Mystic and Maia are the canines of Daydream Farm. Both are Australian Shepherds who were adopted from the Aussie Rescue and Placement Helpline (ARPH). They are litter mates which proved a real challenge in that they were always more focused on each other than on me. Two obedience classes each have helped with that. Both now have their Canine Good Citizen Award. For additional pictures, including puppy pictures, click here. Aussie's are high energy but wonderful dogs. Check 'em out!

Maia is the black "Bi" on the right. This simply means that she has two colors, in her case, black and white. It is not common knowledge but many Australian Shephards are solid, or almost solid in color. The merles tend to be more popular but, when one breeds a merle to a merle, there is a risk of too much white which can result in a blind and/or deaf dog. It is much safer to breed solid to merle.

Maia is a high energy dog who doesn't take much seriously. I do have to watch her desire to herd the horses, though. Of course, one of them, Briana, teases her, which doesn't help. She also tends to have a short attention span, which sometimes gets her into trouble. A very social dog, Maia loves to have company. Ironically, she is also my watch dog.

To the left is Mystic. Mystic is a blue merle, which is the color many folks think of when they picture Australian Shephards. Mystic and Maia were from the same litter. In that litter, two were blue merle and two were black bi.

Mystic is the more intense of the dogs, except where it comes to the horses. Mystic is afraid of them and will bark from the other side of the fence but won't try to herd them. Briana doesn't even bother to tease her. Mystic is my hunter. She has been known to catch all kinds of small creatures. Fortunately, both dogs are pretty good with the cats, although they will try to herd the barn cat a bit. Mystic tends to be more focused on me than her sister is.