever.
This past February we drove to Houston to adopt this beautiful Aussie with the pleading eyes, eyes that asked only for love and a home. Belle had, and still has, a lot of insecurities, but her self-confidence is growing as she becomes more relaxed and secure in her new surroundings. She is approximately one year old and full of the curiosity and energy typical of all puppies that age. Unfortunately her "sister", also a rescued Aussie, is too old to play. And so, on a regular basis, Belle and her friend, Zoey, get together to expend some of that excess energy. Such running and chasing, such rolling and wrestling, such ball and twig playing - such FUN! What wonderful times they are!! We are eagerly looking forward to our annual summer vacation in the cool Colorado Rockies, where Belle can run and hike and enjoy the great outdoors. She'll be exposed to lots of new things, such as rushing streams and waterfalls, mountain top snow, steep climbs and bouncy rides on bumpy roads. Like all new things, she'll approach these with a certain amount of trepidation, but once assured that they are not threatening, she'll greet them with exuberance. Belle offers unconditional love and loyalty and asks for little in return. We are so very happy with her and anticipate a long and mutually rewarding relationship with this wonderful Aussie gal!
Holley was a farm dog in Louisiana and was sent to a shelter after having puppies. Through the CUR, she ended up with Kristi, where she gained weight from 29 pounds to 50 lbs, and began to grow all her hair back. Holley was a "problem child", with dominance and aggression issues. Kristi put her picture and profile up on the website for adoption. That's when I began looking for an Aussie.
I saw Holley's picture on the STAR website and fell in love. I called Kristi and talked to her about the personality I was looking for in a dog. It just so happened that Holley fit into my lifestyle perfectly! As soon as I met Holley, I knew we were made for each other. Holley initially had many negative issues, such as dog-aggression, dominance problems, and separation anxiety. Little by little, we erased all of her bad habits, although we still have some problems with Holley just not liking some dogs. We own many other small animals, and Holley loves them. Her favorite playmate was the rabbit, and they would take turns chasing each other around the house. I entered her into a beginner obedience class after we'd gotten to know each other a little, and after the 8 week course, she graduated first in her class, beating out a Golden! Just for fun, we decided Holley needed to try to get her Canine Good Citizen certificate, and she did! And she did so well at the dog show all day with all the other dogs. Not one attitude problem! After the dog show, Holley and I had a little discussion, and we decided that she wants to excel in obedience. We were thinking agility, but after seeing what Holley's talent truly is, we're going for the obedience. So, we submitted her ILP to the AKC, and they granted it to her within two weeks! We're working on the LEP from ASCA, and hope to get into our next obedience class soon. Holley's getting along great with her smaller big sister, Sugar, who is a 5 year old Toy Fox Terrier. They weren't too sure about each other at first, and Holley was here first, but now they love to play together and chase squirrels and the meter readers. We're trying to get her to learn how to play, but so far we've only been able to get her excited about sticks.
Holley is my baby, loves to ride in my Bronco, and we have a very strong relationship. I cannot imagine my life without her. I'm glad I was able to save Holley, but in many ways, she really saved me.
Sydney was quite a handful when we first brought him home to Dallas. With his super high chase drive and unlimited amount of energy, we knew it was going to be a challenge, but a challenge we were willing to face. And look at what we have accomplished! After two years of obedience training and seven obedience trials, Sydney finally earned his CD title this past November.....whew!! Now it's on to flyball - wish us luck!
Pepper became a member of our family this past February and she is a wonderful dog! We couldn't have found a more perfect match for Sydney. Although she doesn't exhibit the freakish level of intense energy that Sydney has, Pepper is smart and strong and could wrestle/play tug-of-war all day with Sydney (if she wasn't so busy keeping a lookout for squirrles). Pepper will start obedience training and possibly agility this spring.....she LOVES to jump!
Both dogs were also introduced to sheep for the first time during a Herding Instinct Test held this past fall. And both dogs passed with flying colors! It was exciting to watch the dogs instinctively react to an animal that they have never seen before. Sydney was very excited at first but seemed to realize the errors he was making and quickly corrected himself. I was so proud that he didn't attack the poor critters! Pepper was a little more reserved and in control....she responded well to the handler's commands and seemed to understand what he was asking of her - I was so impressed! Unfortunately we do not have easy access to a herding training facility so training for this activity will have to wait. Still, it was fun to watch and I know the dogs had a great time!
