My family and I live on an acreage in west-central Saskatchewan with our pack of Catahoulas.
My fascination started back in the early 2000s, when I came upon a beautiful spotted dog with multi-colored eyes and I fell in love with the breed. Ju-be (aka JuJu or Ju-Ju-Be) was the whole package, a hard working farm dog, a joker, and a fierce defender when someone strange came into the yard, and the biggest snuggle-bug around. Ju-be was a Catahoula x Australian Shepherd. He had the freedom of the farm with his brother Tanner and his sire Blue, and lived to be 15 years old. When he was really happy, he would lift his lips and smile at you.
My fascination started back in the early 2000s, when I came upon a beautiful spotted dog with multi-colored eyes and I fell in love with the breed. Ju-be (aka JuJu or Ju-Ju-Be) was the whole package, a hard working farm dog, a joker, and a fierce defender when someone strange came into the yard, and the biggest snuggle-bug around. Ju-be was a Catahoula x Australian Shepherd. He had the freedom of the farm with his brother Tanner and his sire Blue, and lived to be 15 years old. When he was really happy, he would lift his lips and smile at you.
Years later my husband mentioned that we should get a catahoula for ourselves, as he had met Ju-Jube and fell in love himself (as if it was hard). We scoured the internet and found our new best friend, a beautiful patchwork girl named Tayo.
She was 2 years old when we brought her home, and she was nothing like Ju-Jube. It was obvious to us that this girl had been kept in a kennel her entire life and was afraid of almost everything we put in front of her. She had never been house trained and was even scared of the feral kittens that would pass through our yard. BUT ... I was completely blown away at how quickly this girl caught on to everything we asked of her to adjust to her new life!
Unfortunately my husband had to take a job where we could not have her with us, and Tayo moved in with my mother-in-law for a short period of time. When we were able to take her back, my mother-in-law wouldn't hear of it. Tayo spent the rest of her years living a happy, fat life out at the lake. At 13 years old, she was laid to rest after age-related problems made day-to-day activities too difficult.
After tossing up the idea of starting a breeding program for a couple of years, endless research on the breed, learning about breed-specific health and genetic problems, and speaking with breeders, we decided to purchase our first two dogs, Raven and Boone ... and that is the story of how Flatland Catahoulas came to be.
There isn't much for our dogs to bay out here in small town Saskatchewan, and our local laws keep us from training our dogs for much of what their instincts drive them to do, but they still manage to bay the magpies in the trees, or corner a ground squirrel out at the lake. My husband has a love for hunting, so we spend a lot of time in the bush. I am hopeful to spend time honing their blood trailing skills more than anything else.
As for the name "Flatland" ... well if you've ever been in Saskatchewan, or heard the jokes about our province, you'll understand!
Unfortunately my husband had to take a job where we could not have her with us, and Tayo moved in with my mother-in-law for a short period of time. When we were able to take her back, my mother-in-law wouldn't hear of it. Tayo spent the rest of her years living a happy, fat life out at the lake. At 13 years old, she was laid to rest after age-related problems made day-to-day activities too difficult.
After tossing up the idea of starting a breeding program for a couple of years, endless research on the breed, learning about breed-specific health and genetic problems, and speaking with breeders, we decided to purchase our first two dogs, Raven and Boone ... and that is the story of how Flatland Catahoulas came to be.
There isn't much for our dogs to bay out here in small town Saskatchewan, and our local laws keep us from training our dogs for much of what their instincts drive them to do, but they still manage to bay the magpies in the trees, or corner a ground squirrel out at the lake. My husband has a love for hunting, so we spend a lot of time in the bush. I am hopeful to spend time honing their blood trailing skills more than anything else.
As for the name "Flatland" ... well if you've ever been in Saskatchewan, or heard the jokes about our province, you'll understand!