Having grown up in a family with parents that were not particularly excited about animals, I made up for lost time and fell in love with every dog and horse possible. My love for Shelties came when I met my wife, Jackie. She introduced me to a little tri bitch, called “Elsie”. It was love at first sight, not just Jackie but her tri bitch “Elsie”. When Jackie bred her, I kept a blue merle female that ended up too small and I decided to show her in performance and got her CD. That wasn’t enough for us as we wanted more so we ventured into the breed ring. Since then, we bred and finished over 20 Champions under the prefix of “Two J’s”. After we had children, the focus of our family was even more geared to Shelties, Junior Showmanship, and attending as many National Specialties to soak up as much knowledge as possible. I started judging Shelties and Junior Showmanship in January 2014. It is a great honor to even be asked to judge the National. I am involved in several breed clubs, including board member and treasurer for the Dekalb Kennel Club, treasurer for the Southeastern Miniature American Shepherd Club, lifetime member of the Fox Valley Dog Training Club, and a past member of Chicagoland Shetland Sheepdog Club. My biggest achievement was being awarded Winners Dog at the ASSA 2023 National! What an amazing honor for our bred by dog to be recognized by my fellow breeders. I have been a member of ASSA for more than 25 years and am an AKC Breeder of Merit. |