Having loved and trained dogs much of my life, I was inspired to give sheepherding a try in 2012. I remember sitting on a grassy knoll at the Vashon Sheepdog Classic when Patrick Shannahan and a dog named Riggs stepped to the post. It was like watching a cleverly choreographed dance. At that moment, I decided that with my next dog, I would learn the skills and develop a partnership to compete in this remarkable sport. Sam arrived a year later (a Riggs son), and we began our exciting journey. And now I'm continuing that adventure with my dogs Amos and Joe.

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There are so many talented dogs and trainers in the PNW; I'm honored to be part of this community. I look forward to helping it grow and inspiring others to reach their goals.

Sheep farmer, insurance agent, and Sheepdog enthusiast. I moved from Michigan to Nevada for work, I got my first Border collie as part of a hay deal and I was hooked. I've been trying to master handling ever since. Happy to be joining tge WASH board and hoping to offer some fun events at Broken Crook Farm.

I have participated in dog sports for as long as I can remember. I got my first Border Collie while competing in flyball and agility, and it seemed a natural extension to see if she had any aptitude for herding. One Border Collie somehow became four, and now I trial as often as I can with Shep and Dan. I feel fortunate to have regular access to great mentors and trainers in the area who have helped me on my journey to understand how to bring out the best in these amazing dogs, and more importantly, how to be a worthy partner. I am honored to be a WASH board member and look forward to serving and supporting the members.

Around 1990, a little blue heeler who became Foster Meyer Weiner Butt was acquired through dubious circumstances. There was some girl that I met at college who had an Australian Shepherd. We thought that it would be interesting to take herding lessons and drove two hours each week to a well-respected trainer. We trialed in arena venues (AKC, ASCA, and AHBA) with many different breeds of dogs.

Then my daughter happened along and was expert at helping me bottle my own beer. Later, my son appeared and at 15 wanted to do open field trials with a border collie. We searched and found a nice dog named Mike who was a very good partner. I didn’t want to sit around and watch him, so I asked around and found a nice dog named Lexi, and we had some fun and some success.

After a few years training and trialing in the Northwest, I was asked to serve on the Board of Directors for WASH. My goal is to provide a positive and productive organization for you through communication and education and opportunity.

I like many others started out with horses and moved on to dog sports. I started in dog agility in 2001 with Labradors. I got my first Border Collie, Wyatt, in 2005 for agility, but he had other ideas. That is when I got hooked on herding. I currently have 4 border collies and a small flock of 9 sheep. The two younger dogs are competing. Bae is in PN and Ren is just starting out. I hope I can show others that no matter what life throws at you keep going and try to follow your dreams. I’m looking forward to the next year with my herding family.

May 2020, during the height of Covid, I laid eyes on a working Border Collie for the first time. Eight weeks later, I brought home my first one. Herding was not an expected outcome on my initial journey, but now I couldn't imagine doing anything different. 

My very first trial was September 2023 at Fido's with a lovely dog I call Jojo. We were both brand new, wildly unprepared, and so nervous to try something new, but we did it anyway. We didn't do great, but we did it, and we were hooked, and we kept going. There were a lot of ups and downs with countless steps forward and a lot of stumbling backwards. We kept practicing and improving though and together we won the Novice division at MacDonald's Winter Series and were WASH Novice Reserve for 2023.  

I join WASH as a new handler excited by all the sport, and the people in it, has to offer.

Dogs have always been a big part of my life. I've had German Shepherds, showed my Belgian Sheepdog in confirmation, and then started her in agility, and then thought I'd get a less hyper breed...haha... so I got an Aussie for agility. At that point, a friend told me he didn't think he'd do well with a dog that’s smarter than him. He had a point! I've always been drawn to working dogs and continued that with my first Border Collie. When a friend suggested we get our Border Collies instinct tested for herding, off we went and that was the start of my herding adventure. What a challenge! Add a dog that's smarter than me, with sheep that are smarter than most give them credit for, to different fields that offer their own challenges, and the word persistence comes to mind. I love it! To see the instinct of a Border Collie at work with sheep out in a beautiful field is awesome. Add great people to spend time with and it's a great sport!

WASH has provided me with so much support and opportunity to learn and grow in the sport. I'm excited to serve on the board and help create support and opportunities for other members.

Nearly six years ago as a newly minted retiree I had with extra time on my hands and was looking for a Duck Toller to get into some sort of dog sport. However, it was explained to me that what I really wanted was a Border Collie by someone who just happened to be expecting a litter of BC pups. "The dogs are really intelligent and can do almost anything" and as a bonus she had a friend that lived close by who did herding clinics at her house. I thought that although I know absolutely nothing about herding, it sounded interesting, and the deal was sealed. Fast forward to now and I have three sheep of my own and am working with my second dog. Any success that I've had is directly attributable to the organizations and incredible people I've met along the way with their extensive knowledge and infinite patience. What a great way now to try to give back just a little by helping a terrific group like W.A.S.H further the sport.