Meet Our Ranch Hands

Why we raise border collies.

 

Here we focus our breedings on working dogs, that is stock working dogs. Border collies are amazing dogs and have been called 'the smartest dog in the world' so they can adapt to many situations although not ideal for their temperament and energy level. The dogs we raise are very high energy and DO NOT DO WELL IN APARTMENTS. Our dogs often have a very high desire to herd as this is what we focus our breeding aspects around. This can lead to problems for those that do not understand this. As they mature with this desire the natural instinct begins to come out and they will start to track or herd anything that moves. ie: Kids, cats, horses, cars, birds, pretty much anything that will move. This desire is what is wanted in a working dog and is needed to a high degree. This is why we breed Border collies for sale to those that need working partners on their places. 

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Once a good working dog is properly trained to help they can often take the place of 2-4 cowboys in gathering, 14-16 Walmart cowboys. They are an investment in a ranch to help with making a huge job that much easier. When you consider what you have to pay a cowboy, taking into account all the workman's comp, payroll taxes etc, the price of a good dog begins to make sense. The work ethic in a dog is not something you can train if the desire to herd is not there and this is why we raise working stock dogs. Be sure to sign up to get first chance at puppies they often sell out fast.

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Why we have merles is down to a personal preference. I have heard a few things that are basically prejudices of different people. The one is an old one that has morphed over the years to accept new colors. That is that 'a particular color' does not work as well as the basic black and white border collies. I particularly remember hearing it regarding red and white dogs, however red and whites are now frequently seen at various high level stock dog trials and have done well at the Red Bluff Bull sale dog show and sale as well as other stock shows and sales . A few years ago a blue merle won the national stock dog association finals as well cattle dog show in Ft Worth, Texas, maybe the dogs some have seen do not work well but I know a lot of black and white Border collies that are no help around stock either. The second argument is that 'colors' should not sale for more than the black and white. I look at it as a supply and demand and will give an analogy. People that are driving white minivans around think the price of Camaro, Mustang or Corvette is not worth it. Much less if the stang has a nice paint job. So if you want a plain black and white version then yes it is likely going to be cheaper than the custom colored dogs, but that is no reason to knock the price of dogs when demand is the driving force. I looked for 3 years because I wanted a red merle border collie 'from working lines'. I finally found her in another state and had her shipped out, but not before seeing pics of both parents working cows. The last is that people think people should not be breeding for puppies as there are so many to be adopted. Adoption of pets is a great option if you can, however if you are a cowboy needing a dog that can be trained to work stock then you likely want to know it comes from long lines of working animals and not an accidental breeding of frisbee dogs or the worst 'We think he is full blood border collie'.

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I hope to add to our collection of fantastic dogs and also start a collection of videos of them working all types of stock. So check back and see what we add and videos of exciting times as we work stock with our helpers. If you want a chromed out working BC then sign up for our mailing list to get first opportunity at them when a litter comes along. If you want a trained dog to join your ranch then let me know and I'll see what I have to part with or help point you in the right direction. 

Warning: These pups are HIGH drive in general and do NOT do well in contained spaces without plenty of exercise.

See video montage of Jazz on cattle on our youtube channel here: JAZZ

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