Welcome to Concharty Ranch

What is "Concharty"?

When I was a child, my great-grandparents and grandparents lived at the foot of Concharty Mountain, much of which eventually belonged to my grandfather. Concharty Creek ran through their Shoestring Ranch. The entire area is rich with mystery and history--including a lost Creek Indian town site, J. Paul Getty's first oil well, and fossil deposits that have fascinated me, my family, and apparently some trespassers over the years. (Note to trespassers: We do prosecute survivors.)

My cousins, siblings and I spent hour after hour, day after day, year after year playing up and down Concharty Creek- almost always with at least one English Shepherd along for the fun. Some of my other favorite memories are horseback riding on Concharty Mountain, and fishing in the many wonderful ponds both on and at the foot of Concharty.

My great-grandparents and grandparents owned, and occasionally bred, English Shepherds. My very first dog, Sandy, came from my great-grandfather's breeding program. I had another dog, Spot, also from their breeding when I was eight. Because he was miserable in town, Spot went back to the ranch to live with my great-grandparents when he was one year old, but he always knew he was MY dog. He would hear our car coming from miles away when we'd visit at the ranch. He'd race across the pastures and creek to meet me at my grandparents' house. He'd stay with me 24/7 until we went back home. Only then would he return to my great-grandpa's house. In my memories, the dogs, the ranch, the creek, and the mountain are all inexorably linked. All such wonderful, happy memories!

Anyone feel like going to swing on a grapevine??

In a rather amazing and surprising turn of events, I now have found myself with the land upon which my grandparents lived when my mother was born in the 30's. My great-grandparents and grandparents (along with their dogs) lived on this land more than sixty years ago. Though they never owned it, they rented it for decades and always wanted to buy it. Also on my property is the site of Hickory School, which my grandfather attended as a boy. This tract of land adjoins the land that my grandparents owned when I was growing up…. And Concharty Creek is a prominent feature of my farm--see pictures at left.

And so, I've now come full circle…. Owning and breeding English Shepherds on the same land where my mother and uncle were born… and watching my nieces and nephews (and one day, maybe my grandchildren) playing up and down Concharty Creek…. English Shepherds following at their heels, guarding, protecting, and loving the next generation--just as they've guarded, protected, and loved the last four generations of my family.