I was hiking with a friend on a trail that crossed a creek 11 times. There were only small logs and rocks to step on to cross. There was nothing dangerous about the crossings other than maybe twisting an ankle or getting wet up to your waist if you slipped.
We had crossed several times – dogs are supposed to be on leash but we couldn’t cross with Kelly on leash without being pulled in, so we would set her loose and she would run through the water and wait for us on the other side.
We were over three miles in. If we slipped it meant walking three miles out with wet, soggy feet, so we were being careful to make sure we didn’t have to do that. This particular crossing was wider than most. I was having difficulty and taking a long time.
Maybe it was the extra time or all the “Oops!” and giggles, but Kelly decided we were in trouble. She ran about 100 yards up to one group of people coming down the trail and barked and herded them and grabbed their arms, trying to get them down to us. There were three or four people in the group who called to ask if we needed help.
More people came down the trail and Kelly gave up on the first group and went to them – same thing. That’s when people started calling her “Lassie!” I was concentrating on where I was stepping and keeping my balance and didn’t realize at first what she was doing. I knew she was barking at people and was concerned she would scare them.
When my friend got across, Kelly grabbed her arm and attempted to pull her into the creek to get to me. By this time I was trying to reassure Kelly but she didn’t stop her antics until I was on dry land. It was an amazing interlude and by the time it was over there were about 10 people all watching my amazing dog. Kelly had just turned three when she did this.
Kelly is my third Berner but I never had one do something like this. My friend and I still tell the story and everyone is amazed and wants to know if I trained her to do this. NO WAY! I wouldn’t even know how to train her to do that.
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from Jean, Arizona