Navarre is part of our family. He goes off leash with me in the woods and cross-country skiing. He is fit and happy. Beginning last April, Navarre accompanied me on the Appalachian Trail north from Georgia for over 1,000 miles at which point my wife took him home while I did the second 1,000. We planned the halfway pickup because the word was the Northern half of the trail was very rocky and hard on dogs feet (turns out it wasn't that bad and he could have stayed with me). Everyone who met him praised him for his outstanding behavior whether on the trail, in town, or at hostel stays. He was clearly one of the top three trail dogs I encountered on the thru-hike.
I feel Aussie's are an excellent trail dog choice because
they are:
(1) sturdy and can carry their own
food/gear (limit to 15% of body weight)
(2) smart and adapt quickly to new
trail situations
(3) just the right size (bigger= couldn't
lift them over barb-wire fences,
smaller= couldn't carry their gear).
Prior to the hike a "good dog" based training approach was key to my being able to depend on his behavior whether in town (people/traffic) or on the trail (people/bears/snakes/deer...) for over 2 months. We developed trust and belonged to the same pack.
We had many wonderfully adventures and "trail-magic" highlights. I never tied him up at night on the trail, and he only woofed on occasions where things in the night got too close. He stayed near by and was always ready for breakfast as soon as I got up. As partners, Navarre and I shared some wonderful times and some tough times. One of the toughest was a 29 mile day just south of Fontana dam in NC. The last 15 miles were in a driving rain storm with lightning coming close enough that there was no delay between the light and the sound. Included was climb of over 3000 feet in about 2 miles with the trail a cascading stream of muddy water. He was definitely afraid of lightning and I had to stop to calm him down several times. We got to the shelter after dark - wet, cold, tired and very hungry (I promised to meet my sister there from a week old telephone call and didn't want her to spend the night in the woods alone). I was dismayed that he may have had a bad puppy experience with lightning. I was surprised that after this early in the hike episode, he coped with storms much better. By the nature of hiking the trail we could minimize the risks but not the eliminate them.
If anyone is considering taking their Aussie on a long strenuous hike
like the one we took, they can contact me at RCBixler@hotmail.com for specifics
on what to take and what to expect.
As you can see by her pictures (and her very own website! :-),
Summer and Mike have accomplished many great things in a
short period of time and we have no doubt this pair will go very
far in their endeavors in the future! More to come later.......!
Oh well, what the heck, it doesn't hurt to look into a rescue dog.
I liked the idea of a rescue, but I wasn't sure that I wanted
to risk the unknown, given the hopes, aspirations, and
rigorous training plan I had for this imaginary puppy.
Looking at the STAR website, I stumbled across Skye. From
the pictures I could tell that she was less than a year, and
would roughly have the structure that I was looking for, but
didn't show me squat about personality. However, the description
looked intriguing, so I thought I would inquire about
her. (This is where fate began
taking over.)
Well, Lucinda, bless her heart, immediately started with the caveats: She is a wild child! She has a great personality, but she can be a handful. She likes to jump on the table and the counter tops, and has eaten several pairs of pants, socks, and unmentionables. She has been through several foster homes. Right now, she is at Linda's (which was code for "yes, this is a wild child"). She has to go to a working home. Come over and meet her.
Mike and I made the trek to meet this so-called wild one. When we got there, Skye wouldn't give me the time of day. She would much rather play with the other dogs. This was a huge strike against her. The last thing I wanted was a dog-bonded puppy to work with. I didn't mention this to Linda and Lucinda. She was also subdued and just kind of hanging out with the other dogs. Where was this wild child that I heard about? Even Lucinda said that she was unusually calm that day. Once again, every cell in my body said that Skye was not a good idea. (Fate decided to turn it up a notch.)
After I got home, my wife asked me how it went. I told her, "So-so." The puppy had some potential, but seemed to be dog-bonded, and couldn't care less about the humans in the backyard. This is when the hand of fate reached down and took over my wife's body. "You ought to bring her here and see how she does." Yes, it was a weak moment on her part. After much consternation, I decided to foster her for a couple of weeks and see how it went.
Skye had to show me that she was physically fit, could fit into the existing pack, and demonstrate a yearning to work/learn. Even though I renamed her to Magic, I was determined to not get attached in those few weeks, so she had a deadline of 1/1/01 to show me all 3 attributes. We spent those 2 weeks doing stupid pet tricks, observing her interactions with the pack, and giving her a thorough physical (including hip x-rays). Everything came back with thumbs up. My wife even gave me the go to keep her.
