Sage is One Today

Today is Sage’s birthday — and here are some of my favorite photos of her from her first year of life, here at Oak Creek Ranch.  She’s learned a lot about ranch life, about confidence, about working and playing hard, about snow and rain and falling leaves.  I adore her.

First meeting — Love at first Sight

It was snowing when she arrived here from sunny San Diego.

Sage loves weather; nothing slows her down.  Of course, once she’s drenched, she likes to come in and warm up by the wood stove.

Sage loves her toys.  She started with plush toys and her current favorite is a tennis ball.  She can dribble and toss the ball just like a soccer player. 

In the evenings, she’s tired from running around all day.  She’s mellow, chewing on a nylabone or sleeping on her bed.

Sage has a number of “looks” — this one is to shame me into playing with her.

Ranch dog; no doubt about that.  She herds the chickens, the goats and tries to herd the horses as well.

And here we are, back to winter and she’s growing up to be a beautiful dog.

Sage Graduates

On Sunday, Sage had another obedience training class.  She did really well this time.  There were a couple of things that helped with that success.

First, I’ve been able to work with her everyday (yay retirement).  Some days we do a lot and some days we do a little but we do something everyday.  She can walk politely on a loose lead, she can heel, and sit, down, stay and come.  Reliably.  ...at home anyway.

Secondly, she didn’t get car sick on the way there.  Brett traded in his Subaru last week and got a Honda.  We put a seat cover/hammock in the back seat and she did fine.  She looked out the windows and her eyes were clear, bright and not in the least bit glassy.  On the way home, she laid down and slept.  Interestingly, a number of people have gotten carsick in the back seat of the Subaru.  So, maybe the car had something to do with it.  I have also done some work with her, sitting in the car and feeding her treats when she climbed partway in.  So, maybe she wasn’t as anxious either.

Thirdly, I started using a Gentle Leader when working with her on heel.  I had seen these things on other dogs and thought they were like a muzzle.  Wrong.  They go across the nose and around the neck in the same way as a halter.  So, you are leading by directing the head instead of pulling on the neck.  Way better.  And super effective.  I only use it when training things that are difficult for her to focus on — or when there are a lot of distractions.

So, at class she was gold.  She understands that class isn’t about playing with the other dogs although she does do some whining, leaning and tail wagging.  But not too much.  She held her down-stay even when the trainer rolled a ball in front of her.  She held it when I danced in circles around her, and over her, singing and clapping my hands.  And everything else was easy-peasy for her.

At the end of class, the trainer said that Sage has it down, is getting a bit bored, and is ready to move up to the next level.  I’m not sure what that will involve exactly, but we’ll find out soon enough.

I’m very proud of my sweet Sagey-Poo.

Training Sage

When we decided it was time to get another dog, I lobbied for an Australian Shepherd. I’ve loved the breed — their energy, their intelligence and their affectionate personality — for a long time.  Brett wasn’t sure but after reading a book about breeds that make good ranch dogs, he was convinced.  Aussies scored really high.

Also, I wanted needed an animal to train.  Riding has been problematic with my back issues, and training a dog would be a good alternative.  And what has interested me is the sport of agility — dogs running through a course of jumps and other obstacles— a blend of obedience, speed, and athleticism.  Aussies excel at agility.  

Once we had Sage, I contacted the dog agility club in Sacramento.  They told me that they had a waiting list but since Sage would need to be one year old before starting agility training, the timing would probably work.  In the meantime, I needed to get Sage solid in obedience — running the course is done off lead with hand signals.

We enrolled in puppy kindergarten as soon as Sage finished all her puppy shots.  She howled the whole 20 minute drive to class and whimpered all through class.  The first class she spent in my lap, with her paws on my shoulders and her head buried in my neck.  By the last class, she was enjoying herself and the star puppy.  We took her to the Farmers’ Market with us every Saturday, and while she hated the drive, she loved the market.  She’s never barfed in the car, but she sits with a glassy eyed stare and drools.  She rides in the back seat, with a seat belt, and the windows down — but she still cowers and hides when she sees me with the leash and her harness.

After puppy class, we signed up for regular obedience classes.  I worked with her on the weekends, but my work schedule didn’t allow for more than that.  We progressed, but at a snails pace.  Since I retired, I’ve been working with her every day.  Yesterday I put her in a down-stay and she held it for ten minutes.  She’s gold at home.

Today we had class.  There were six dogs and my shrinking violet puppy acted like she was at a reunion with her long lost sorority sisters.  She was dying to meet them all and play.  After practicing heel, we lined up the dogs and put them in a three minute down-stay.  The trainer tossed a tennis ball and Sage lunged for it.  The third time, she didn’t lunge but she belly crawled out of line, toward it.

We have more work to do; but at least she was brave today.  That’s huge.

Sage

The cast of characters at Oak Creek hasn’t changed much during the time I was away from blogging. We have the same horses, donkeys, goats and dog.  We’ve lost a couple chickens along the way but there is a certain amount of attrition that occurs in a flock each year... nothing unusual there.

We did add a dog.  Sage, a tri-colored Australian Shepherd, came to live at the ranch in February.  She is currently eleven months old, still a puppy but starting to fill out and get her full-on Aussie coat.

I found her in San Diego, where she was bred on a ranch to be a family dog, not a working dog.  It was love at first sight, for both of us.

When she arrived here in February, we had snow.  She didn’t mind; she loved diving nose first into a snow bank, disappearing from view, and then leaping back out.

She’s very much at home on the ranch.  She chases squirrels (catches them too), and tries to herd the chickens and goats through the fence.  Tuffy and Sage take turns chasing each other along the fence line, each on their side.

Kersey has dropped ten pounds and has new-found enthusiasm in chasing squirrels.

Sage is doing well in her obedience classes and is my Velcro dog.  She sticks to me like glue.  She loves playing fetch and she loves being in my lap.  She’s been a great addition to the ranch.