Introducing "SCK Red Dawn at LoupGarou!

I saw him for the first time just over a year ago, this tiny mite of a puppy, all red and rust and a funky beige color that had no real name. I had never seen a Miniature American Shepherd who looked quite like him, but I knew that he would be stunning when he grew up. The Australian shepherd breeder for whom I do occasional cleaning and grooming had done a friend a favor by taking in a newly born litter, when her friend had unexpected health problems. I fell in love with Cassidy the moment I saw him and vowed to make him mine. He "helped" me clean the puppy room when he got big enough.

It's amazing how fast time flies. Before I knew it, the puppies were two months old and ready to go to new homes. Cassidy, then known as "rmm(dark)" was a big hit with everyone who saw his picture. The first time puppy buyers came to look at the litter, I was worried that my smart, happy, busy little puppy was going to be the first one gone. I needn't have worried, as they decided on the lightest merle in the litter, even though they'd been drawn first to "my" puppy. Puppy after puppy went and soon, it was down to Cassidy and the other dark merle puppy. I *almost* had enough money for "my" puppy, so I told my boss that I really wanted this dog. Down payment was made and "rmm(dark), white collar" was off to Louisiana. The little guy was officially mine!

I let Cassidy just relax and be a puppy for the first few months that he was here. Homestead life was a lot different from what he'd known. He and Diva would get out to run and play in the grass. He learned that cats could be fun playmates and that roosters were not fun at all! He decided that goats were okay, but kind of big and scary and that Uncle Dan was great when he came to the homestead and gave the puppy cookies. All was well in the Cassidy world.

Then the opossum came and stole my chicken. I didn't know what it was when it stole my hen the first night, but I got a good look at it the next time it came around. Curious Cassidy had followed me outside--and he got a good look, too. I don't know if Cassidy caught the critter, but he took off after it as though he were born to it and I haven't seen the opossum since. Something clicked that night in the puppy brain and he understood his purpose. He would never be a show dog, as he lacked any registration papers but he could protect his homestead! He doesn't live outside and he's not outside every night, but he loves his night patrol and is very good at it.

Puppies grow up, and so did my happy little puppy. He was still as busy as he could be, "helping" me with the garbage can ("Cassidy, NO!") and with the dog blankets that I hung out to dry, so I knew it was past time for him to have a job. Now his rambling walks became training walks. We started "noodling and doodling" with Rally figures, just to keep things interesting. Cassidy took to it like a duck to water. I began to think that he could be an obedience/Rally dog--and we were off to the proverbial races. Training a largish dog is very different than training one of the terriers, but having already trained a collie, I knew that I could do it. Eventually, I got him into the training ring and started him on cones and chained sequences.

I have almost another year before I can enter him in AKC events, as he needs to be neutered if he's just going to have a listing rather than be registered. UKC, however, allows listed dogs to participate in events before being neutered--they started out as a working dog registry and acknowledge that larger dogs need to mature before being sterilized (to avoid skeletomuscular issues). When I learned that the UKC Southern Classic was coming to Mississippi, it seemed like the perfect time to make Cassidy's debut. All he needed now was a name.

I chose Cassidy's call name after his mother's call name, Cassie. I didn't like "Butch Cassidy" or "Hopalong Cassidy" for his performance listing name, which were the two names that almost everyone I asked seemed to suggest. I thought back to many years ago, when I was reading Albert Payson Terhune's collie books. My favorite book Terhune book was "Gray Dawn," starring a blue merle collie, who I loved even more than Lad (sacrilege, I know). My puppy shared Dawnie's love of life, but not his color or even his breed. No matter how many times, I tried to reject the idea, I kept coming back to it.

Eventually, I warmed to the idea. I know, I know, there are certain people who might think that the name came from the movie of the same name. That's not really an issue for me: unless his name appears in printed results or a dog show catalogue, no one will really know, anyway. So, on April 7, I paid for his performance listing and TL number, making him official, and entered him in the Southern Classic. Welcome, SCK Red Dawn at LoupGarou--we know that you're going to have a wonderful and exciting Rally career ahead of you!

I hope that you've enjoyed reading about Cassidy as he embarks on his new performance trial career. I hope that I'll be posting about his future success with a first leg to a title after the Classic! If you enjoyed reading, please consider subscribing to this page (it's free!) and maybe offering a tip or a pledge (obligatory pitch for money, sorry)! Hope to see you again soon!