"Is it supper time yet?"
Dani, 24th August 2008
February 26, 1997 ~ September
15, 2009
What can I say about
Dani...from the day I picked her up at the Calgary Airport till
the last day when I was leaving for work, stopped to pat her on
the head and tell her I loved her, she was my soul mate.
She was the sweetest, friendliest Aussie...Dani was our
"greeter" at the farm, everyone who ever came to visit knew and
loved her. She'd meet them and greet them and if they left
the vehicle door open too long she even hop in and check things
out to see if she could go wandering with them! Dani
travelled many miles with us, starting the week after she
arrived when she went all the way to Williams Lake Rodeo and
stole the hearts of nearly everyone there, one local Chief from
the area was ready to empty his bank account just to have "that
beautiful red dawg". Despite some pretty serious injuries,
and nearly losing a leg, Dani persevered and was the best little
sheep dog you could have. We never taught her a thing,
didn't have to, she just knew what to do and how and when to do
it. We miss you Doodlebug...I miss you walking me to my
van every morning and meeting me at the driveway when I come
home and I know Foss misses you every time he feeds those pesky
sheep, no one can keep them away from the feed bunk door with
the quiet calmness that you did. Rest in peace beautiful
girl, you'll always be in our hearts and in our minds.
|
Spirit of An Aussie
|
I was
standing on a hillside
In a field of blowing wheat
And the spirit of an Aussie
Was lying at my feet.
He looked at me with kind dark eyes
An ancient wisdom shining through
And in the essence of his being
I saw love there too.
His mind did lock upon my heart
As I stood there on that day
And he told me of this story
About a place far away.
I stood upon the hillside
In a field of blowing wheat
And in a twinkling of a second
His spirit left my feet.
His tale did put my heart at ease
My fears did fade away
About what lay ahead of me
On another distant day.
"I live among God's creatures now
In the heavens of your mind
So do not grieve for me, my friend
As I am with my kind.
My collar is a rainbow's hue
My leash a shooting star
My boundaries are the Milky Way
Where I sparkle from afar.
There are no pens or kennels here
For I am not confined
But free to roam God's heavens
Among my Aussie kind. |
I nap the
day on a snowy cloud
Gentle breezes rocking me
And dream the dreams of earthlings
And how it used to be.
The trees are full of liver treats
And tennis balls abound
And Milkbones line the walkways
Just waiting to be found.
There even is a ring set up
The grass all lush and green
And everyone who gaits around
Becomes the Best of Breed.
For we're all winners in this place
We have no faults, you see
And God passes out those ribbons
To each one, even me.
I drink from waters laced with gold
My world a beauty to behold
And wise old dogs do form my pride
To amble at my very side.
At night I sleep in an angel's arms
Her wings protecting me
And moonbeams dance about us
As stardust falls on thee.
So when your life on earth is spent
And you stand at Heaven's gate
Have no fear of loneliness
For here, you know I wait".
~ Author Unknown ~ |
Las Rocosa Rusty Spur x LR Shawnee STDcd (HOF)
Hi, I'm Dani - one cool Dudette!
(Dani was about 4 months old in this photo!)
Christmas 2006 ~ out playing in the field with
Tuffy...
the theme of the day seemed to be follow-the-leader
Winter 2004/2005
Dani & her two best friends, Dually & Foss
It was -40C the day these photos were taken!
Dani is our beautiful red tri lady who has wonderfully
strong herding instincts. Dani loved working with me first thing in the morning to get the
sheep out of the barn and her willingness and ability with our Indian Runner Ducks at an
early stage in her training was amazing! She has also helped move over 100 cow/calf pairs
with minimal (and I do mean minimal!) training! Dani is very responsive to commands and
even when given a command she has not learned she looks to see where we're pointing and
off she goes like a flash. Dani loves meeting new people but does show her true Aussieness
in the way she's cautious about making friends. Once you are Dani's friend though, you're
a friend for life and generally end up with her in your lap for kisses the next time she
sees you.
Photos by Wolf Schulz |
 |
Lazing around at the 1999 ASCA Nationals in Longview
Washington…showing off her broken leg and making the most of all the attention she
got!
Joe Hartnagle, Spur & Dani at the Longview Nationals September 1999
Dani broke her leg/foot on June 26/99…we don't know
how! Due to complications she lost most of the flesh and skin off the top of her foot
& leg right up to the hock. To
cut a long story short Dani eventually nearly lost the whole leg a few months
later…but the vet managed to just remove several inches of the two middle
bones…it's left her with a bad limp and a shrunken and twisted foot but she still has
four legs. Dani will always have a bad limp but since the two bone pieces have been
removed she's back to her normal, happy self, running & playing. Dani feels her main
focus in life must be to watch over Molly & Ceilidh & ensure that our pesky sheep
stay where she thinks they should be! Her herding instinct is so strong that despite her
gibbled foot (I don't dare say it's crippled!) she still gets out and about quite well and
would not allow our ram near me…she had no hesitation in getting right in his face
if he so much as looked at me….GREAT DOG! This is all because the ram had put me on
my butt a few times and Dani's decided he was her problem to deal with, gibbled foot or
not…this little girl has a tremendous amount of heart!
What are those youngsters up to?
|
Cows...I see COWS!!! |
Do I have to come down there & teach you kids some manners?
|
Dani's ASCA pedigree
(if a name is underlined it's a link to a
photo of the ancestor! Please use your browser's back button to return here!)
All titles awarded by ASCA
unless otherwise noted.