Now it was time to tempt fate. Still a little apprehensive, because of the long-term commitment on this crapshoot, I called Lucinda and said get the paperwork ready. Well, we started the application process. It was at that point that a breeder let me know that she had her eye on an older puppy that would nicely meet my needs. SHOOT!
WHY? Why in the heck did I adopt this dog, when it was so easy to back out?
Almost a year and a half later, the answer to that question revealed itself. I am not typically a philosophical kind of guy, but it was like a light bulb turning on when I figured out the answer.
In the time that I have had Magic, she has done well at stupid pet tricks, Frisbee, and agility training. However, that wasn't it. I could have gotten any high drive dog to perform at her level given the same time frame, so it was not unexpected to me.
I held off on the Search & Rescue training, because I still wasn't happy with her maturity level. Finally, against my better judgment, I started formally training her on 2/18/02 for human remains detection (HRD) work. Why did I do this? It still seemed like a dumb decision, because she just wasn't mature enough.
Almost all of this training was done in wilderness scenarios. She seemed to be doing well, but still nothing spectacular. I decided to accelerate her SAR training because I was going to have a once in a lifetime training opportunity with two outstanding HRD trainers from California. This seminar was designed for intermediate level cadaver dogs, which is usually 9 months to a year of training. I originally signed up with my experienced Aussie, Hershey, but really wanted work Magic, my 2-month trained rookie dog. As a personal favor, the host of seminar said it was OK. I asked the instructor the night before the field exercises if it was OK to run this rookie dog. The fall back plan was to pull Magic and put in Hershey. She said it was OK, but her eyes said that it was against her better judgment. Once again fate was tempted, but held steady for this dog.
Again, you have to ask WHY. Why is she a part of my family? Why was she allowed to participate in the seminar? Why, why, why!?!? Well, the answer became clear when we did the field exercises.
The answer is, "It was meant to be." Her whole existence with me was to get to this point.
The instructors set up incredible problems for the dogs to work, far exceeding the scenarios that Magic has trained. These included crime scene exercises, burned structures with burned human remains, rubble searches, vehicle searches, a train wreck, burial scenes, a disarticulated remains scenario, a plane crash, and hanging problems.
Magic performed like a champ. She is clearly a natural at doing forensic-style HRD work. She was solving problems that some certified dogs were having difficulty with. By all rights, she should have had serious problems since she had never trained on many of the types of remains that were presented to her.
She loved the vehicle searches. We had a line of 20 cars with scent in only 2 of them. One was a retired police cruiser, which had scent under the driver's seat. When she came to that car, she jumped up on the trunk, then the roof, and laid down (which is her alert) on the back windshield. When the car door was opened for her, she dove under the front seat to get the target. The person in charge of that exercise station freaked out when I told him this was our first vehicle search. I don't think he believed me.
The instructors set up crime scene exercises in the some abandoned apartments. They hid different types of cadaver scent in cabinets, on doors, inside walls, in toilets, in air conditioner ducts. Magic loved this game because she got to jump on the counters and climb in cabinets (kind of like the old days). The instructors even hid some dirt that had come out of an archeological grave excavation, which was estimated at 3000-5000 years old. Magic alerted on it like it was no big deal.
Problem after problem, she excelled. Magic has found her purpose in life. The need for good forensic dogs is overwhelming. I just hope I can continue the training program required to certify one of these dogs. I think that Frisbee and agility are just going to be for fun and recreation. Her real job will be doing criminal and archeological investigations. By the way, I just found the maturity level that I was looking for in her. Guess we better start training now!
She has a very long way to go before she will be ready. So, I think I will keep her now! ;-) Did I mention that fate is a funny thing!
Counting my blessings,
Ken
Scooby loves to play frisbee, and is quite good, so we plan to start competing soon!
Luckily, he found the right person, I have been a dog trainer for many many years (though he was my toughest case!). With love and patience and consistency he has blossomed into an amazingly wonderful dog. His ears are still huge (I call them wings now) but his coat filled out and his hocks straightened up and he has the most beautiful flying trot I have ever seen on a dog- any dog. He is terrific on sheep, I wish I had more access so we could compete, I'm sure we could earn his WTCh. He is MUCH more sociable, tolerating strangers and children as much as I ask him to. He is good with other dogs that mind their manners. His separation anxiety has lessened, and I can leave him loose in the house with no unpleasant consequences. In short he is a super pet. But he is more than a pet.....
