June 2008 News: 2007 in review

Perky has made some wonderful progress since last year. Sometimes when I get focused on the little things, it’s hard for me to keep that in perspective. Thank you to Gene for reminding me of that—often! We’ve still got to work on the lift and pace with her, as she gets pushy. We’ve also got to keep working on getting her to take off-balance flanks. She’s a very obedient dog, but when it comes to her feeling that she MUST balance the stock to me, she’s a bit less biddable than her daughter Dare.

©2007 Michael McAdoo

Her left outrun has gotten much, much better as compared to last year. A year and a half ago, she was so tight to the left that I didn’t always know if she’d go out far enough or if she’d just go nearly straight up the middle, sometimes even from as close as 50 yards. Of course her left side is something we’ll always have to work on regularly, but now when I send her come-bye, I don’t wonder whether she’ll go up the middle of the field, and I know that she is usually thinking when she leaves me. Away is her natural side; her away outruns are usually big, occasionally to the opposite extreme of being off-contact. Her in-bye work has also gotten much better since last year. Although I do not own sheep, she seems to really like to do farm chores, which I try to do with both my dogs whenever we have the opportunity.

July 2007
I had hoped to be entered in several NEBCA Novice/Novice trials with both Perky and Dare this summer, but we weren’t quite ready yet. I entered them both in a “fun run” with a short 50 yard outrun to get a sense of our ability to handle the pressure of “competition.” The farm where the trial is held is well known for its usually uncooperative Tunis flock and the field’s very heavy pressure up the line of the driveaway leg. Even though I was well aware of the pressure on the drive (wear, at this level), I didn’t manage our turn to the crossdrive properly, and the sheep got away from Perky. A single made it back to the setout pen, which was also being used as the exhaust, so the draw was unusually strong. Since this was a fun run, we were allowed to try to go recover the sheep. The setout area had some very challenging nooks and corners and could have been a big problem. Although letting the sheep get to back to the pen isn’t anything to brag about, I was VERY happy with how nicely she kept her cool in the tight spaces and pulled the single out as nicely as you please. We regrouped and went on to complete our run.

©2007 Michael McAdoo

September 2007
We entered our first Novice/Novice trial at the New Jersey State Sheep Dog Trials, judged by Michael Dathe of Vermont. The mostly-level field seemed rather straightforward and the setout was only about 100 yards, but the terrain and the sheep, in packets of two adults and a lamb, had challenged the experienced Open and Ranch dogs for the previous two days. The Novice classes were run as two consecutive trials on the third day, so I had two runs with each dog. In our first run, Perky was just plain too pushy, and our lamb decided three days of being pushed around by dogs was enough, and laid down and quit on us after the drive panels. We were granted a re-run, and Perky did not take good control of that group; I think we made it around the post and then they headed off to a corner of the field that was quite off-course. Our second run of the day started better, but as I flanked her for the turn to the crossdrive panels, she blew off some stress and buzzed them unnecessarily. I didn’t want to see any more of this attitude from her, as her previous two runs were too pushy, and I didn’t think she was likely settle down more through the rest of the run, so I retired. Although no score is earned for a retire, I able to find out that up to that point, she had earned 20 points of 20 possible for the outrun, 10 of 10 for the lift, and 16 of 20 for the fetch. I was certainly expecting a little more from both my dogs and myself—at least completing the course or timing out at the pen on this four-minute course—but I suppose this is part of gaining experience.

November 2007
I entered another fun run at the same field as the one in July. Again, we lost the sheep at the turn from the drive panels to the crossdrive; this time she was just too slow in taking the flank I gave her. A single got away, and as before, Perky took very nice quiet control over him in the wedge-shaped blind near the setout, and brought him back with ease. As with our experience in the summer, I wasn’t happy to have let any of them get away from us—especially not happy to have had the same problem—but was very happy with how nicely she collected him and brought him back.

I’m pleased to say that our recent lessons have been going quite nicely, and I hope our good progress will “stick!” Now our biggest challenge is to get me to become a better handler. That should only take a few more years…

See more photos in Perky’s photo gallery!

Perky's Bio

I bought Perky in January 2000, when she was almost two years old. I’d made a tough decision to spay Kaylie a couple of years before, and now I was ready to start a search for my new dog, whom I hoped would be a quality bitch with breeding potential. I thought so highly of Kaylie and her sire Celt that calling Celt’s owner was an easily-made decision. I told him I was especially looking for a bitch that was a lot like Celt. As it happened, he had a young female that in his words, “looks a good deal like Celt.” (Curious? Email me for comparison pics!)

