With todays economy, everybody is having to tighten there belts at least one notch or two, some even more.  Small farmeres are really experiencing some really tough times.  One way to offset expences is to get a good working farm dog, be it a Border Collie, Australian Shepherd, Kelpie, Australian Cattle Dog or any number of different herding breeds or a cross of different herding breeds.  A good farm dog is an absolute asset to any farm regardless of its size or type of livestock.  One single dog can outwork several experienced  farm or ranch hands and family members.  This is a lesson that we learned years ago with our first stock dog, one I trained by myself without any guidence.  Yes I made a lot mistakes with that dog, but even for all of that he was an incredible help to me.  What would sometimes take hours and lots of people to get the job done could be done in a fraction of the time.                                                                         My first stock dog was an Australian Shepherd that was given to me by a friend of mine when I was a teenager.  He could load the toughest hardest to load horse, he would help gather and pen cows and was not afraid of anything.  He went everywhere with me and was always there to watch my back, (even when I wasn't).  I can't tell you how many times he saved my hide from an ornery cow or a rank horse.  I learned a lot from that little dog and now many years later I still use my Aussies and more recently have added a few Kelpies in my everyday chores.                            We have sheep, goats, a few llamas here on Oak Hill Farm, plus I have a few horses and I can honestly tell you that a lot of times I am here doing chores by myself and could not do a lot of it if it were not for my dogs.  Of course I probably have a few more dogs than I need, but I try to keep  new dogs coming on, because I have found myself without a trained dog to help me out.  Now my dogs range in age from just over a year to just over seven.  It was always just easier to take the dog with me that was finished and could get the job done, but as he got older and started slowing down I realised that I had better start getting another dog ready.  So I try to make chore days also training days for my dogs, that way I get two things accomplished at one time.            Just remember that a dog can make your life a lot easier on the farm and they work for food and affection, tirelessly and without complaint, just remember to give them a few minutes to rest now and then and let them get in the water trough to cool off.  Today there are clinics and individuals who can help you train your dog and practice on stock.  Even if you can afford to buy a finished dog it would be a good idea to take a few lessons to learn how to handle your dog.  Good luck to you all out there and if you have any questions feel free to contact me.   Lynn