Y after I

You've all heard of "i before e except after c". This guy (below) is getting a slightly altered name. I've decided to change the spelling of his name to Ryme. Someone suggested it to me and I really like the warmer, more poetic, rhyming, meaning (rather than the cold, icy, frosty meaning). The spelling won't change how it sounds to the dog of course. It's probably crazy but I'm looking forward to a more harmonious and communicative relationship as we work together on the sheep. Actually things have been going a lot better with Ryme on the sheep (with only those few exceptions -- sort of like "after c").

Ryme with the remains of an old ball that they play with at the field

We were treated to practice RESDA-style runs at a nearby ranch last Sunday morning. What a gift it was to take Ryme to a completely new place (to him, at least) and run a small RESDA trial course with some nice cheviot cross ewes and lambs. It was a really good barometer of where we are. He was far from perfect and did one little blowup lifting the sheep. I felt badly that I didn't handle him better to keep our communication lines flowing on the gather--maybe I was too relaxed! But the best news was that Ryme settled right back down and worked beautifully -- seeming to have no tension -- through the rest of the course. We had a lamb in the group who did not want to play with the adults and Ryme kept the lamb tucked back in time after time when it wanted to wander off. We even got the pen which few people did.  Despite the initial blow up I felt really good about our progress in running at a completely new site.

These are all just silly camera phone photos taken at almost dark at the sheep field before it rained a week or two ago. All of these areas are now nice and green. The sheep are happy about all that green! I need new pictures! But I'm just getting around to posting these. I sort of like the grainy quality of the phone photos. They are certainly different than the pics from the Fuji.

Chief

Coal

All three photos were taken within about a minute of each other but it's interesting how the light is different on each one. I really like the one of Coal and the low evening sun shining on him from the west. Someday soon I must get the real camera back out and take some photos with green grass in them.

Coal's leg seems to be doing OK. He and I have come to some agreement on the need for him to not spin. The spinning only really happens now at meal time, and if I plan ahead by crating him, I can avoid that. So I'm very hopeful that with careful exercise, work, treatment, and rest we will beat this leg thing and get him healed up and ready for the upcoming Open USBCHA trials.

It's almost the weekend! And we have a sheepdog lesson planned.