Carey Grader

Hi, my name is Carey Grader. I live on a farm with my best friend and husband, John, our two dogs, Bungee and Breezee, and 16 crazy chickens we affectionately call “the girls.”

Even though John and I have both had dogs our entire lives, we knew very little about dog sports. All of that changed when our beloved Border Collie, Finnley Bell, came into our lives. We quickly realized this pup needed a job, so we dove headfirst into the world of dog sports—and we never looked back. I began training Finnley in obedience, agility, nose work, and FastCAT. Finnley was a natural at just about everything. I, however, was not.

Agility was especially challenging for me. I fell many times. I forgot courses. My nerves would get the best of me. There were plenty of times I wondered what in the world I was doing and more than a few times I considered quitting. But my love for Finnley was stronger than the fear of failure. So I kept trying. Thankfully, Finnley never seemed to doubt me, even when I doubted myself. He inspired me to keep going, and somewhere between the training sessions, mistakes, victories, and laughter, something happened that I never expected:

Training and competing with my dog became my passion. Finnley led the way, and together we enjoyed tremendous success. Then insanity set in. I thought, “If one incredible dog can bring this much joy into our lives, what could possibly be better? Let’s get another one!”

Enter our sweet Bungee Bear, whom we lovingly refer to as Finnley’s protégé. From the beginning, Bungee was obsessed with Finnley. He watched everything Finnley did. He watched him train. He watched him compete. And starting at just eight weeks old, little Bungee followed Finnley over the agility equipment and in and out of the tunnels. Finnley gave him the confidence to try. And once Bungee realized he could do it, off he went.

I feel incredibly privileged that I get to share in my dogs’ lives, and I don’t take a moment of it for granted. There is something about the bond created when you train and compete with your dog that is difficult to put into words. It’s built during those quiet, one-on-one hours when it’s just you and your dog learning to understand and trust each other. I treasure those moments. And then there is that moment right before we compete. My stomach flips. The nerves kick in. I start questioning whether I’m ready. Then my dog looks up at me as if to say, “Mom, we got this.” And I look back and think, “Are you sure?” But I trust my dog. Sometimes more than I trust myself. It’s the confidence I have in the dog beside me that keeps me walking into that ring. We are a team, and no matter what happens once we cross that starting line, we’re doing it together.

None of this joy would be possible without John. Most of the time, he’s the one behind the scenes—scheduling trials, building equipment, recording videos, keeping track of titles and points, packing the car for competition weekends, and providing the much-needed emotional support when things don’t go quite as planned.

But then we discovered Barn Hunt. And suddenly, John wasn’t behind the scenes anymore. He was front and center. John and Bungee have become an amazing team. Apparently, they’re really good at finding rats. Who knew? More importantly, they absolutely love doing it together. We pull into the driveway at a Barn Hunt event and Bungee immediately starts chirping with excitement. He knows exactly where he is and why he’s there. Team Bungee is moving up quickly, working toward the Senior level and a Crazy 8s title, and they recently earned a trip to Regionals in WCERA. Watching the two of them succeed together makes me incredibly proud.

And coming up on Bungee’s tail is our 10-month-old Border Collie, Breezee Bell. Breezee is already introducing us to the world of herding sheep, and with her speed FastCAT is definitely in her future.  

When I look back at how much our lives have changed since Finnley first introduced us to dog sports, I feel incredibly blessed. Yes, there have been ribbons. There have been titles. But those aren’t the things I treasure most. Dog sports have brought wonderful people into our lives and created friendships we never would have had otherwise. They’ve given John and me adventures we never expected and memories we’ll carry with us forever. But the greatest gift has been the relationship we’ve built with our dogs.

Because after all the training, all the competitions, all the miles traveled, all the early mornings, all the successes—and even all the failures—I have learned something. The connection you build with your dog is the real ribbon. And of every title we may ever earn together, there is one I will always be the proudest to hold: My dog’s teammate.