Powerpak's High Roller STDc ADC CD FDCH RPT TT CGC, St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog, 8 points CKC

DOB 29 November 1996. CKC/ASCA registered.  OFA--hips excellent, elbows normal. Eyes cleared yearly.  20.5 inches, 42 pounds.

Standing at stud to approved bitches.

 pedigree  /  click here for faults and other pertinent info

I have never loved a dog as much as him...never gotten as mad at a dog, as with him...never had such pleasure training a dog, but also never had such frustration.  He's pretty cool .

He's my little buddy, my guardian, a sweet dignified grand man at times and sometimes the biggest bonehead in the world.  I love him, warts and all.  May everyone have a dog as good as him, at least once in their life.

Temperament

Vegas is slightly aloof and is not a "lapdog."  His independent character sometimes reminds me of a cat...when he needs you, he'll let you know.  He is cuddly at quiet times. 

When meeting strangers, he says hello happily, but does not beg for attention or particularly solicit petting.  An intact male, he happily co-exists with other dogs, including other intact males, with no problems.   I regularly use Vegas as "psychiatrist dog" with aggression cases that I encounter as a dog trainer.  He modifies his behaviour to exactly what the other dog needs, whether it be a quick harmless tuning-up of a rude adolescent or ignoring a dog that is terrified (and letting the other dog make advances).

Vegas enjoys training and is a highly motivated learner.  He is physically tough but mentally sensitive and learns best from reward-based motivators.  He tends to be independent and less responsive to verbal and physical praise, which I consider one of his faults.  He makes fast associations and learns chains of behaviours incredibly quickly.  He has an independent streak which is maddening...knows what I want but has to add his own version so that he has things "his way."  I've learned a lot from him, learned that with a temperament such as this it's much better to work with it instead of trying to fight against it.  He is a dog that needs to have options to feel that work is fun.  If you give him a perceived choice, he loves to work...the challenge is to manipulate the choices to things I want rather than letting him make up his own!  Click here for examples of this trait.

He is bomb-proof in social situations and able to perform well in demanding environments such as Superdog shows, agility trials, obedience trials, flyball tournaments, and many other situations. 

Vegas has a high guardian drive in my home and vehicle.  The Schutzhund judge that scored his TT was amazed at how well he evaluated the threat, acted, then immediately turned "it" off and relaxed.  I rely on Vegas a LOT for a feeling of safety when I am out and about, and I know that my stuff and myself are safe when he is around.  Click here for a description of what happened during his TT evaluation.

See a video of Vegas climbing a tree.

Conformation

Vegas has 8 points toward his CKC Championship, with the required major already achieved.  He will be shown again summer 2007.

Working

Vegas is a nice chore dog with cattle and sheep and is capable and gentle with ducks.  He earned his STDc and one leg on sheep in October 2002 at our very first ASCA stockdog trial (three Q's out of four entries!), after working both stock only about 10 times each. 

He's tough enough to work cows with calves.  He is perseverant and I think he would die before he would back away from a challenge.  He is a powerful dog with lots of presence.  Although I have not used him on a daily basis throughout his life, he was used as a chore dog with cow/calf pairs and sheep for a two-year period on a friend's farm.  His power is such that he rarely has to bite a cow...he'll readily do it, but usually with new cattle he only has to do it once or twice and then they don't challenge him anymore.  He bites heads strongly and heels, but up higher than I would like.  He's rarely had to really push from the rear though, usually they move off him quite nicely, so I don't know if he would ever be a strong heeler if the situation demanded it.

Vegas is a dog that quickly understands the "point" of things and quite naturally seems to "get" the final goal.  If there's a trailer backed up to a gate, he knows he's supposed to get the cows inside.  If we have to push cows out of a building, or back an animal out of a stall, he understands what needs to be done and goes about it his own way (which is invariably a better way than I could have imagined).

On sheep he usually has to work from quite far away due to his presence and power and he adjusts to this on his own.  With cows he is a close, pushy worker.  Ducks just frustrate him, he's not really interested, but he'll work them mechanically with a "jeez this is stupid" kind of look on his face.  That may have been due to the fact that he was very aware that the sheep were in the adjacent shed and the cows were in the adjacent field, though.  I've never worked him on ducks anywhere else.

Faults in his working style?  I am not a stockdog trainer, and have not really tried to change any of these things so the only thing I can tell you is what I see when I just let him work.  He listens to me and follows directions unless he perceives that the stock are going to get away if he listens.  If I call him off he comes, but he won't usually change his tactics if I tell him to.  He tends to approach stock straight-on and doesn't have the nice square corners that other dogs seem to have naturally.  He uses standing eye in challenging situations.   If asked to bring large groups of stock, like the whole pasture of cow/calf pairs, he will gather groups and bring them to me and go back for the rest on his own.  He barks too much when he's excited but settles down quickly and works silently thereafter.

Click here for a series of pictures of Vegas working cattle.

Sports

In obedience, Vegas easily achieved his CD in both ASCA and CKC with his lowest score a 189 and highest score 198.5.  True to his nature of independent thinking and needing choices, he enjoys Open and Utility exercises much more than Novice.  He has been ready for Open trialing for years but I haven't made it a priority and doubt that I will travel the 8+ hours to try for it.  He is a speedy, animated, focused and intense obedience dog that I am sure could have made an experienced handler a top-winning prospect.

Vegas is a trick dog TO DIE FOR.  Has to be seen to be believed!  He is a clicker dog extraordinaire, and usually can be taught with clicker with one-click progressions rather than needing multiple clicks for the same behaviour. SCARY good at it.  Jean Donaldson and Cheryl Smith have both witnessed this and both said "never seen a dog like that."

Natural tugger, natural retriever, high prey drive.

NEWS FLASH:   We just got a cat, and after years of chasing every cat he could find, Vegas is good with this cat.  Go figger.

Vegas is the type of frisbee dog that inspires OOOOHS and AAAHS when he gives "big air."  He is like Michael Jordan in that he has HANG TIME.  He seems to enjoy the dramatic jumping that everyone likes to see, and often will jump dramatically even when he could easily catch the disc without jumping at all.

Vegas has titles in agility, obedience, frisbee, herding and flyball.  He has passed a temperament test (TT) and has his CGC.  We have done some preliminary work in Schutzhund and tracking, and have even shown the sighthound folks what an Aussie can do on the lure coursing field.  He is currently participating in sledding and is a reliable dog no matter where you put him.

Vegas' Photo Gallery

Click here for cattle (working) photos

Vegas has sired two litters...click here to view his offspring.

Video:  Vegas Climbing a Tree

Video:  Vegas Playing Frisbee