Heading 6
About us!!
Hi! Welcome to Ghost Eye Aussies!
My name is Kelly Seybold. My husband Erle and I live in a small Nebraskan town, and we love our Aussies!
Our belief has always been to breed members of the family. We've never been a kennel, only having one breeding pair at a time and only one or two litters a year. Every puppy was well played with and deeply loved. Not a single one went to their new home without several tears being shed by our three kids (and sometimes myself, I must admit). But that was to be expected. After all, we were giving a piece of our family away!
A bit about our breeding history: We started with Katie and McTavish, Scottish Terriers with big hearts and a terrible fear of fireworks. After the Scotties came the Jack Russell Terriers. Our first pair were Peanut, a glutton for attention and belly scratches, and Spanky, a pure Jack to the core with an affinity for chasing water. The second pair were Red, offspring of Peanut and Spanky, and Keeda, a new addition from Canada. No two Jacks were ever loved more.
When we were unable to continue breeding Keeda and Red, I decided to add a new breed to our family. An Australian Shepherd named Dixie that loved Gobstoppers. I immediately fell in love with the breed's intelligence and devoted nature. Sadly, not long after she came to us, Dixie was killed in an accident. My heart was so broken! But I loved the breed so much, I had to get another, knowing that the new dog would not replace Dixie, but maybe stitch together the hole her death had left behind.
Enter Bailey. Bailey was a tiny Ewok that waddled everywhere underfoot. I knew that the breed was described as "a one family, often one person dog", but I could never have guessed how true that descriptor was. Bailey attached herself to me, as though she knew how much I needed her and quickly became my best friend. Her intelligence amazed me. She learned several tricks, voice commands, and often figured out how to open gates to get to the squeaky ball on the other side. She may not understand everything said, but if said in the right tone, she knows exactly what is meant. Say "Get down cat!" in the right way and nowhere in the house is safe for our adopted cat Lucy. Ten years on and she is still my best friend. She still brings me the squeaky ball and plays fetch until she's exhausted. Still crawls into my lap, shuts my laptop, and demands "Bailey time" where all of my attention must be on her. As if I'd give her anything less.
We bred Bailey to another breeder's stud. The litter was small. Very small. One pup, actually. A red merle with ice blue eyes and a gentle nature. We called him Yogi and it never crossed our minds to sell him. Breeding took a back burner after Yogi's birth. Breeders were several hundred miles away and we were happy with simply loving our Aussies. The hope to breed Bailey lingered, but after an extended heat, I decided to spay her for her health. Having Yogi eliminated the problem of finding a breeder. Now we just needed another female.
Let it be noted that my husband was against this idea. He was adamant we did not need to breed again, especially if it meant getting a third dog. But after weeks of begging, pleading, and wheedling, we drove six hours to Kansas to get Isabella. It soon became apparent, though, that Isabella was too refined, too regal of a name for this whirlwind of fur. And so she became Izzy, Isabella being reserved for "bad dog" occasions. If Bailey attached to me, Izzy melded to Erle...and Erle melted for Izzy. Nothing was more laughable or heartwarming than watching my 6'2" foreman of a husband only eat half of his ice cream cone because the rest belonged to the big, brown eyes watching his every bite. He tried training her, but, realizing something was expected of her, Izzy would refuse the treat, slink to the other side of the room, and pout. Tricks may not be her strength, but herding certainly is. She herds Yogi every time they are let out and to show her pups how it's done. She even herds Erle, barking at him until he leaves the recliner to feed her, let her out, or play with her, and if he sits back down without giving her whatever it is she wants, she'll start it all over again.
Izzy is energy and instinct rolled into a tiny tornado, but her exuberance is tempered by Yogi. As the only pup of the only litter, he was well loved by Bailey. His gentle and affectionate nature lets him be the perfect comforter on dark days. What he lacks in smarts, he more than makes up for in love. His favorite thing in the world is to be petted. He often crawls into our laps, all 65 lbs of him, rests his giant head on our legs, and waits for ear scratches. If we stop, he lifts his paw and moves our arms until we resume petting him. Even if he isn't in our laps, he is by our feet, one paw touching us at all times. It's been said that Australian Shepherds are "Velcro" dogs, and there is no better way to describe our Yogi Bear.
We love our Aussies, quirks and all. They bring a joy to our lives that we can't get anywhere else. And we want to share that joy with other families looking for their missing piece. If you are looking for a well bred, four-legged friend to take home, we hope you consider Ghost Eye Aussies. We won't just give you a pet, we'll give you a family member.