Page 77 - Aussie Magazine no1, 2023

Please introduce yourself to our readers. was stunning. He won that class. Christine Doud,

Hello, my name is Flo McDaniel. I live in Lebanon his breeder owner got references on us, and he
Illinois, in the United States which is close to St. came to Illinois. I handled him mostly, we travelled
Louis, Missouri. I was married for 35 years to to 11 different states where he consistently won
my husband, Matt McDaniel until he passed in Best of Breeds. This was before the Aussies were
2018. Also a very important part of our lives is recognised. I still have semen on this dog which I
our daughter, Rebecca (Becky) McDaniel. She plan to use soon.
grew up with the Aussies, thus has become an
excellent trainer, handler, and most importantly a Some of my other past dogs that made up my career
responsible dog person. were CH McMatt’s EZ Victor, of course his son, CH
McMatt’s EZ Going (Cruiser) who became one of the
Our kennel name was chosen by taking the MC most important dogs in my pedigrees. I purchased
from our last name and adding my husband’s a beautiful blue bitch, CH Marquis Sun Up Sarah
name, Matt thus McMatt. Before we started McMatt from Karen Broadus. Karen thus became a
dating, he was asking me about a medium easy- very important person in my life as an Aussie mentor.
to-groom dog who is very smart; I suggested an I bred Prize to Sarah (back then we didn’t know that
Australian Shepherd, thus he got an Aussie before blue to blue was not a good idea), this was before
we got married. computers, the internet, social media, and when we
used to write letters to each other. Sara was out of
the famous CH Windermere Rising Sun (Rio).
Why did you choose to own and breed Aussies?
I joined an all-breed dog club “Belle-City Kennel What made you want to become a dog breeder?
Club”, which turned out to be one of my best Falling in love with this breed, I decided I wanted
decisions, as I learnt so much from people with to make a mark in the breed. My mentor had made
other breeds. That is where I met my mentor and a mark with her lovely Bichons, I wanted to do
best friend to this day, Sarah J Barkley of Barkley that with my Aussies. I had my beautiful correct
Bichons. We just hit it off. People thought she Prize and Sarah, I longed for them to become my
was my mother and I, her daughter. We travelled foundation dogs, and that’s what they did. They
together to many shows before Aussies became were pretty line-bred in their pedigrees and thus
AKC recognised. Sarah bred some of the best produced puppies that were, what I call “cookie
Bichons in the Midwest. This was in the early cutter’ puppies, they all looked exactly alike. I
1970’s. Matt and I married in 1982 and purchased wanted to produce bitches that would produce like
a beautiful blue male, mostly of the old Flintridge Sara. I could breed Sara to anything and get really
lines. Then we met John and Susan Rossy of Rossy’s pretty correct puppies. So, I decided then I wanted
Photographs provided by: Flo McDaniel, McMatt Aussies
Aussies, and we purchased a beautiful red girl, to produce the best puppies I could. I would become
named Rhoda. While we didn’t breed those two as
Rhoda was dysplastic, we purchased another girl.
True to what I had read about Australian Shepherds
they were as smart as I was told. We were hooked
on this breed.

Please tell us about your past dogs?
Probably the most famous of my past dogs was
a dog named CH Showtime’s Sir Prize CD. The
Rossy’s and us loaded up 10 dogs and flew to
the 1985 ASCA Nationals held in Las Vegas NV.
While watching the 6–9-month puppy dogs, we
spotted Sir Prize. I had to buy this dog; he was the
Aussie I was looking for. It took Susan and me 4
days to convince his breeder to sell him to us. He

A Worldwide Magazine for the Aussie • Issue 1/2023 | 77