Crime-fighting canines nab 'Farm Dog of Year' prize

By Caitlin Fillmore

Herding, guarding, comforting, securing. The title of “working dog” on the farm or ranch expands to fit the needs of the operation.

The winners of the third annual California Farm Bureau Farm Dog of the Year Contest truly embody the spectrum of work the dogs complete every day on their farm or ranch.

With support from Nationwide®, the contest asked Farm Bureau members to submit photos and a brief story about their beloved dog. The award was announced during the 105th California Farm Bureau Annual Meeting.

Waylon and Willie, two rescue dogs who helped protect a Tulare County farm from crime, earned the $1,000 Grand Prize for the farmer, Zack Stuller.

The first runner-up, Gus, a McNab who works as a cattle dog in Amador County, earned $500 for Joel Allen.

The second runner-up, Megan, a border collie who herds livestock and chickens in Siskiyou County, earned $250 for Melanie Fowle-Nelson.

The third runner-up, Jackson, an Australian shepherd who works at the Sunny Hills High School farm in Orange County, earned $100 for Brian Kim.

Grand Prize winners Waylon and Willie are a pair of mischievous brothers whose serendipitous second chance revealed their true family and purpose.

Tricia Stever Blattler remembers Zack Stuller coming into her office, fuming about a persistent problem. Stever Blattler, executive director of the Tulare County Farm Bureau, listened to Stuller describe the recurring incidents of crime at his Exeter equipment ranch.

Stuller experienced 14 burglaries in a few years, including one truck stolen three different times and nine catalytic converters taken off trucks in broad daylight. He had tried everything to deter nighttime thefts, including security systems, fences, alarms and even a night guard. Stuller came to Stever Blattler and discussed some last-resort advice from law enforcement.

“Get some big dog to run around the equipment yard and scare off burglars,” Stever Blattler recalled saying. “Well, I had the perfect dogs.”

Stever Blattler volunteers with a Labrador Retriever rescue program and has fostered more than 130 dogs. In 2022, two odd-looking, gangly puppies came into her care. Waylon and Willie were found in an impoverished area of Tulare County and ended up in the county’s overpopulated shelter. The dogs had few socialization skills and were scared of everyday things such as leashes, she remembered.

After some DNA testing, it turned out the brothers were not actually Labs but an exotic mix of 49% Great Pyrenees and 46% Doberman Pinscher. Five months of fostering came and went, and Stever Blattler had received zero interest in adopting the big, boisterous boys.

Stuller also recalled the day he learned about Waylon and Willie. “I asked Tricia, knowing she is a dog expert, if she could keep her eyes out for preferably two dogs that could guard at night but not eat my employees during the day. Her response was, ‘When can I drop them off?’”

After a few meet-and-greets and an extensive building project, where Stuller constructed a lavish headquarters for his two new “ag security personnel” complete with a heated and insulated doghouse, sandbox, artificial turf and permanent shade cover, Waylon and Willie moved in.

Stever Blattler’s hunch was right: The brothers immediately adapted to their role guarding the ranch shop and surrounding land, all night, every night. Today, more than a year later, there have been no thefts.

“They are perfect for the ranch shop. They do not sleep at all once the sun goes down and bark at just about everything: slow-moving cars, people jogging by, bugs, the wind,” Stuller said. “If you met them, you would probably say there is not an aggressive bone in their body. But a bad guy at midnight meeting two, 150-pound dogs standing over 6 feet tall on their back legs with a bark as loud as a freight train might be persuaded otherwise.”

At night, the boys have been caught on camera chasing away potential intruders and scanning the landscape from atop vehicles parked on the ranch. Stuller said they have earned their biscuits, but the journey hasn’t necessarily been smooth.

“Yes, they are good dogs. They are gentle giants,” Stuller said. “They are not normal dogs.”

While the dogs enforce law and order on the property at night, they enthusiastically participate in any mischievous behavior they can dream up during their lazy days off-duty. Their antics have earned them the nickname “the Outlaw Brothers.”

Waylon and Willie have teamed up to eat a bag of dry concrete mix, delivery packages, Halloween candy and a FitBit watch that was supposed to be a Christmas gift. One time they got into rat poison, which almost killed Waylon. The pooch was saved through a blood transfusion from one of Stever Blattler’s dogs.

A normal day involves a half-mile trip through the irrigation canal to beg for snacks at the nearby market until Stuller or another ranch employee rounds up the dozing Waylon and Willie. Abnormal days include that time last summer when the dogs crashed a wedding.

“When I arrived, I saw both of my dogs in the party barn amongst all the guests, and Waylon had a bouquet of flowers in his mouth,” he said. “To my surprise, the bride and groom thought it was hilarious and said for me not to worry. I got lucky with that one.”

Stuller said he is surprised Waylon and Willie won top farm dog honors. But he said it’s undeniable that the brothers have become unexpected teammates in the day-to-day activity of High Sierra Ag.

“(At first) some of my employees were a little reluctant and afraid, but the two brothers won them over pretty quick,” said Stuller, who typically finds the dogs napping on the office couches during the workday. “(Waylon and Willie) are now a large part of our operation. They are basically like employees.”

Waylon and Willie help redefine expectations for what it means to be part of a ranch team, Stever Blattler said.

“Waylon and Willie are a perfect symbol of a nontraditional application of a couple of rescue mutts that really do perform a very valuable service on that ranch,” she said. “They are exceptionally good dogs for the job they have been asked to do.”

(Caitlin Fillmore is a reporter based in Monterey County. She may be contacted at cslhfillmore@gmail.com.)