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The Beginning - Katie the Collie
COLLIE (ROUGH AND SMOOTH) Tee Creek's 'Most-titled Katie' In December 2001, the dog world lost one of its greatest competitors and a Collie widely acknowledged as possibly the most-titled in North America. 'Katie' was an all-round Collie, doing well in obedience, performance and conformatian, and holding an ROMX! We pay tribute to VCH., U-CD, FMCh., Ch. & OTCh. BDGATERS KATIE OF SUMERSET Am. UD, ASCA CDX, ADC, VAADC, AX, OAJ, OAC, NJC, NGC, ASCA RS-N, Ag.I, CGC, AWCA & CKC DD, CRT, ROMX, RPT, HIC, TT, EAC-V, OJC-V, OGC-V, VAD. Katie was bred by Alice D. Joyce and owned by Kathy Warner and Dave Harris of Tee Creek Collies, Welland, Ont. Her soulmate, Kathy Warner; is our guest columnist this month. Katie was the Top Obedience Collie in Canada in 1998. She earned 46 titles in her lifetime, 27 of them after her seventh birthday! When Katie turned seven, people started telling me that she should retire. I decided Katie's age would be defined in years young as she was so vibrant and active. Katie taught me how much fun it is to compete with an older dog. In the last few years, the encouragement we got from our competitors was wonderful. Katie graces the front cover of the new book Rough Collies: An Unofficial List of Canadian Champion Collies - 1960 to 1999. We started agility after Katie turned seven and didn't enter the veteran classes until she was 10. Twelve agility titles were earned in regular classes - two of them after her lOth birthday, in CKC trials - and five titles were earned after age 10, in veteran classes. Katie loved flyball! She was the first Collie to recelve the Flyball Master Excellent and Flyball Master Champion titles as a veteran. Her drafting titles were all earned as a veteran. Katie passed the CKC Draft Dog title in 2001 to be one of the first Collies and the oldest dog of any breed to get this title. In 1999, Katie acquired her AKC Utility Dog title with one leg earned at the Collie Club of America with a High Combined score. In August 2000, we received a United Kennel Club Companion Dog title, with legs on a UKC CDX. Katie's passing left many unfinished titles. This shows how much can be done with a veteran, when the bond between you and your dog has grown so much that training is easy, with a foundation there for any sport. Katie jogged four miles every other day since turning two. She never wanted to be put behind the younger dogs. In order not to crush her spirit, I made sure there was always something for her to do. Working with a veteran makes you a more creative trainer, in tune with your dog's physical and mental needs. I think Katie lived as long a life as she was physically capable of doing because of her activities. Katie could still do a flyball run of around 5.1 seconds last year - not bad for an old girl! She was sharp as a tack to the very end. A friend sent me this message, which sums up Katie's love for the game of life: "I am so glad that I was there to see her run at Rockton [the last event Katie was in before she passed away]. That is how I will remember that amazing lady that you know as your heart dog. My teammates marvelled at her speed and love of the game at that tournament as we watched her run - she barely showed her age." Katie was my mentor and best friend for 12 years. I wish everyone the good fortune of having such a spirit in their life. Katie enjoyed every moment of her journey and I am so glad she let me share that time. Thank you, Kathy. Katie's accomplishments are a testimony to your love and faith in a great Collie. Kathy is blessed to have Katie's daughter, 'Chill: who becomes a veteran this year and may follow in her mother's paw prints! Kathy can be reached at teecreek@talkwireless.ca. com. - Donna Smith, Breedlines Coordinator; Collie Club of Canada, R.R. 14, Site 2. Comp. 15, Thunder Bay, Ont. P7B 5E5; e-mail: spiritdance@norlink.net Tribute to Katie In total, Kathy Warner tells me that "Katie" earned 46 titles, 22 of which were acquired after she turned 7 years of age. "Katie" didn't get older, she just got better. Among her many titles she could boast that she was the first Collie in North America to achieve 10,000 points in Flyball competition, the first Collie to earn her Flyball Master Championship, the first Collie top earn the CKC's Agility Novice and Agility Intermediate titles and the oldest dog to acquire the CKC Draft Dog degree. In between all this fun, she admirably fulfilled her duties as a brood bitch, producing five Canadian champion offspring for TEECREEK, including one who is also an Obedience Trial Champion, three who have obedience degrees and two with working titles. Her offspring may very well have achieved more by now, as these statistics are based on the information supplied for her ROMX title in 1999. "Katie" was whelped by Helen Pope on September 23, 1989 for her breeder, Alice Joyce. Helen sold her to Kathy and Dave Harris and continued to keep in touch with them, following "Katie's" career with great interest. "Katie" died on December 13, 2001. No one could say she had not made the most of her life! We have been witness to the life of a truly unique and magnificent Collie: one who epitomized the essence of the breed and brought it vividly to life. I am proud to have been able to feature her in this book. Thank you Kathy and Dave for this honor. — Joan Bulger
In Celebration of..."Katie"
VCH,U-CD,OTCH,FDCH,CH.BDGATERS KATIE OF SUMERSET,Am.UD, September 23,1989 to December 13, 2001 Owners: Kathy Warner and Dave Harris A Catalogue of Her Accomplishments VCH..................AWCA Versatility Champion Am.UD..............AKC Utility Dog Degree |
Originally published in "Dogs in Canada", April 2002.
I am truly sorry that I never met "Katie" in person. I had learned lots about her, though, via my position as former CCC Statistician and member of the ROM committee. First off, it was just seeing her name appear over and over again in the official results published in "Dogs in Canada" as she amassed her CKC recognized titles leading to her championship, CD,CDX, UD, Obedience Trial Champion etc. Then, when her owners applied for her ROMX degree in April of 1999, I began to learn a great deal more about her singular accomplishments. She certainly was no ordinary dog.