Sometimes the Grass is Greener in Your Own Backyard

You know who they are. The handlers that you stop whatever you are doing to watch their runs. The handlers that other top handlers stop whatever they are doing to watch their runs.

It does not seem to matter what dog they are running. They seem to always get the best out of their dog on that day. As they used to say of Bear Bryant "He could take his and beat you with yours, and then trade and take yours and beat you with his". Or they are always the ones accused of "getting the good sheep."

At a trial I like to watch my friends runs for support. I like to watch the top handlers to learn - about the draws and sheep behavior for that day and about general handling for instruction.

I am fortunate that one of those handlers is my trainer, Jennifer Clark Ewers. She may not win every trial that she enters but she is sure to be one of the "dangerous" handler/dog teams. And you can do a lot worse than watch how Jennifer handles a dog. You can learn a lot just by watching. Having the benefit of working with Jennifer and discussing runs with her you can learn even more.

Sometimes we less gifted or experienced handlers have a tendency to chase clinics with the famous clinicians - Bobby Dalziel, Jack Knox, Derek Scrimgeour - just to name a few who have recently offered clinics in California. The tendency is to think the famous clinician will have some "magic" piece of advice that can fix our dogs over a weekend. A friend of mine compares it to the golfer who goes out to buy a new driver to fix his slice instead of putting the time in to work on fundamentals. I also think part of the motivation is to hear a famous clinician say good things about your dog. How many times have you heard a friend come back from a clinic and say (or post on a message board) "[insert famous name] really liked my dog".

I have been guilty of this at times and I confess it is nice to hear someone well known say nice things about your dog. But a few things I have noticed recently have made me realize that we are often guilty of not appreciating what we have.

Recently there was a thread on one of the boards asking about lessons being offered by a "big hat" in a different state. Multiple people were expressing how lucky the handler was to get a chance to work with a well known handler. It made me realize how lucky I am because I get to work with Jennifer almost every week - and I think most people would consider Jennifer a better handler than the person people were so "lucky" to get a chance to work with one time if they were being objective.

I also had some friends attend a clinic with a very famous handler from Britain recently held in Southern California. I have previously audited a clinic with this gentleman so I had an expectation of what they would come back with. No surprises. Most importantly - exactly the same advice I am getting on a weekly basis at Canines n Ewe. I guess sometimes people just need to hear it from a different source.

Following another clinic recently in Northern California with another famous British handler a friend posted that she had received an amazing simple tip for bringing in her wide running dog. In an email I asked about the tip. When it came back it was exactly what Jennifer already had me doing with Piper except that we were taking it a step or two farther and getting even better results. Again we were getting the same quality advice at home so to speak.

Finally I have a friend in Northern California who is a fairly new but talented handler. Her young dog - her first BC - is qualified for the nursery nationals. A few weeks ago she decided to come to Jennifer's to work on our regular Saturday group training session. After the day she commented that her dog had never worked so hard or been required to perform so well in her life.

So - since we often take what is nearby or available - it is time to say "Thank You Jennifer for all your help."