Briggs, Brill & Sheep

Remember my friend Cindy's puppy Briggs?  This was the puppy I was going to steal.  But she threatened me with death & dismemberment so I let her keep him.

Just a few short months ago Briggs looked like this.  (Photo by Dianne Deal)

Right after he came home

A few weeks later I shot this picture of him with Cindy..

Today he looks like this.  My how he has grown.  One day he will grow into those ears. 

Such a handsome little guy.

Cindy has been doing a lovely job with him. Socializing and loving on him.  He is a happy well adjusted pup.

When Dianne was here last month she put Briggs on sheep.  Since the sheep are hair sheep and very light she used an older dog to keep the sheep together & settled, allowing the Briggs to succeed.  We all had so much fun watching this little guy turn on.  It was a blast!   Dianne left Cindy with instructions to put him on sheep once a month, nothing stressful, just exposure.

Last night we got to have fun again.  I went out into the field and sat down with my camera.  Cindy used her other dog Brill to hold them together.

Briggs watches them

He walks up nicely & they begin to move

Feeling a little more confident

Oh yeah...there he goes

And there is Brill beside him

Weeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Booooyah!  Someone is having fun!

Brill would circle wide, Briggs stayed in closer

He almost looks like a dog now!

He is very thoughtful about the sheep, what he was doing & engaged.

Until he saw me sitting on the ground.  Uhhhohhhhh INCOMING!

Then Brill decided to face off a ewe that was being a royal pain in the arse.  Sometimes they just need a little attitude adjustment.

And sometimes the dog provides you with an opportunity to deliver a stern correction.  Always a chance to learn. 

Oh boy...I predict a learning experience just ahead. 

Uhhhhmmmm....Brill....

Cindy yells "Knock it off!"   That was a cheap shot! 

Logical consequences.  Showing Briggs what NOT to do.

No sheep were harmed during the making of this blog post.

And neither were any dogs. Brill was none the worse for wear.  The bell ringing he got hopefully will stick in his head for a while. 

Briggs was a happy dog and the session ended on a positive note for him. 

I was uber happy because I got some awesome shots!

Now off for the weekend to Lacamas Valley Sheep Dog Trial where I am first on the wait list for Novice/Novice with Beth, second with Brynn.  Keep your fingers crossed someone scratches and we get to run!