When I looked at the date of my last blog I couldn’t believe it has been so many months since I’ve written. Truth be told, I have been pretty busy with personal stuff. My Australian Cattle Dog (“ACD”), Roper, was sick & we ended up having to put her down in September – she turned 13 years in July. I was crushed & felt that someone just yanked my heart out of my chest & threw it down on the pavement with all their might. She was one of those “once in a lifetime” dogs. I still have a huge hole in my heart for my old girl, but know she is a better place & pain free. She is reunited with her ACD buddy, K.C. (K.C. was my pet therapy dog). Doing the right thing is so blasted hard to do, but it was the right thing to do for my Roper girl.
Roper in Idaho - Her last vacation with us
Roper was a rescue that I adopted at 9 months of age. She was my first ACD (aka Queensland Heeler, Blue Heeler, Red Heeler). Roper was a handful & then some!! I called her my “Wild Child” or “Blue Demon Girl” – you get the picture! She would try & bite people when I first got her, so we both had to go through major Socialization 101 for a good solid year.
Roper loved playing fetch & frisbee!
I was at a doggie event in Grass Valley & some gal asked me if I wanted to have Roper go through the AKC Canine Good Citizen (“CGC”) test. “It is only $10”, she said. I mulled it over & didn’t think Roper was ready, but thought it would be a good exercise to see just how we were progressing in the socialization dept — & hey – it was “only $10”. That was cheap. I was preparing myself to go climb under the nearest rock after we failed the test because Roper just had a way to embarrass me – like she did in agility class when she barked & lunged at the gal in the motorized wheelchair for the ENTIRE class! Long story short – Roper PASSED the CGC!! I was absolutely floored. I immediately called my dog trainer, Ann, & she was totally surprised. Just to put this in perspective, this was a dog that did not approach the dog trainer for a solid 20 minutes with the lure of food. Ann had to start off with throwing the dog treats across the room & slowly toss them closer until Roper was next to her & taking treats out of her hand.
On the day of the maiden flight of the RV-4
Roper loved dog agility. She was a high drive, high-energy super alpha female. She was FAST & totally loved dog agility. When we would run through the course, Roper was about 3-4 obstacles ahead of me. If I didn’t tell her where to go next she would turn around & start barking at me – like she was cussing me out for not telling her where to go. LOL It was funny, but very challenging to run a dog with such high drive & speed through an agility course. When Roper & I were at agility events, folks would tell me how much they wanted a high drive dog. I would tell them to go take Roper for a spin through the course & see what it is like…needless to say I never had any takers!!
Kayaking with Roper
Another thing we tried was herding & Roper enjoyed that too. Have to admit that Roper was too headstrong for ducks & was much better with sheep. She just wanted to go in there & get ‘er done. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to try her out on cattle but considering her drive I’m sure she would have done well.
Roper's famous grin!
The other thing we did was foster dogs for ACD rescue. Roper was my Marine general & enforced the rules of the household. If the foster dog was eyeballing the cat or thinking about herding/jumping on the cat, bed, or doing anything that would break a rule, Roper would correct them for it. She would do the same if they were looking at the goodies on the counter. Who needs eyeballs in the back of your head when Four Star Marine General Roper was on duty? She was an amazing dog!
Roper & K.C. all dressed up for a Christmas party
I’ll close for now, but just wanted to say RIP my dear, Roper girl. You were one-of-a-kind & will always be in my heart. See you at the Rainbow Bridge.
RIP Roper - My Dear Friend
We had a great ride today. Blanket came off and protective gear went on, splint boots for all four (first time yesterday) and bell boots in front (first time this morning). Then we turned both horses out for a romp in the grass turn-out (first time today) – and they whooped it up for a while before finding a little grass in the back.
Then we rode in the indoor for maybe two minutes before Linda and Zany coaxed us out for a walkabout. I thought we would mosey over to inspect the dressage arena but Linda headed for the north obstacle field. We walked behind, thankful that Zany wasn’t full of “it”. One spook and a three step run-out and the rest of the ride was wonderfully calm. we stopped to say Hi to Nadine on Hildago and then trotted up the road to the top of the levee. More pictures are in CruZado’s 
Now don’t get me wrong, I love my little red sports car. We call it our boat since it takes us cruising all over the place, down country lanes and levee roads. The top down night rides are especially delightful. BUT – every new car that comes along captures my imagination. WOW, that one would be great for vacation – big trunk and lots of room for suitcases. LOOK at that – that one would be great for trips to the ranch. HOW about that – sixty miles to the gallon, wouldn’t that be nice.