Shaw's Isabella
Isabella was eight weeks old when we brought her home. A cute little bundle of fluff, she seemed to bound everywhere she went, which happened to be anywhere we were going. Whatever we were doing, she wanted to be a part of the action. It didn't take her long to begin making her presence known to the other animals by sitting at the gate of the goat pen and running the chickens into smaller circles. Having had a few bad experiences with dogs and chickens, we were a little nervous when she started "chasing" the chickens. We were so pleased when we realized that she was rounding them up and when they wouldn't cooperate, she would hold them loosely by the neck until she got them where she wanted them. As time went by she realized that we allowed the chickens to go anywhere but in the garden or the road, so Bella extended the chickens' boundaries accordingly.
Eventually, we added Atticus, an Alpine/Nubian mix, to our herd of goats. Atticus was still very young and needed to be bottle fed, therefore receiving a different kind of attention. When we would tell Bella to go round up the goats, she would round all but Atticus everytime. She also gave him different boundaries. For some reason, she never treated him like a goat, but a buddy to hang around with.
From early on Bella recognized her job as guardian of our home and family. She knows her place and takes her role seriously. When Mitch is not around, she's a little more aware than normal, but if Mitch and I are both gone she goes into full guardian mode with the kids.
It's the little things that Bella does, like making her rounds to all the rooms at night to check on everyone before settling in herself, or waiting patiently nearby as chicken boils and then moving immediately to my feet to catch the bits of chicken I toss her way while shredding it (a routine we worked out when she was a few months old and, unless she's outside, we never skip it), that make her such a special part of our family.
Now that we have moved to Texas, Bella's daily routine has changed. Having a smaller yard, it took her some time to realize that our neighbors were not on her property, but she adjusted pretty quickly. She focuses a lot of her attention now on the kids and the cats. The kids provide her plenty of exercise and enjoyment, the cats provide her plenty of herding opportunities. Bella knows that it's not acceptable for the cats to use our furniture as a scratching post and has taken it upon herself to oversee their actions. The cats no longer look around to see if we are watching, they look around to see if Bella is watching before they stretch their claws out. Unfortunately for them, as soon as Bella hears the first claw snag on the fabric, she's on them like lightening, even if she was in another room. However, when she's not having to discipline them, Bella is very chummy with the cats, especially Smokey, our gray cat. He and Bella spent so much time together when we first got him, that he began to act like Bella... even getting in on the boiled chicken routine.
We are so pleased with Isabella; her features, intelligence, personality and qualities. We are even more pleased that our search for the right dog led us to the English Shepherd.
Celo Farm's Tara (Bella's Dam)
Beautiful. Smart. Gentle. Alert. Protective. Tara lives in Burnesville, NC with Dr. and Mrs. Fergus Pope. When we traveled from Dinwiddie, VA (about an hour south of Richmond) to pick up our new puppy, Tara greeted us at her mountain top home by coming out to the Jeep Cherokee and guarding us to make sure we stayed in the vehicle. With every bark and growl she seemed to be saying, "I don't know you. I don't know why you are here. Stay put until my Master gets here and tells me what to do with you!" (a trait that she has passed on to Bella). When Dr. Pope came along a few minutes later, he told Tara that we were there to get a puppy and she immediately became very friendly. In fact she was anxious to show off her babies. We knew then that everything we had read about the ES breed was true and this was the dog for us. As Providence would have it, this was to be Tara's last litter. Dr. and Mrs. Pope decided that because of their advanced age and changing lifestyle, they would no longer be breeding and have had Tara altered. I am very grateful that we were able to get one of her last puppies and to be able to keep that wonderful line going.
Tara is out of Carousel's Milo by Maynard's Fuzzy Jordan. They are both owned by Jim and Liz McGowen and live in Kearneysville, WV.
Shepherd's Rex Blaze (Bella's Sire)
Rex Blaze has lead an interesting life. Born in Alabama in 1996 he was sold to an older couple who kept him until the man passed away in 2002 and the woman had to move into an apartment. She gave Rex to a Mr. Shepherd who owned a farm, but did not live there. Rex was given charge of taking care of the farm in Mr. Shepherd's absence. He said Rex was the best dog he ever had, but, as English Shepherd lovers know, this was not an ideal situation for Rex. He lacked the human companionship he needed and the situation did not work out. Mr. Shepherd contacted the original breeder and asked her to take Rex and find him a better home.
That is where Donald Haynes enters the story. Donald has owned English Shepherds since 1946 and had just lost his beloved "Princess Joy". The breeder, Joan Boles, spoke with Don and he decided to "adopt" Rex and the two are as happy together as can be. Don says Rex loves everyone (now I know where Bella gets her sweetheart attitude from). As you can see by the picture above (used with permission from Rebecca Wingler ) Rex is a loving, devoted companion to Don.
Rex is out of Boles' Queen by Boles' G Jorabo.
For more information on Rex Blaze, email Don Haynes at dhaynes11@triad.rr.