Ok, been putting this off for a while but here goes...

I'm 34, lived in 'beautiful BC' all my life, and proudly owned by an 8 year old border collie brat who is retired from French Ring but still active in agility & herding. My family always had Shelties so this was a bit of a departure, to say the least- lol.

I am currently working as a Medical Office Assistant (more interesting than it sounds) but I did work at an animal hospital for many years, where I met the "right" people! I took my girl out to watch my friend train her GSDs one night and she went insane in my car. The trainer told me to bring her out to see what she could do and...6 years later I am a confirmed French Ring junkie. I managed to get a Brevet with my girl but border collie nerves and worn teeth have forced her retirement. I am now looking VERY forward to the Malinois I will be getting in May/June. Time to get serious! He's 18 mos old & training in SchH, so there will be something new for me again- although I may take him to a Ring decoy just to see... Who knows.
Thanks for starting this thread, Brennan-good idea!

ok, I'll play.

I'm 52, now have a GSD female who's still a pup,
and a 4 yr old Spitz. We also have 2 cats. Over
the years, we had a shep/dobe mix for 12 yrs, a
shep/collie for 12 yrs, another GSD for 4.6 yrs
who passed too young a year ago. I trained all
myself, only did formal protection work with the
shep/dobe to obtain a solid out, and OB classes
with the GSD who passed too young, but was a
registered therapy dog with TDI, and touched
more folks deeply than others who lived longer.

Been on this board about 6 mos, find it a good source of info and support.
pics at: http://mywebpages.comcast.net/ranidog

So, if y'all ever need and old phart's opinion,
I'll gladly give my $.02 based on a lifetime of
learning from our furry friends. They all have
something to teach us, and we are all still learning. I

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

I'll be 35 in a couple weeks.I grew up with many dogs- mostly German Shepherds, with a few terriers thrown in who convinced me that German Shepherds are best <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> . My Dad was a terrible dog owner who would bring home a new pup and within a few months or at most 2 years he would either give them away because of behaviour or they would run away. The only benefit is that I learned alot about dogs. The first dog that was mine was Kaiser and I got him for my 13th birthday. I used the classic "How to Raise and Train Your German Shepherd". He was very smart and I couldn't have asked for a better dog. The first dog I took to obedience was Sheba and I trained with the 4H club. As an adult my first dog was Joker- a GSD/Akita mix. He gave me a glimpse of what it was like to have a really well-traned dog. To go for a 2 mile walk and have a dog that heeled the whole way was a joy. My next dog was a Keeshond, Shadow- adopted at 6.5 years. He had been abused and his personality quirks regularly challenged me to come up with solutions. When my husband got his first German Shepherd we started taking the dogs to Obedience regularly as well as some Agility. When Shadow had to be put down at 14.5 I got Krieger who is my first dog from working lines.

I`m 15 and have been training the family pets for about a year now. I got started when our boxer Elvis finished his puppy shots. First time that dog practically dragged me down the street I started to look for info. on training him.

Hi!
Im 57 and began with two of the best Brittanys in creation, wasn't a woodcock they couldn't find. Lost my desire to take life away from this great earth and gave up on hunting breeds. Moved up to Rottweilers soon after and have had 6 since then. I have never participated in dog sports but enjoy reading the posts from the working dog people. My new rottie and I pull a wagon all over Manhattan with my wife's little Bichon in the back. Life would be really boring without dogs. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
I'd love to post a pic of the big guy in harness in the bio section but, I'm computer illiterate and afraid my mother-in-law's pic may wind on the site instead.
Jerry <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Hey hey now. We can't stop here. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I'm Helan 41,had my first gsd when i was 6,my brother-in-law couldn't handle him so we had him ,he was 3-4yrs old and white and he was my guardian angle,i trained him spent all my pocket money on him loved him to bits,he had to be put to sleep when i was 12,between 12&17 helped my friends mum& dad,they showed and bred gsd's,on my 18th i got my own present,a working line all black gsd bitch which i did working trials with, she had a litter, which i kept her son to work,7yrs later i got back her daughter cos of family split,they all pased away all at 15yrs of age.Got a show gsd ,my couch popatoe he died of bloat at 7yrs,when that happened i also had a 2yr englishxgerman working line bitch,what a fire craker,she died of cancer just after her 6th b'day,i now have a belgium bred gsd,we do schutzhund,he's 2 in a couple of weeks,I'm a fully qualified canine beautition and instructor,ran my own salon for 16yrs and had to give up last year due to a spine problem but now looking into diffrent areas in the dog field for a career change, also not quite sure what i'm doing fairly new to dog forums ,can you post pic on this page, 36 years in dogs,where did the time go
Helan <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Helen use this link to post a pic. http://www.leerburg.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=159;t=000007

boy do i feel inexperienced now! I'm 18, trained my first GSD bitch to 'advanced obedience' (thats what they called the class) when i was 12 and also did some basic protection with her. Currently have my second dog, a male german show GSD who im competing in ANKC trials with (he has his CDX). I would dearly love to compete in schutzhund trials but unfortunately cant due to his elbow problems. Thats the goal for the next dog!