March 16, 2025

Reserve Champions 2024 Meeker Classic
Shauna Gourley & June 8-year-old Female
Ogden, UT

Shauna Gourley and her dogs have been contenders

in Meeker’s Double-Lift finals and the Semi-Finals numerous times since 2010. Keli, Mira and now June all saw action in the Semi-Finals and Finals.
June qualified for the Semi-finals in Meeker in 2021, and came back the next year to make three solid runs that landed her 4th overall for the 2022 Meeker Classic. Two years later, June returned to Meeker, with more experience and patience and ended up the Reserve Champion of the 2024 Meeker Classic.

 

Shauna and June drew first to run in the Double Lift Finals.

There was a mix up with the two sets of sheep and the run was paused for a bit.

Shauna reflects on her run: “When I brought my first group down the fetch line and dropped them at the cone I was very focused on June. She isn’t great at turning back wide, so I was trying to get her set up in a good spot. After I sent her, then I noticed that the sheep were running off. It was not a great feeling. I recalled her back to the first set of sheep as we waited for the second group of sheep to be set again. The timer had stopped but I wasn’t sure at what point. I was so worried that after I had called June off of the second group and she had laid there for so long that she wouldn’t go back again. June did fine going back for the second group and fetched them pretty well. The drive was okay other than we had a hard time getting the turn on the first drive gate and had the sheep come back through, that must of cost us a bunch. We got it back together to finish the drive and into the shed ring. I honestly don’t remember much after that. June pulled through for me, I was very pleased with her work and I think she was too!”

For not remembering the International Shed, Shauna and June nailed it with the only perfect shed of the day.

“June is a bit of a bossy girl in the pack, but never really means it,” says Shauna.

Her sire is Jep, a dog Faansie Basson trained and ran that now belongs to Kay Stephens. Her mother, a bitch named Jules that belonged to Macie McGraw. June was a hard puppy to get started, she really only wanted to chase and bite the sheep, but Shauna stayed sternly on top of it and got her through it. June’s tends to grip when she’s frustrated, but age has given her more patience with the stubborn sheep. June has a strong presence with the sheep and can move them regardless. Shauna entered June and Caitlin at Meeker for 2025. Caitlin is bred the same as June, but a later litter.

Shauna splits her time between Utah and Nevada

which allows for the dogs to experience a variety of working and training situations. She spends winters in Nevada and summers in Utah. Nevada has more open space and the dogs have more freedom around the farm while Utah has more grass and water during the hot summer months. While June would surely be great help doing all of the chores, Shauna forces herself to use the younger, less experienced dogs so that they can learn practical work on the farm.

 

Shauna is still the owner and manager of Flock n’ Paws Farm.

With the split time between Utah and Nevada, she no longer does boarding, but focuses mostly on sheepdog training. She has students in both places and takes dogs in for training as well. Shauna runs a flock of 150 Dorper-Katahdin cross sheep and adds a bit of Barbados breeding. The mixture of genetics makes for different types of sheep to train on. Some might be heavy and difficult to lift while others might be light and flighty. Shauna’s normal day begins at 4 in the morning, up to feed the dogs, off to the farm, run the dogs, train, irrigate and go back home just before dark to feed the dogs again. A busy life, full of hard work, but Shauna loves what she does. She’s always wanted Border Collies, staring with obedience and agility and then got hooked on herding.

Herding is the hardest but most rewarding thing that Shauna has done with her dogs.

She loves it all and looks forward to the trials. They are the icing on the cake, her vacation and time to visit friends and catch up with friends and likes to watch all of the runs. She has two young dogs in pro novice and one in nursery that are ready to start competing in the open trials. She is has two new nursery dogs that will start running this spring. Both are related to Caitlin who is entered in Meeker this year. She will start running trials this spring working to qualify for the National Finals.

“Watching a well-trained border collie or one just starting out can be the most amazing thing to watch. I believe Border Collies are way beyond just being a dog. They’re another species all together. I could not and would not want to live my life without them,” says Shauna of her loyal partners and friends. Congratulations Shauna! Your hard work and perseverance pays off in the work you accomplish on the farm and at the trials!