Melanie Leigh-Deux, who is working on a project towards “Preserving the Working History of the Original McNab Dogs in California” asked Bud and I to give her our recollections of the McNab dogs we have known.  Following is the information we sent to her.

I was born on a farm in Oregon in 1932. My Dad’s insistence that us kids be “Good Neighbors” has led me through a very interesting life. I have worked on ranches or with livestock most of my life. I always had good dogs, so I had lots of practice

When Bud starts a cow dog, the only thing he wants the pup’s mind on is the cattle. He is very careful not to distract it from the stock. Even if the pup had been schooled with obedience commands, he never uses them the first few times he takes it

This is how I teach a dog to continue driving the stock in the same direction when I get out of sight or go out to bring in more stock.  You will need to adjust some as each dog is different, but the principle will be the same with any dog.

People who are familiar with my method of working livestock know my number one aim is to work my animals with the least amount of stress possible. In fact, I have found ways to work livestock that actually takes existing stress off of them. It is just a bonus to

I just got a phone call from one of your subscribers. A fellow I worked with a couple of years ago. He asked me if I could help him locate a dog with enough force to move cows. He has tried out several dogs lately, which handle yearlings fine, but

Most people who work dogs would like to have one that could win a major trial. Some would be happy to win the local novice class, but most of us will never show a dog for many different reasons. There are lots of very good dog trainers that show people

When you asked me to write some articles about working animals, it wasn’t my intention to write about training dogs, since I don’t train dogs. But after getting some questions I thought it would be all right (right or wrong) to say how I work a dog. Bud and his

It seems like the subject of stock-dogs always comes up at some time during the schools and seminars we conduct around the country. People are proud of their dogs and like to tell about the wonderful things they can do. But sometimes, during these discussions someone will say “My dog

“Ranch Dog Trainer . . .Dedicated to farmers and ranchers who use the working stockdog as a livestock handling tool.” I hate to see so much emphasis being put on trying to prove that trial dogs are better than ranch dogs, or that ranch dogs would be better if we