Colorado Cow Dog featured in the National Geographic Show
A reality show featuring top animal practitioner Dr. Lora Bledsoe, her husband James, their Frying Pan Ranch and the Australian Shepherd working dogs they raise has debuted to national audiences. In the Womb: Animal Babies aired September 21 on the National Geographic Channel and is also streaming on Disney+.
The show follows the pregnancies of an African lion, an elephant, a meerkat and Bledsoe’s female Australian Shepherd, Brumby. Bledsoe said media, especially at this scale, can be a great tool in bridging the gap between urban and rural audiences.
Bledsoe is a graduate of Colorado State University School of Veterinary Medicine and has a mobile large animal practice in eastern Colorado. Her expertise as a breeder and veterinarian is highlighted in the show.
Filming itself took place in 2020, which posed a number of challenges, including bringing crew members to Hugo, Colorado from Turkey and other locations around the country. The hours of filming were long, she says, but the images produced are stunning. The crew used drones to capture aerial footage of the Bledsos and their canine crew working cattle, something horses and cattle weren’t used to. They were also able to capture footage from cameras mounted on Brumby and the other working dogs, an event the dogs did not always enjoy.
“They really went above and beyond the production value of the shots,” she said.
Bledsoe said she hopes the show gives urban viewers a sense of the skills and value that working dogs bring to a ranch.
“They may assume that our dogs are like their dogs, companions and part of the family, which our dogs are, but they also bring tremendous value to our operation as working partners,” she said. declared. “We should have hired more men if we didn’t have our group of working dogs. They are really good at working with cattle, cowboys and horses and making it all come together.
She said the show will also give viewers insight into the value and importance of the breeding program in producing quality working dogs. While those working in production agriculture are familiar with animal husbandry programs, a more urban audience may not realize the nuances of animals bred for this purpose.
“It’s truly amazing to see an animal bred for this purpose doing the job it’s bred to do,” she said.
Source: Rachel Gabel – The Fence Post Magazine