Unlike many U.P. kennels, dogs are trained to herd, not mush, at Sturgeon River.

CHASSELL -- Rose Anderson owns Sturgeon River Kennels in Chassell, but her operation is of a different breed.

"They're full of energy today," said Rose.

She's referring to her livestock: 13 sheep.  They're being herded by one of her border collies.

"You want a tough enough dog, but you don't want one that's just going to tear them to shreds," Rose said.

It's a rare sight to see in the Upper Peninsula.  The sport of herding has only a small following of dedicated handlers, and Rose is one of them.

"I like working with the dogs," Rose commented, "and since I've had the dogs, I got sheep so they could work."

She's been entering sheepdog competitions for nearly a decade.  The training takes place in her small pasture at home and in neighboring fields.  By whistling and using verbal commands, Rose controls the dog's movements.

"The dog has to go out and around the sheep without disturbing them," Rose said, "so that it can bring the sheep back to you in as quiet as a manner as possible."

The process is stop and go.  When competing, the dog must herd the sheep in a particular pattern, maneuvering them through obstacles.

Originally bred for farm work, border collies are often considered the world's best sheep herding dogs.

"They can do the longer out runs," Rose commented.  "They'll do 700-800 yard out runs, where a lot of your other breeds that do herding, they can't even compare to the border collie in what they can do."

It's those good genetics and a lot of work that has qualified Rose as a handler to compete at the national level.

Rose and three of her dogs, Buzz, Shen, and Jing, recently returned from a competition in Missouri.  They'll be off and herding for judges once again in mid-April.

Until then, this close-knit group will continue to practice what some were born to do and what others just love to do.