About the Fibber Memorial Library

You may notice near the coffee station in Springfield, there is now a bookcase with many dog books. These were donated for rat-hunting friends by Rose Hutches in memory of her first Barn Hunt dog, Fibber McGee From Dundee aka "Fibber." There are fiction and non-fiction books, old and newer books, but all deal with dogs. Keep them for as long as you need. If you want to donate a book, feel free. There’s still room on the shelves.

Rose rescued Fibber from animal control in November 2013. The next summer he was taking agility at Deb Auer's. They noticed that as he crossed the dog walk or went over the A-frame, he was not looking where he was going but rather at the fence row. That’s where the bunnies, voles and other prey were probably hiding out. Rose was afraid he was going to fall, and he had little interest in agility. Deb proposed that at the next lesson they try him in her new Barn Hunt ring. As Deb told him after his first lesson, “Fibber, you’ve found your job.” The farm dog was going to keep that arena safe and rat-free. That was in June. 

In August, Rose took him to his first trial in Columbia, MO, where he took third, then second, and finally first place plus a high in trial to earn his Novice title. That was the beginning of a lot of travel and delight for Team Fibber. After his second trial (and Barn Hunt was very new then), he was the leading collie – rough or smooth – playing the sport. 

The next spring, Rose and Fibber went to the Barn Hunt National Specialty, where Fibber placed in the top 25. He repeated that performance again in 2015. Then they moved it to Texas.

The boy loved his Barn Hunt. He was known for his alert that no one could miss. Ears went forward, front legs went down, teeth clicked on the tube and the butt was up in the air! One of the judges who frequently judged Fibber said, “Everyone wants an alert like Fibber’s!”

When Fibber died suddenly in May 2022, he had earned his RATCHX12 and was halfway to 13. He wasn’t working as swiftly as in the beginning, but his love of the sport and reliability were still there. Rose wishes City Sniffers would have been around for more frequent trials when Fibber reigned as top collie in Barn Hunt.!