Herding Event, November 2011
GPOESC scheduled its second herding event. It took place Saturday, October 15, at Brigand's HideOut, and featured an indoor area where we held our general meeting. Not enough members attended for a quarem. We discussed nominations for our 2012 officers and board members. We still have to fill our secretary position. A herding instinct test with sheep was administered for those who was interested.
It was a cool, overcast day, and the rain held off long enough for Nancy Ward, owner of Brigand's HideOut, to conduct the test. She also gave a talk about herding. "Everybody has a [personal space] bubble," she said. "That's how herding works. Get close enough to an animal's bubble and they'll back off."
With each OES, its personality and size, the length and color of its hair, and whether its hair covers its eyes, the mood of its owner—all of these factors and more affect the animal's herding style and the way the sheep respond. Nancy Ward watched each dog to evaluate style/approach, bark, interest with stock, temperament/responsiveness, grouping of stock and other important herding traits. Each participant was provided with a written evaluation of their OES's abilities. Some of the club's OES seemed a bit frightened of the sheep, while others some seemed playful or aggressive. Whatever their style, they were all entertaining.
A special thank you to Joanna Smith, club secretary, for organizing the event!
Christmas Party and Dog Food Charity Drive 2010
The Greater Portland Old English Sheepdog Club gathered on Saturday, December 11, to celebrate the end of another great year at the GPOESC Christmas party and general meeting. Nearly 40 people arrived at the home of Matt Alston and family for social time, catching up and a fantastic meal.
The members and guests arrived in a festive mood, with many bringing donations for the dog food pantry, Friends Involved In Dog Outreach (FIDO), and small handcrafted gifts for the gift exchange. The food drive brought in over 160 pounds of dog food plus treats and usable items such as leashes and bowls. Marsha King, our food drive chairman, reports that the the folks at FIDO were thrilled with our donation, as this is a particularly difficult time of year for them to keep up with the need.
Matt's spacious home was beautifully decorated upstairs and downstairs. We were very spoiled by the superlative meal prepared by Matt's family, including his mother, Karen, Alan Lytle and his aunt Cheryl, and Alan's parents Richard and Connie Lytle. Connie, the head chef, writes a blog about her food adventures at coninthekitchen. Scroll down to her entry for December 14. Matt, Connie and family, we cannot thank you enough for such a memorable event.
After the meal the general meeting and board/officer elections were held, followed by the annual holiday gift exchange. This year the maximum budget was set at $5 for those who wished to participate so that the focus would be on the food pantry donation. Even at the lowered budget, we had many participants and saw many great and creative gifts, from note cards to ornaments to knitted goods.
Herding Event, November 2010
GPOESC scheduled its first herding event in recent memory. It took place Saturday, November 6, at Brigand's HideOut, and featured an indoor area where we held our general meeting. The event drew more than two dozen people and 20 dogs, nearly all of which participated in a herding instinct test with sheep.
It was a cool, overcast day, and the rain held off long enough for Nancy Ward, owner of Brigand's HideOut, to conduct the test. She also gave a talk about herding. "Everybody has a [personal space] bubble," she said. "That's how herding works. Get close enough to an animal's bubble and they'll back off."
With each OES, its personality and size, the length and color of its hair, and whether its hair covers its eyes, the mood of its owner—all of these factors and more affect the animal's herding style and the way the sheep respond. Nancy Ward watched each dog to evaluate style/approach, bark, interest with stock, temperament/responsiveness, grouping of stock and other important herding traits. Each participant was provided with a written evaluation of their OES's abilities. Some of the club's OES seemed a bit frightened of the sheep, while others some seemed playful or aggressive. Whatever their style, they were all entertaining.
Thank you to Ron and Gretchen Hayhurst for photographing the event. The photo album can be viewed here, and a YouTube video can be viewed here. And a special thank you to Joanna Smith, club secretary, for organizing the event.
A Romping Good Time, August 2010
Saturday, August 7, marked the annual Summer Dog Romp. This event was held at the beautiful home and yard of Jerry and Belinda Holcombe, we had a relaxing afternoon of sunny weather and shaggy dog frolicing. The event was attended by about a dozen OES and their respective families. There were wonderful potluck dishes provided by those that attended. Several commemorative items from the Specialty Shows were sold including collector bottles of wine and show graphic aprons. See photos >>
GPOESC Specialty Shows July 2010 Recap
2010 represented the GPOESC's 35th Anniversary Specialty Shows (1975–2010). The GPOESC Specialty Shows were held Friday, July 23, at the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, in conjuction with the Stumptown Classic Cluster. The two Specialties were held back to back, at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. The events were open to all AKC-registered Old English Sheepdogs. Both morning and afternoon events included Sweepstakes (Puppy Sweeps, Veteran Sweeps & Bred-by Sweeps), Junior Showmanship and Conformation. Read more info and see photos >>
2010 AKC Educational Match and OES Breed Booth
Held on a beautiful spring day, Saturday, June 19, the AKC Educational Match proved once again to be a successful event. The annual event is held to promote the public's knowledge of various AKC recognized dog breeds and allows the opportunity for learning the skills to handle your dog in a show ring. Numerous breed booths greeted guests and attendees with information about their breeds and an opportunity the meet and greet with owners, breeders and the dogs themselves. The GPOESC booth was manned by Jeff & Priscilla Menzel, Joanna Smith and Jerry and Belinda Holcombe. Along with operating the breed booth each participating breed club provided 2 or more hours of volunteer time to the general needs of the event. There were several club members that visited and walked the event in a causual walkabout, and many others visited the booth to pet the OES and learn more about our breed. See photos of this event >>
