Rose, just before she was shorn last month

  May 18, 2009 – Of all my dogs, I think Rose is the most complex. I took the sheep across the road this morning, and I barely noticed Rose, who charged up the hill, went into the pole barn, dug them out, pushed them down, held them at the road against traffic, crossed them over, and came back, and I barely said a word.
  I thought of her hard work all this difficult winter, storm after storm, moving the sheep up to the feeder, day after day, covered in snow and ice. Sometimes I take Rose for granted, she moves so quietly and efficiently. She moves the sheep. Finds grass. Keeps them away from gulleys and water. Steers them from the woods and coyotes. She has never bitten one, lost one, allowed one to drift away.
  She is not bribeable or distractable. Sometimes I take her quiet and faithful competence for granted. Coming across this photo, seeing the intensity in her eyes, I was reminded not to do so.
  She does not have Izzy’s peoples skills, and is not as loveable as Lenore. She does not cuddle with people or take treats. She is not cute and is not manipulative in any way. She just does her work day in and day out, in all sorts of conditions. I appreciate her. As I have come to see once again how much I love the farm, I also realize how much a part of that she is.