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Bambi

The Agile Collies of Kayloma

by Vicky Loucks

I fell in love with collies at a very young age watching Jeff’s Collie,

Timmy and Lassie, and Lassie. I got an official stuffed Lassie for

Christmas one year and still have her. She is well over 30 years old.

I don’t sleep with her anymore; I sleep with my husband and several

collies. I played like I was Lassie for years; in fact on of my aunts

still teases me and calls me Lassie when she sees me.

I grew up with dogs and never had any long period of time without a

dog living with me. I purchased my first collie at the age of 12 with

savings bonds I cashed in. His name was Dusty, and he was sable

and white of course. Dusty introduced me to obedience training and

the confirmation ring. Dusty wasn’t good enough for confirmation but

earned his CD. Unfortunately I lost him when he was only seven;

he was let out of the yard and hit by a car.

A year or two later, I was given another purebred collie male named Duke. I had Duke several years and trained him in obedience, but he preferred play to work, so I gave him

to my father. In the meantime, I had picked up a tri-colored male from animal control and had to beg them to release him to me. His name was Corky. At the same time, I picked

up a tri female puppy whom I name Misty. I got an ILP number for Misty from the AKC

and showed her in obedience too. Misty earned her CDX and was trained through a UD.

I lost her at almost 14 years of age.

One weekend while I was showing Duke in obedience, I met my first smooth collie and

fell in love again. I waited two years for my first smooth collie female; I wanted a blue

and she had to be show quality. I finally got her and named her Gypsy,

Hollicove’s Dancing Gypsy CD CGC HC.

Gypsy was the foundation female for Kayloma (an AKC registered kennel name).

Most of the Kayloma Collies go back to Gypsy, although a few go back to Lacey,

Hollicove Almasi Denim N Lace. I was at a show with Gypsy when I purchased a

puppy male, a tri-headed white smooth, whom I named Skip,

Ch Hillside’s Skipping Stones. Skip was the foundation dog of Kayloma,

and everybody goes back to this dog. Skip was also my first owner/handled

AKC Champion.

I became interested in agility in the 1990’s while a member of the

Amarillo Obedience Training Club (AOTC). I started doing AKC agility soon after

it was made an AKC competition. The dogs I started with were

Ch Kayloma’s Savoir Fairie AX AXJ CGC HC (Pixie) and BISS CH Kayloma’s

I’m Just A Lil Bare OA AXJ HC (Pooh). Pixie was extremely bright and easy to

train; she took to it quite well and was an excellent agility dog. I retired her from

agility at 10. Pixie is almost 13 now and sleeps right next to my pillow. Pooh

was a bit of a challenge -- she is kind of like Pooh (as in Winnie the) in her

outlook on life: no reason to get anywhere in a great hurry. She was a very

consistent agility dog but had difficulty making course times in

Excellent Standards, so I retired her. Now she lives the perfect Pooh life as a

couch potato and fetching balls in the yard.

I started another older dog

BIS/BISS Ch Kayloma’s I’m Just A Lil Dear CDX NA NAJ CGC HC BH AD (Bambi).

Bambi was Pooh’s mother and a fantastic dog. I was doing Schutzhund with her when

I started working agility with the other two (Pixie and Pooh) and showing her quite a bit

in the breed ring. She started agility at an older age, so I only earned her novice titles.

I would have loved to do more with her but didn’t want to push her. I lost her in 2005

at the age of 13 and 4 months.

I got a blue female puppy back from a friend who had a dog I bred. I

named her Summer, Ch Kayloma’s Summer Daze AX AXJ. Summer

was to be my first MACH dog - my first agility champion. She was a

great dog reliable, consistent, fast, and LOVED agility almost as much

as she loved fetching a ball. Unfortunately the MACH was not to be;

while working her towards her Masters titles, she was injured on a

practice course. She injured the muscle junction of the abdominal and

groin muscles, a common agility injury that also takes a lot of dogs out

of competition. She was only four years old. We did a lot of rehab: rest,

swimming, walking, biking, acupuncture and massage. When I brought

her back out to run again, she would pull off courses, afraid to hurt

herself again. So at eight, Summer spends her time on the couch and

fetches to her heart's content.

I bred Pooh and kept a boy and a girl: Tripp, Ch Kayloma’s Topflight AX AXJ CGC HC,

and Kayla, Ch Kayloma’s Keepsake AX AXJ CGC HC. I sold one pup,

Neo, Ch Kayloma’s Neo Matrix of Bliss OA AXJ CGC HC to my (unknown to us) future husband. These guys are all now six. Kayla is a great agility dog working towards a

MACH and consistently getting faster She can be a little nutty and out of control at times but a very fun dog.Kayla is now a mother too and has a son named

JC, Kayloma’s Solitaire HC. JC has some of Pooh’s attitude, however, he is a wonderful

pet and will be here forever. Neo and Tripp are working on Excellent or Masters titles and may continue working towards MACHs or may be entered in the newest agility

competition FAST.

I also bred Summer after her injury and kept a daughter named Ice,

BIS CH Kayloma’s Unique Experience AX AXJ CGC. Ice is a wonderful dog, very bright

and quick to learn. You can ask for a behavior, and it only takes a few times before she gives you a look of okay, I have it, what next? She too is working at Masters level and

will hopefully earn a MACH. She just became a first-time mother and produced the first rough puppy I have kept in years. her name is Pollie (after my mother-in-law, Pauline)

Kayloma’s No I’ Not!. Pollie is so much like her mother; she is bright and quick and so willing to learn. She is only six months and won’t run her first trial until after she turns

two -- so lots of time to teach foundation and good habits. Pollie and JC have lots of

training sessions together.

I almost forgot about Pooh’s brother, Jammer,

Ch Kayloma’s Windjammer NA NAJ ; the first rough collie I bred and kept. Jammer was afraid of the seesaw, so was hard to train but a super dog. I had intended on keeping him but a friend who wanted a rough talked me into letting him go live with her. He now is a couch potato living with an Australian shepherd and quite spoiled. Pooh and Jammer are both going to be eleven years old.

And before she gets snippy for being left out, there is little Sophie,

Burrowdowns T’Era NA OAJ, a wire fox terrier I inherited after a friend passed away.

Sophie was a challenge to train but oh so fun. She had a hip surgery as a baby, so I

retired her early out of fear of causing harm to an already fragile leg. Some day I will get another terrier to train - probably a smooth fox.

Agility is a blast. It is a timed event, and the only competition you truly have is yourself, your dog and the clock. The agility competitors are extremely friendly and supportive. There are other venues (NADAC, USDAA, ASCA) besides AKC, which offer opportunities

to mixed breed dogs, although AKC is considering allowing mixed breeds now. The dogs love it. It should always be fun, training with motivation and drive. Even the slower dogs

like Pooh love it. The only one who is worried about time is me!