Lots of Frolicking Fun at the 2010 Spring Fling
About 25 people and a dozen dogs had a great time at the GPOESC annual Spring Fling onSaturday, May 22. Club members Jerry and Belinda Holcombe hosted the event at their beautiful home and backyard in Tigard. The club provided hamburgers and hotdogs, and members brought their favorite side dishes to share. Of course, rain started pouring just as the indoor/outdoor event began, but it did not spoil the party. We set up the pop-up canopies, the clouds parted, the sun peeked through and the rest of the event remained rain-free. The OES who arrived fashionably late were notably dryer than those who'd arrived at noon. After a brief general meeting, the shaggy ones played in the Holcomb's gorgeous backyard while the people hunted for eggs that held surprise treasures to take home. See photo >>
Peacock Lane Walkabout 2009
The annual walkabout along the brightly lit block of Peacock Lane. The walk was held Friday, December 19, and began a 6:00 p.m. The weather was perfect for the walk this year as many years we encounter rain, snow, freezing temperatures, or a combination of all three. See photos >>
Holiday Party 2009
The annual GPOESC holiday party on Saturday, December, 5, was one of the best-attended club events in years. Over 35 people gathered at the home of Matt Alston in rural St. Paul, Oregon, to celebrate the season and all things sheepdog. The Clark County Kennel Club Show that same weekend allowed guests to come from the Seattle area and from as far away as Colorado. Read more and see event photos >>
October Costume Walkabout '09 - Spooky in a fun sort of way
A larger than expected group of OES and their humans met on Halloween day, Saturday, October 31, at the historic Portland Union Station. Arranged by club member Jerry Holcombe, Union Station allowed our OES to meet inside for the board and general meetings. We had every kind of coustumed OES imaginable, from princesses to Elvis, Superman to Harry Potter. After the meeting, we did a lot of meet and greets in and around the station. Then off on a walkabout that took us through the Pearl district and on to the Lucky Lab Brew Pub. The brew pub had ample outdoor seating and members, guests and the OES had a nice social time. The late October weather was very cooperative with mostly blue sky during the club event. See event photos >>
Summer Dog Romp, Hazelia Field Dog Park, August 2009
Rescheduled a week later than the originally planned event day due to extreme heat, the weather was perfect for a day of dog romping fun. The event held at Hazelia Field Dog Park in Lake Oswego was attended by many members and guests. The event included a potluck lunch of many delicious items provided by members. Our shaggy friends played for over two hours and are sure to have slept very well that night. See event photos >>
July 2009 GPOESC Specialty Event - The Results Are In!
The GPOESC Specialty Shows were held Friday, July 17, 2009, at the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, in conjuction with the Stumptown Classic Cluster, Portland, Oregon. The two Specialties were held back to back, one at 10:00 a.m. and the other at 3:00 p.m. The events were open to all AKC-registered Old English Sheepdogs. Both morning and afternoon events included Sweepstakes and Conformation. See Event Photos >>
2009 Spring Fling Egg Hunt and Potluck
Members and guests gathered to join in the fun Saturday May, 16 at Reynolds Kennels in Tualatin, Oregon. The weather was wonderfully mild and warm as we enjoyed one of the largest turnouts of OES and their humans in several years. There were over twenty-five members and guests and 17 OES ranging from 10 weeks old on up. This was an indoor and outdoor event that included a nice array of potluck lunch items and desserts. GPOESC also held its quarterly general meeting. Link to photos of the event - username: oes password: sheepdogs (photos). Thank you Gretchen & Ron Hayhurst for the photos!
2008 Winter Christmas Party
Held Saturday, December 13th, the Christmas party dinner featured a club-provided Prime Rib and Yorkshire pudding. We enjoyed many side dishes and desserts provided by those attending. The event included the always fun gift exchange that once again proved to be one of the craziest times of the year as gifts were "stolen" as many as three times!. Thank you to all of the members and guests that attended. See event photos >>
2008 Costume Party and Bonehunt
Beautiful weather welcomed our annual Costume Party and Bonehunt held at the home of Gary & Ana in Eaglecreek. Our shaggy dogs were the centerpiece of a great gathering of members, guests and prospective OES owners. See photos of the event >>
Summer Picnic and Dog Romp was Fun in the Sun!
The Summer 2008 Picnic and Dog Romp event held Sunday Aug. 3rd at the home of Sharon and Dennis Bossen was fun for all!. As clouds and cool air gave way to a sunny, delightful afternoon the dogs romped and played. In addition to the Hamburgers and hot dogs provided by the club, many wonderful side dishes were offered by members - all was great and filling. Lunch was followed by a breed standards presentation by breed judge Cheryl Anderson. See photos of the event >>
Back-to-back Specialties - July 2008 - The Results Are In!
The back-to-back summer specialty was a great success. The specialties had 31 entries from 26 competitors from the Northwest and California. The trophies and ribbons were beautiful and are a reflection of the effort, hard work and love put into this years specialty - Thank you to all who attended!
See the photos of the winners and event>>
Spring Fling 2008 full of fun and even some sun!
On April 20th the GPOESC Spring Fling was held at Ana & Gary's home in Eagle Creek, Oregon. We had a great turnout that included several new members and even a family that found out about the event from this website and wanted to meet the group and play with our sheepies. Even with the spring rains that had been leading up to event, the clouds broke and we enjoyed a little sunshine.
2007 Christmas Party a Great Success!
The annual GPOESC Christmas Party and gift exchange was a great success. This was the third year in a row the party was held at the beautiful home of Sandy and Erskine Wood overlooking the Columbia River. Several Seattle Club (OESCGS) members joined us with great conversation and added to the hilarity of the gift exchange. Dinner included prime rib and Yorkshire pudding provided by the club and an array of side dishes and desserts brought by the guests. A big thank-you to Sandy and Erskine for again serving as such gracious hosts.