This is a typical day on this ranch a few miles outside of Collins, bright day, few hundred cattle to move, two cattlemen on horseback, and their trusty farm dog right by their side. This may not be Boone’s farm, but he thinks it is and knows his job without a doubt.

“We’ll bring them down, and as we’re working them in the chute right there, he chases every one of them out,” said Blaise Holder, Boone’s owner.  “So there’re two, three hundred of them we working.  He’s going to chase three hundred of them out.  When he gets hot, he’ll run over there.  He’ll jump in the water tank, cool off for a minute, and come back and do it again.”

The four year old blue heeler is at home here in Covington County with the Holder family. He’s been just one of the cattle hands since they brought him home, and he’s not afraid to get his paws dirty.

“At eight weeks old, I had him in the truck,” said Blaise Holder.  “We did a bunch of hauling from the stockyard and stuff, so he rode with me every day, and as he got bigger, I introduced him to cattle and he took to it since.”

“Boone is just right up behind the yearlings all the way up here and even went inside the bull wagon with them, and you know, he’s right there just keeping them from bumping the gate and all that kind of stuff,” said Addison Anglin, Blaise’s cousin.  “So, he’s a pretty good help there.”

Boone is fearless when it comes to cattle. Here’s a farm dog’s eye view of exactly what he sees. He does what it takes to get the herd where Blaise and Addison needs them to be. But just recently, he’s taken on a new role with a new addition to the Holder family.

“He’s a good little protector and now that we have Charlie, our newborn, I really like having him around because I know that he knows that that’s his little sister he’s got to protect her, too, said Kameron Holder, Boone’s owner. “So, he’s great. We love him.”

Companion, big brother, protector, cattle driver, all in a hot days work for Boone.

“He takes it with passion for sure, and we do it every day.  Every day.  He goes with me every day,” said Blaise Holder.

With all he does, the Holders think Boone is a special dog, one they feel lucky to call their own.

“My wife’s always done the picking, so she said that’s the one right there,” said Blaise Holder. “I believe it was a match from the get‑go for sure.”