Orchard Bay Australian Shepherds

09/28/2026

Mymic's final run of the barnhunt trial. Clearly she found the rat and I even questioned it, but didn't call it 😅. The tube I called it on was the litter tube. Sorry girl, mom will work on it 🤣

09/28/2026

Dually's final run and first Novice Q at the barnhunt trial. His indication isn't very strong yet, but it was enough for me to notice and go back to. Something to keep working on!

09/28/2026

While we haven't done a ton of events this summer, we decided to finish out the year by trying something new(ish).

Some back story: Before we moved back to BC in 2019, we briefly tried Barn Hunt with Kasey. We had a ton of fun. However, Kasey doesn't travel well (🤮), so when we moved, it wasn't worth the stress for her to travel and continue. Over the years, I considered entering again, but I was always nervous Dually would just mark in the ring, so I'd chicken out. We've been trying to find a sport for Lady as she's not huge on water yet for dock diving, so decided on a whim to sign up for a barn hunt lesson with her and Mymic in July. There was extra room in the class, so I brought Dually too with not much hope that he wouldn't try to p*e in the ring. To my surprise, he didn't even consider it 😅. Mymic was a Rockstar per usual, and Dually and Lady showed interest but weren't as confident. We did a second lesson after deciding to sign up for a trial, and all 3 had more improvement. Lady came into heat a few days before the trial, so I decided to leave her home with her dad.

Day 1 of the trial: Mymic got her Rat Instinct (RATI) title. Dually decided he just wanted to track the other dogs smells in the ring instead of searching for the rat, so no Q's for him. Mymic's first search she seemed confused what she was searching for, but once we timed out and the judge showed us where the rat was, she remembered the game! Her second Novice run she should've Q'd but I second guessed her and didn't call rat 🫠 (my bad, sorry girl)

Day 2: Dually got his Instinct title (RATI), and Mymic did Instinct for a warm up, finding the rat in 5 seconds! Mymic went on to get 2 Novice Q's. Dually didn't get any Novice Qs, but started actually searching, so I was happy regardless!

Day 3: Mymic didn't get any Novice Q's. She decided she needs a new handler because both runs were my fault 🫠. Dually NQ'd his Instinct run after I called the wrong tube (was my fault, I didn't trust him), and his first Novice run but searched beautiful, just couldn't find the rat, so I was so happy. The judge commented on the amount of improvement from him between his Friday runs with her to his Sunday runs. His final run of the weekend, he searched beautifully and successfully found the rat for his first Novice Q!! I was so excited for the Q, but never expected to receive messages after we had started traveling home, that Dually received 1st in his height division that run 🥲.

While it we didn't walk away with their Novice titles or had the most Q's, we all learned so much over the weekend. They both made big improvements, and I learned I need to trust my dogs more 😅. So proud of all the work the dogs put in!! I am excited to continue training and for our next trial, hopefully with Lady too.

Thank you to and for an amazing trial! Also, a special shout out to my momma for traveling with us and hanging out at the hotel with my son so I could attend the trial. It takes a village!!

*one Q ribbon missing because it's lost in my car somewhere 🤣*

09/04/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18hpXxMoku/

On the left is the team that won once. They got the ribbon, the title, the photo, the recognition.

On the right is the team that kept showing up.

The team that came 5th. The team that didn't place. The team that struggled. The team that kept training. The team that kept entering. The team that kept learning.

Both are champions.

In dog sports, it's easy to look at the podium and assume that's where success lives. But the reality is that most of our growth happens in the runs nobody remembers. The off courses. The NQs. The missed contacts. The blown startlines. The moments where you drive home wondering what went wrong.

Every run teaches something.

Every trial builds experience.

Every challenge overcome strengthens the partnership between dog and handler.

The dog doesn't know whether the ribbon says 1st, 3rd, or nothing at all. They only know that they got to play the game they love with their favourite person.

So if you're currently in a season of near misses, frustrating results, or feeling like everyone else is progressing faster than you, keep going.

The teams that stay in the sport long enough to become truly great are rarely the ones who never fail.

They're the ones who keep showing up after they do.

🏆 A ribbon might make you a winner for a day.

❤️ Perseverance, partnership, and dedication make you a champion for a lifetime.

07/28/2026

A great perspective! Her dogs jump at the same 'local' pool as we normally do. For us, we also have to add in ferries and accommodations. Because we pay so much for travel, we also usually enter at least 3 days, 4 jumps per day, and usually have Mymic and Dually with us, so 24 jumps in a weekend total. We're lucky to be able to practice dock diving at home, but the cost for us to attend the event adds up very fast on top of entry fees. While we would love to attend tons of events, the cost adds up quickly, especially with travel since we live so rural.

07/27/2026

At the end of June, we submitted for Dually's Trick Dog Champion title. A few days later, we got confirmation that he passed 🥳 He got 2 minor points off that we were expecting (videoing issues, not trick related. Videoing alone can be hard sometimes 😅). This title also qualifies him for his TD-ROM, just need to submit it. So proud of this little dog and how hard he works for me (even when I'm fumbling my way through). 💕🐾

Dreamwinds One Ton Dually *TDCh* RN CGN AS DJA DS VN HDN

07/04/2026

An update on Boeser (Kasey x Cooper) from his mom!

"Another fun disc weekend for Boeser!

He got 1st in Time Warp and Spaced Out, 3rd in Throw & Go and Greedy

He is saving up his chips to trade for a big prize at the next trial!" Congratulations to Boeser on another amazing UpDog weekend! 👏🎉🐾 so proud of them!!

07/03/2026

Lycan has been beating the Ontario summer heat with some dock diving practice! Yesterday, he even went of the dock for the first time. This boy reminded me so much of his sire Dually as a puppy, so he holds an extra soft spot in my heart. So proud of Lycan and his owner, Suzanne. Thank you, Suzanne, for giving him such an amazing life. 🐾🌊

06/26/2026

We have had a few people reach out about future breeding plans. While nothing is set in stone, we are taking an interest list for 2027. Below is our updated application since we no longer have our website up and running.

If interested in one of our puppies, please complete the following form so you can get to know you a little. Completing this form does NOT mean you are a good fit for one of our puppies. Every breeding program is different, so we may not always be a good fit for what you're looking for. If we are no...

06/21/2026

Even though Dually's jumps in May weren't the best, he still qualified for K9 Wave Regionals! Unfortunately I don't think we'll be able to attend, but still proud of him nonetheless. 💕🐾

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