11/23/2025
This dog...I dont post many videos of him. Why? Because im embarrassed of myself. The last few years have been a huge transition for us with my pregnancies and then life with 2 young girls. Where my life used to revolve around training dogs every night, now its playing with the girls, cleaning up dinner and toys, and bedtime routines. I dont mean that this is a bad thing, but its a change! Roper came into my life when I had my first baby on my hip. Hes never gotten the training he should have gotten. I can count on my fingers the number of times iv actually taken him into the training pen, just to train, and not to get a job done. Yet, this dog who has gotten the least amount of training of any working dog iv ever used, shows up every single time I need him and gets things done. Its not always pretty. I often give him commands before realizing he doesnt know what im asking. Hes learned our regular tasks and gets them done simply because he knows what the end game is, not because he understands what im asking. Iv been able to add in some commands to things hes already doing and have seen that reflected later on in a situation he doesnt know the end game, yet takes the correct flank. As Sako is aging, he has stepped into the role of my main cow dog. He occasionally scares me with how hard he hits, but then I see how the cows respects him far faster than any other dog iv used. He hits hard but then when it comes to the bull, he gives him the chance to move on, and the bull does. He will smack into an angry yearling that is acting like she is coming for him, but he will give a bit of ground to an angry charging cow. Just enough though for her to stop and turn back. Sometimes he picks fights he shouldnt, but more often then not he is reading the situation. Put him on sheep and hes a different dog. Certainly isn't getting into sheep the way he will cows and he has showed that he can stand back and slowly put pressure on, not just be the hammer we see often on cows. So, this dog....who's gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to training, has become so incredibly important to us. I wish that I had the time to put into training him, on all the buttons, so that I could get out and trial him and show everyone what I know he could be. If I dont get that time, I am sure he will be just as happy quickly becoming the "right hand man" as Sako gets older. Il make a point to take more video. It wont be as pretty as the work i am used to having and showing, but the job gets done and thats saying a heck of alot for a dog with so little actual training time💜