We went to a sheep shearing demonstration today and there was much to see and do. Along with sheep shearing, they also had a demonstration of herding (using Border collies). The demo started out with ducks, to show the dogs' ability to work "gently" with soft animals, and then progressed on to sheep. Here's a relatively cluttered shot of the farmer getting his dogs into the ring: jumping over the fence! :smile: Brit, an older female, ready to work View attachment 92833 Joy moving the ducks across the arena. The ducks are Indian runners, and can not truly fly. View attachment 92834 Brit, loading the ducks into the brace. Notice how far off she is in the background. Much of the work is done by eye. View attachment 92835 Rose, moving the sheep in to the farmer. View attachment 92836 Brit opening the pen via a grab rope View attachment 92837 Joy and Brit penning the sheep. Notice in the far background right is Brit lying inside the pen. She's in there to keep the sheep from charging in and injuring themselves. She gives less eye than Joy, who is outside convincing the sheep to go in. View attachment 92838
Great series. Those Border Collies are amazing dogs. I hope that the breeders in the future will consider this breeds working abilities and not just turn it into another show dog just to please the judges. Your pictures really shows the talent these dogs have.
Oh not to worry, we already have "barbie collies" here in the US. These dogs, however, are *strictly* working-bred. :smile:
As long as we have sheep farms in Great Britain, the shepherds will need Border collies to handle the stock. Good working dogs are valuable; the best, which win sheepdog trials, are very valuable indeed for breeding. I have seen demonstrations like this - they are fun and interesting, so I like these photos: but they aren't the real thing :wink: Last summer I went to a sheepdog trial. The competition lasted all day and was a very tough test for the team of shepherd and dog (or pair of dogs) - a challenge to photograph, but fascinating! I hope I'll do the same in August this year. Alan
Thank you for the images and the great demonstration and explanation of thier movements. Nice job Have any more pics to share
No, this wasn't a trial, just a demonstration at a public event. There is a big trial in New Hampsire in two weeks that I'm hoping to get up and photograph. This gentleman does trial his dogs, but he also has a working ranch where the dogs move sheep, cattle and pigs! I've never heard of moving boars before!
Gretchen : Nice series. One thing that I very clearly recall from living in the UK was watching the herding competitions on the Beeb (BBC). What's also clear in my memory was that these shows were in prime-time ! Some days, I do miss living there "over the pond"... John P.
Yes, 'One Man and His Dog' ran for many years (with woman shepherds too) - but I'm afraid it was cancelled several years ago :frown: I hope you can get to that trial, Gretchen. Alan
