The Barnyard Weed Warriors has 3 border collies on the duty at all sites. The dogs are used to assist the wrangler in maintaining control of the herd and for protection against any and all predators. The dog crew consists of Jinx, Joy & Fly.
FLY
Born February 19, 2018, Fly has grown up and is now on the fast track to be the main herding dog of the work crew. As her mom, Joy and Aunt Jinx slowly age out, the work load becomes her responsibility. Fly has attended a few working dog clinics and is catching folks eye with her stylish moves that are typical of the old fashion Border collies. We hope to get a litter of puppies from Fly in the Fall of 2022, so we can continue the family line. Fly is a very sociable dog and has inherited her late grandmother, Allie’s silliness, her mother Joy’s attention seeking and always hungry attitude (watch your fingers) and her Aunt Jinx’s work ethic and herding talents.
JINX
Photo by Elaine O’ Brien
Jinx, the eldest of Miss Allie’s daughters, born in November of 2010, she is slowly aging out of the work crew. She is losing her hearing and sight, a typical sign of old age. She still wants to work but is experiencing issues where she makes mistakes. She is highly sensitive to sudden movements, so please keep that in mind as you visit our work sites as she will bark if you approach the fences when Mary has her back turned.
Sadly, on June 14, 2022 we had to say good-bye to Jinx after she fell ill with Ehrlichia, which is bacteria that is carried by ticks. She evidently picked it up before tick season in 2022 before we started our annual tick treatment period. However, the testing by the vet also showed that she had a mass on her liver and had pancreatitis. After consulting with the vet about the options and pain levels she would have to experience, it was decided that we did not want her in any pain and we made that awful decision to say good-bye and she crossed that Rainbow Bridge with Mary holding Jinx in her arms.
JOY
Photo by Elaine O’Brien
Joy, also called Joy-Joy, turns 9 on November 10, 2021. She is a full sister to Jinx, and very sociable. Joy does have two vices that we do not like to encourage; jumping up on people and licking them with her lightning fast tongue and we can’t hand feed her as she accidentally takes more than the food, at times (she sometimes gets fingers too.).
Border collies have over 500 years of breeding behind them, to give them the natural instinct of herding. Our herding crew is not professionally trained (Fly is the exception) , they have learned to work with Mary and she has learned to command them in a way that they understand. These dogs are hand, whistle and voice commanded.
When we are on site, we prefer that you do not pet the dogs through the fence as it is electrified and you might get shocked. There are times when Mary can bring them out of the fencing, for meet and greet time, but there are times when they are working and Mary will have to decline the request.
If you would like to learn more about the border collies, you are welcomed to ask Mary or you can go to the American Border Collie Association website or watch Border collie videos on YouTube.
Jewel
Jewel is the newest member of the dog crew and she is one of Fly’s puppies that was born November 8, 2022. She will be about 7 months old by the time we start our 2023 grazing season, so she will be ready to do some work. We have high expectations for this little girl as she will also be in training to be training for cattle dog trials when she is trained up a bit. When we get Jewel to sit still long enough for a photo, we will add one to her profile!
