I was born to be a dog trainer. My grandfather was a dog breeder and trainer and we have family films of me at age three "training" the family dog. I have been with one or more dogs all but 1.5 years of my life. Those were miserable months for me and, I'm sure, for my parents as I asked for a dog at least once a day! Dogs are my hobby, my obsession, my therapy and my life. I'm blessed to be surrounded by people who understand my passion and are patient with the hours I spend with my "kids".
The first dog that was officially mine was a German Shepherd/Siberian Husky mix. To say she was tough to train was an understatement! She disappeared many times, always on walks and always on the way home. Several times she appeared to have difficulty with her hearing only to have it miraculously reappear when the refrigerator opened! Then I saw a Belgian Tervuren and I fell in love with the breed. Thankfully, they are much easier to train than my first dog.
The picture I have in my mind of the perfect working dog is one who's handler fades into the background. One who's joy in the task at hand is obvious to everyone while still achieving a high degree of accuracy. I am still learning and always will as this is not the easiest picture to attain, but my dogs and I are enjoying the journey and they are tolerant of my mistakes.
I have never bred a litter but have been fortunate enough to have breeders use my males and allow me to have puppies from those litters. I will always be grateful to the breeders who entrusted me with their babies whether they bred to my males or not. Theirs are the dogs that fill my life and my heart.