Dec’23 Litter

The Christmas Tree Litter!

A little about the parents…

KAT Ballou

My wonderful girl out of Abilene and Drover. She is as loyal as the day is long, friendly to strangers, about as stable as they come (‘bombproof’ comes to mind), great working ability and produces the like. She earned her AHBA Herding Trial Champion title with points on ducks and sheep. She will also work cows, just hasn’t in a trial setting. What I appreciate most about her is her ability to regulate her intensity based on the situation. With a duck, she is soft and easy and careful not to hurt one. With a cow, she is not afraid to get in there and make it known she is not one to back down! Similar to her parents but especially her mother, she has a very innate nurturing ability. She has warmed up many a cold lamb, cleaning them off and making sure they are tended to before going back to their own momma. She is an excellent trail riding dog. She stays close and never bothers the horses, doesn’t wander or chase wildlife. She likes the water and can be found swimming in the pond when the weather is right. KAT is on the smaller side of medium build, about 19.5″ tall with good bone and substance.

Noble

Noble is a nice black and tan dog with a natural bobtail. He is out of a black and tan male who is directly out of two Sallee’s dogs. His dam is a granddaughter of Butcher’s Foothills Elsa who was known to be a great working dog, she is also my Drover’s dam. Noble lives on a small farm with cattle and has been around many farm animals in his life including poultry and cows. He is good with both, doesn’t bother cats and is in fact also very gentle with small animals. He has a steady, stable temperament and is very friendly with strangers. He is 10 years old and very agile still. Always down to play with his ball! He is very in tune with his people, intelligent and picks up new things quickly. He is a moderately built dog, around 22.5″ and 55lbs in his prime (you know we all tend to gain extra ‘fluff’ with age, ha). He has a very masculine head, a kind expression and good bone structure.

Puppies born December 13th, 2023. 4 females, 6 males.

This is the Christmas Tree litter! Born just 12 days from Christmas. One of the most popular varieties of Christmas tree is called the Noble fir, so it is quite fitting that these pups were sired by a dog whose name is Noble!

In birth order…

“Cedar” after the redcedar. Black and tan female with a full tail
“Sugar” after the sugar pine. Black tri female with a full tail
“Arbor” after the arborvitae. Black and tan female with a NBT
“Scotch” after the scotch pine. Black tri male with a NBT
“Leyland” after the leyland cypress. Black tri male with a NBT
“Silver” after the silver fir. Black tri female with a full tail
“Canaan” after the Canaan fir. Black tri male with a NBT
“Cypress” after the lemon cypress. Black and tan male with a NBT
“Spruce” after the blue spruce. Black and tan male with a NBT
“Fraser” after the Fraser fir. Black tri male with a NBT

As a breeder, sometimes things happen that are beyond our control. At 3 days old Leyland found himself beneath the bedding with the rest of the puppies piled on top. He was accidentally smothered and unfortunately did not make it. This is one of the hard parts of being a breeder. May his 9 siblings live full, enriched lives in his memory!