The Lone Star Cattle Dog Futurity

. . . . . . from the Beginning

In 1997, when the sport was relatively new and there were few to attend, Skeeter Sitton and Larry Innerarity were going to a cow dog trial.  Skeeter looked in his rear view mirror at a handsome Border Collie named Bud and made this wish, "Larry I wish we had a Futurity for cattle dogs like the cutting horse futurity in Fort Worth, I think old Bud would be a perfect prospect."  At that point the Lone Star Cattle Dog Futurity was born. 

Bud was never allowed to participate in the LSCDF because of age restraints. The Futurity is for dogs under 25 months of age. However, we can credit Bud with inspiring a dream, and 11 years and over $168,925.00 in prize money later, we have the largest Cattle Dog Association in the world!

Over 1,000 dogs have entered the LSCDF and handlers from all over the US and 3 foreign countries have participated.  The Futurity is held in Nacogdoches, Texas each year in October. The busy weekend is full of setting up panels, measuring, and trying to think like a cow, a dog, and a handler, all at the same time. 

The first day we try to make it fairly simple, not too many obstacles, trying not to set anything up along the fences, so it won't become a driving contest, and setting things just wide enough out in the middle where it won't turn into a professional handlers contest. The second day we try to tighten things up a bit, keeping in mind these are young dogs with only a foggy idea of what is expected of them. The finals course is the show case and should be tougher. These dogs are supposed to be cattle dogs aren't they? 

We believe the Futurity should serve as a proving ground, showing all the breeders (with an open mind) where their program needs improving; and, rewarding them when the dogs they breed show the world their strong points, whether they were in the finals or not. 

As Ben Means put it in his November 7, 2001 article in the online Cow Dog Journal (read the article), "In the years to come, the Futurity should serve as a landmark and leader in new testing innovations, in different thinking when setting up trial courses for cattle dogs, in helping people pull together to produce whole litters of dogs that people who actually work cattle can use, in encouraging breeders to put aside prejudices as to breed or bloodline and just think 'Cattle Dog'."
 

Our Board of Directors:

Becky Fosher, Greeley, CO (Double J Pet Ranch) Len Dalton, Campti, LA (Best Of 2 Worlds) Dr. Joe Gotti, Nacogdoches, TX  (Agriculture Professor Stephen F Austin University)  Walter Glenn Community, Kirbyville, TX (Government Affairs & Business Development) Sugar Pomeroy, Pennvalley CA Al Vieira,  Orland CA Joseph Innerarity, Mount Enterprise TX Harry Butaud, Berry TX Chris Thomson, Hillsboro TX