Shep's Story

I first met Shep on a farm last summer. I had been called in to help with Shep by the farmer. The farmer had bought him at 3 months old. He was now 6 months old. The farmer told me that he would growl if any human came near him. Shep would also bark at his cattle and sheep but got on very well with his other collie Blue. However Shep wouldn't follow when the farmer wanted him to go out and work on the farm.

When I first set eyes on Shep he was curled up tight in a corner of the farmyard. His amber eyes were piercing. I paid him no attention but carried on talking to the farmer. I then called Blue over to me in full view of Shep and smoothed him down . I wanted Shep to realise I posed no threat.

The farmer,who I will call Mr Brown, walked towards Shep in a calm quiet manner. Shep shot out from his corner, ducked under the gate, saw me and shot back to his corner again. He then curled up, his eyes glazed over and he literally shut down. From the moment I set eyes on him my heart went out to Shep and instinctively I knew he was going to have an effect on my life.

I asked Mr Brown where he had got Shep from. He told me that he had purchased Shep from a breeder who bred working trial champions. He also told me that Shep had been kept in a shed and that he had been picked up by the scruff and handed to Mr Brown....... rather like a bag of potatoes!!

Whilst I will never know exactly what happened to Shep or what he had to endure I believe he was subjected to a severe beating in the first 12 weeks of his life. He wasn't just frightened of humans he was terrified of them and was trying to block out the outside world in a desperate attempt to cope with life.

As I spoke to Mr Brown I was sat on an upturned kitchen sink in the middle of the farmyard with my back to Shep. I was not going to ask anything of him nor was I going to approach him. Suddenly Mr Brown said:” Maid ,I think he's perked up~ he's looking at you...he's never done that before!”.

I explained that I had not put any pressure on him and that I was not going to give him any eye contact as Shep would perceive this as a threat. I also explained to Mr Brown that I could help Shep but it was not going to happen overnight. Before Shep would even think about working on the farm, we had to earn his trust. I asked him to work around Shep and if Shep ventured out from his corner, not to make anything of it but to keep calm and continue with what he was doing.

For my part, I spent the next two weeks making frequent visits to the farm where I would sit on my sink about 15 yards away from Shep and read a book . Blue was very much my ally as I would call him over to me and make a fuss of him so that Shep could see I wasn't going to hurt him or Blue.

Shep, for his part would stay curled up and watch. On one occasion he stood up and made a few tentative steps towards me and then darted back to his corner.

It was the third week when the first breakthrough came......... I always looked forward to my time with Shep so when I arrived at the farm only to find Shep in his corner tied up with a long metal chain, my heart sank. I wondered what had happened. Mr Brown was in the farmhouse at the end of the road so I telephoned him to ask about the lead. Mr Brown was so excited ~ he and his wife had been able to take Shep out for a walk and Shep had let Mrs Brown give him a biscuit. The reason he was on the lead was so I could see how well they'd done!

I waited for Mr Brown to come up and let him lead Shep over to me as I didn't want to pressurise Shep in any way.

As he came up to me he wagged his tail and I gently clipped a long lead on him and we went out into the fields for a walk. I found that first point of contact with Shep deeply moving and am not ashamed to say I walked through the fields with tears streaming down my face. I felt truly humbled that Shep had given me his trust.

The next few weeks saw me taking Shep out twice a week. He was shy about coming back to me when I let him off the lead but he would follow me wherever I went. I concentrated on building up the trust he had put in me.

Shep was gradually becoming more confident and would wander around the farmyard but still he wouldn't come out into the fields with Mr Brown and Blue to work.

As Shep started to come out of his shell, Blue became very protective over Mr Brown and clearly did not want to share his master. I always made a fuss of Blue when I came to take Shep out and I always stayed with the two dogs when I brought Shep back to the yard to ensure there was no jealousy.... or so I thought. One day I had just said goodbye to the dogs and was literally about to step outside the yard when I heard a growl and a commotion followed by a yelp which I knew was Shep. I shot back to the byre, only to find Shep sat looking shell shocked and blood dripping from his jaw. Blue was on the other side of the yard but had clearly given Shep a telling off for having the “privilege” of going out for a walk WITHOUT him! I slowly and calmly walked towards Shep ,lowering my eyes as I was not sure if he would let me examine him. Shep ,feebly wagged his tail and let me look at him. He had a puncture wound under his chin. I went back to my car and got a bowl, water and a towel. I also gave him some Reiki to help counteract the shock. I called Mr & Mrs Brown and they came up to see him. I explained what had happened and we agreed to keep them separate when I came back from working with Shep...until Mr Brown returned. I telephoned later that night and Shep was fine.

It became increasingly clear that Blue was not going to let Shep near Mr Brown and I encouraged him to spend time with both dogs making it clear that each dog was important but, as the leader, he valued both of them.