I was involved in canine frisbee with my older Aussie, and when Rider came along I naturally wanted him to play too. The first time out, I took him to the park alone and tossed the frisbee for him. He stood at my side and watched it fall, then looked at me as if to say, "why did you do that?" I shrugged and decided that one frisbee dog was enough, I would find something else he could do. However, when I took him to the park with my older dog, after watching us play for a few minutes he started barking at me. Not expecting much, I decided to throw another one for him. He ran out 20 yards for that frisbee, launched himself into the air after it, floated for what seemed to me an eternity, caught the frisbee and ran back with it. He was a natural!
At 20 months, Rider won the Colorado State Frisbee Championship. He has won this championship for 5 consecutive years now (he's only 6 years old). He is the only dog to have won the Quadruped national distance frisbee competition 3 times. He has been a regional finalist several times, and was the 2nd runner up in the Unified Frisbee-dog Organization (UFO) World Cup Championship in 2001. He is currently 1st runner up for the UFO in 2002. Rider has performed at NFL and Major League Soccer halftimes, and has been on ESPN, espn2, USA network and other national and local television spots. In August, 2002 he appeared on the front page of the Denver Rocky Mountain News after having won two frisbee events in one weekend. Last March he won the Purina Incredible Dog Challenge Winter Games and qualified for the National Finals. On September 28, 2002 he won the National Finals, and it will be broadcast on TBS on October 26, 2002 at 4pm EST.
This dog is an absolute treasure. He is my soulmate and my dance partner. He is joy and love covered with fur. And he is a star. His first owners did a real number on him, and then they threw him away. But look at him now! If you would like to check out the various websites Red Rocket Rider is on, please feel free to visit these sites:
www.coloradodiscdogs.com
www.ufoworldcup.org
www.thequadruped.com
http://cfapp.rockymountainnews.com/news/frontpage.cfm?PubDate=08/12/02
http://www.dogchow.com/incred/incred.asp
~ Brenna ~
"Savanna's Brenna"
STAR #153
FMCh, N-RS, N-RJ, N-RG, O-RJ, O-RG
Just over one year ago, this performance gem came into the STAR program and was named Jenny. Originally, Brenna lived with an older couple in the greater Houston area, and was turned into a local shelter. With this dog’s intensity and need for training, it was no wonder that she was eventually surrendered by her owners!
As the foster system works at STAR, it was a few weeks before Brenna was finished with her quarantine and was placed into an actual home for evaluation. It did not take long for our number one foster mom to realize that this dog was exceptional. Brenna was moved to my home for further evaluation as a performance dog.
During this time, the summer of 2002, Brenna showed and exceptional propensity for learning and a sincere desire to please. She passed all the other tests, children, medical, getting along with other dogs, traveling well, and thousands of other requirements needed to live in my home with my personal and rescued Aussies.
Brenna spent the remainder of the summer and fall months undergoing intensive training to become a flyball dog which is my favorite dog sport of all! Her first tournament was in January at Triple Crown. Brenna performed flawlessly, receiving her first two titles, and quickly become a desired member of the Texas All Star Express Flyball team!
This weekend on Sat. 5/7/03, Brenna, in a few short months, has overcome many obstacles and became a flyball champion with hundreds of points already toward her next flyball title. Her average times per heat for you flyball fans was 4.7 sec. Flyball training will continue, and her performance and times will also continue to improve. Additionally, Brenna is undergoing intensive agility training with one of the top handlers in the Houston area who is also one of our part time foster moms! Performance friends, LOOK OUT! We are proud of our STAR star and have big plans for her future!
June, 2005
Its time for an update on our own Brenna. It has been two years. Her mom, our Assistant Director, has been very busy working with Brenna on her flyball and agility career. In flyball, Brenna has continued to improve becoming one of the faster Aussies in the United States, clocking in heats at 4.25 seconds. Currently, Brenna is undergoing additional box work training, to see if that time can be improved by a tenth or more of a second!
Agility continues to also improve with Brenna achieving all of her novice titles in NADAC and ASCA. Currently, Brenna is only one qualifying score away from her open title in regular standard agility. Brenna is moving right along and hopefully, by the end of the summer of 2005, Brenna will be in the elite group, strutting her stuff, quite quickly in the agility ring. What a find this beautiful girl has been!!!!
Lucinda Howard
Assistant Director
South Texas Aussie Rescue