I saw a short video clip of Perky, made for me by friends who had visited the farm, and she was clearly loveable, and at the very least, marked like her sire. She’d been started a bit on sheep, but unexpectedly managed to get herself in a “family way” before things could progress too far. During that time, a member of the Jagger family fell seriously ill and was hospitalized out of state. It was an impossibility for the dogs to be worked on a regular basis. This unfortunate event meant just the right dog available at just the right time, and so Perky became my dog. I am happy to say after a slow recovery, the family member was well enough to return home.

Half-sister to Kaylie, Perky reminded me that every dog is an individual. Although the two are alike in many ways, they have an equal number of differences. Perky and her gentle nature taught me to be a better trainer and to have more patience. I raised Kaylie from a pup; she now intuitively responds to my commands. Perky was a farm dog, and was not at all used to “structure” and formal obedience. Her desire to please me is probably greater than Kaylie’s, and yet that makes her SO disappointed if she thinks she’s “wrong” when learning something new. I learned from her that the firm tone I use to give Kaylie a formal command was not a “given” or a requirement in dog training. Perky is so biddable that the gentlest of voices, even as soft as a whisper, is generally all she needs in most situations. So after a not-so-smooth start, I finally figured it out. My softening up showed me what a really great problem-solver she is!

When Perky had been with me about six or seven months, I received an offer to buy her, from a friend who adored her and knew that her training at first progressed in fits and starts that I’d found hard to understand. By this time, however, Perky and I were getting along just fine. I loved her, she adored me. I loosened up and let Kaylie and Perky just “be dogs” more often. What a concept!

Thanks to her easy way of working, Perky has been my “teaching” dog for me to learn about livestock. She is started on sheep, and she is SO nice to work; even a livestock novice like me can learn something about stock when working her. I hope that we can learn enough together to perhaps attempt a trial…or if I’m too slow to learn, then I hope to be ready by the time a pup from this litter can start some serious lessons. Not long ago, she earned about the highest compliments I would have hoped to hear. Her sire’s owner, and his daughter — the owner of Andy, to whom she was bred — both remarked on Perky’s working style and how very much she resembled Celt. Her ability and style have nothing to do with me, but how I glowed when I heard each of them comment on the similarity! I think the talents of Perky and Andy go a long way towards my goal and what I consider my “ideal” Border Collie.

Even though herding is considered work by most, we think it’s a lot of fun. We also enjoy other fun stuff. Perky knew about tennis balls from the start, but had to learn about flying discs. She’s now obsessed with them; typical for Border Collies, of course. Also typical, she’s got the talent to be a competitive disc dog. Too bad her “mommy” can barely throw! We have recently started flyball training, and as expected—a natural! Once again, it’s me that needs a LOT of work on MY coordination. Luckily, she doesn’t give up on me!

Perky is a real pleasure to live with. She has an “off” button when in the house, something not all Border Collies have. She is “polite” and respectful, and never underfoot, unlike her sister Kaylie, who tries so hard to get OUT of the way that she inevitably chooses the exactly WRONG place to go. Perky’s positive qualities are many, and worth passing on to a future generation. She is named after her great-great-grandmother, of whom she is a direct female descendant. G-g-grandma Perky was a very successful trial dog owned by Walt Jagger. I hope I can see to it that Perky and her pups live up to this legacy. I am SO glad she is in my life. What a wonderful dog! How much I adore her!!

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• October, 2006: Perky runs in her first herding trials!

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Perky
tri-color rough coat
ABCA 125827
(Imp. Celt ISDS 167036/AIBC 95005/ABC 17440 x Ch HCF Kelly CDX, MX, MXJ ABCA 67222/AKC DL69946101)
OFA Good: BCO-5085G71F-NOPI
DNA tested for CEA/CH: Normal OptiGen Accession #05-830
CERF clear: BCO-2228/2007—112

Perky ~ BorderCollie! ~ Perkadoo ~ Borderdog ~ Perk ~ My sweet, gentle girl ~ Girl-dog

Back to the Border Collies at Kelliwic
Meet the other Border Collies at Kelliwic: Kaylie and Dare