Then one night in early autumn I got a phone call from Mr Brown. Apparently Shep had “savaged” the pet sheep they kept in the yard. The farmer told me he could no longer keep Shep but could I find him a home? I was totally shocked but said I would do my best to find a place for Shep. To me, Shep would never have had the confidence to attack the sheep and I had watched him walk by the sheep many times without showing any interest at all.

The next week was one of the worst of my life ~ I felt I was working against a clock and time was running out....fast. I contacted every doggy contact I could think of, rang veterinary surgeries ,put posters up in pet shops but nothing. I telephoned Mr Brown half way through the week to see how Shep was and how long I had. He replied that Shep was being couped up and that if a home hadn't been found by the following Monday he would have to have him put to sleep. I made the farmer promise me that he would 'phone me before he made that decision and he agreed.

I was DETERMINED that Shep was not going to die ~ he was only 9 months old and I had got close to this little lad and he had a beautiful nature and was intelligent too.

Then I had an idea..................... I didn't feel it was fair to bring a young pup into Seamus ,my dog's ,home. Seamus is nearly 11 years old and an amazing dog with a beautiful nature but he hadn't met Shep and I didn't want to force a confrontation. Seamus adores my parents so I asked them if they would be kind enough to look after Seamus for a week whilst I fostered Shep and introduced him to a world outside a farmyard.

I eagerly rang Mr Brown who was delighted and I arranged to pick up Shep the following Tuesday.

When I arrived to pick Shep up he was in his kennel right in the corner. I hadn't seen him for a fortnight and I wandered if he would let me approach. He looked so sad and lonely but he still managed a wag of his tail when he saw me. Encouraged by this I slowly went up to his kennel. Shep stayed routed to the spot. I put my hand in and he wagged his tail once more. I knew I just had to get him home as soon as I could. Shep did not want to move, however. Mr Brown said he would get him out and as soon as he entered the gate, Shep shot out of his kennel. From there I led him to my car. The poor lad had never been in a car, just one brief trip in a land rover. Between us Mr Brown and I half lifted Shep in to my car where he lay in the footwell of the passenger seat.

I was so popular with my fellow motorists as I drove at a steady 30 miles the whole way home! I wanted to take things slow and steady and Shep stayed where he was not knowing what was going on.

I will never forget getting Shep out of my car. I live in a street with houses on both sides and steps go up to our house. I didn't think Shep would get out of the car immediately but he stepped out and his eyes were like saucers! This must have seemed like another planet to him. He had never been inside a house and had never seen a street with cars and people and pushchairs and bicycles. Nevertheless he followed me inside and I took him out to our garden. The first thing he did was have a wee which I was very impressed with and gave him lots of praise. I then took him inside and just let him explore.

We have a full length mirror in our hallway and the first thing Shep did was approach this warily and lift up his front paw to touch his reflection in the glass. He then preceded to explore the house and sniff. Initially I had put his bed in the kitchen which was somewhere he could watch what was going on.

That night ,John, my husband came home from work. I had told John to ignore Shep and let him come to him but John just went straight up to Shep and said “Hello Rover!!!!” For his part Shep was fine but I asked John again to give him his space which he did.

A few days later, Shep was settling in well and I was taking him on short walks to get him used to all the wonders of living in a town. The first time we walked past a poo bin and I opened the lid to put the bag in, poor Shep hit the floor! I think he thought it was going to eat me or him..or both. I just kept calm and led him on when he was ready.

Something I found heartbreaking was that if we passed a man with a walking stick or an umbrella, Shep would get so agitated and try to get away. Whenever I could I calmly led him away without making any fuss. I wanted him to see I wasn't worried. This just confirmed to me that Shep had been severely beaten at some time.

The next stage was for Shep to meet my beloved Seamus... so I arranged to meet Mum and Dad in our local park and to let the dogs have a sniff and see what happened. I have to say I was quite apprehensive about this because if Seamus didn't take to Shep I would have to find him another home quickly.

As Seamus trotted into the park, he hadn't seen me or Shep. Suddenly however,he caught sight of me and trotted over, wagging his tail. He went straight over to Shep , they sniffed one another and both wagged their tails.

Seamus then looked across at me as if to say:”Is that all you were worried about Mum?!”

I felt so proud of him because he accepted Shep without question and we were soon off in the fields and they were playing like old friends.

We have had many adventures and learning curves but two things have been crucial in Shep's development.

Firstly Jan Fennell's Amichien® Bonding has been fundamental in providing Shep with a stable and secure pack environment. He knows his boundaries and he knows where he is in the pack. Shep has also been one of my greatest teachers and for that I will always be in his debt. (He also has a great sense of humour!) Secondly Shep has introduced me to the wonderful world of sheepdog training. We enrolled with Duchy College and the sheepdog training proved instrumental in increasing Shep's confidence and happiness ~ he loved it!

Seamus has been wonderful with Shep and they have helped one another. Shep keeps Seamus on his toes and Seamus lets Shep know if he's overstepping the mark....nothing like a bit of good old canine communication.