My border collie addiction began with Skeeter 10 years ago. My second daughter got her when she was four months old. She came from a friend who used dogs to be turn back dogs for her as she trained her cutting horses, but Skeeter was attached to a litter mate and never made a connection with her.
One day not too long after we got her, Skeeter was lying outside a low window of the cabin and my son was sitting on his bed practicing casting his fishing pole (yes - he was inside the house!! only a boy!) Anyway, Skeeter began working the end of the pole through the window!! So, I got a video and proceeded to learn how to train a Border Collie. I never trialed her, but she taught me oh so much!!! She was a natural, and could read stock better than I. She and I could go out in the pasture (one that was very rough and brushy - we live in Central Texas) and gather 300+ goats by ourselves. She dog broke every milk cow calf we had and I could send her to get them in at night. She also became the exercise dog for our kid's 4-H projects. She also loved to play catch -frisbee or softball, and would do it until she dropped!!
She's had 4 litters of puppies, most of which went to ranches to be ranch dogs, and everyone she had wanted to work. Tate was from a litter of 8, of which 7 died. I raised him on a bottle and he became my first trial prospect.
She got tick fever really bad once, and then had a couple of episodes with it later. She's got kicked, stomped and tussled, but always got back up and kept working for me.
Skeeter is retired now, lives in a nice big pen where she can watch the happenings around the ranch, but not work too hard, which she would still do, if I let her out! What a great heart and inspiration for me!
