Herding trials put Border Collies to the test
By Norma Bennett Woolf
The man walked slowly into the field, the dog a coiled spring by his side.
The pair reached a marking post; the man gave an imperceptible signal, and the
dog was off in a wide arc, galloping across the gently rolling sides of the
grassy bowl to a spot on the far side.
Spectators could just make out the four sheep the dog was after, sheep held
in place by a second handler and dog until the gathering dog could work into
position. The test dog circled in back of the sheep and began to drive them
forward, towards the man at the post. A whistle split the air as the sheep ran
wide; the dog slowed and moved slightly to the side of the small flock to get
them back in line to pass through the gates and up the grade to the starting
post.
The sheep gathered around the man; the man directed the dog with a series
of whistles to drive the stock back down the hill, through the gate, across
the field through another gate, and finally, back up the hill to the holding
pen. The man opened the gate; the dog slowly worked his way towards the milling
sheep, pressuring here and there with the characteristic Border Collie crouch
and eye until the four animals moved into the pen and the handler closed the
gate.
The dog was one of dozens entered in the Bluegrass Classic Open Stockdog Trial
in Lexington, Kentucky, Friday, June 18-Sunday, June 20. Here handlers proved
their prowess as trainers and showed off the remarkable working abilities of
their dogs.
On Friday, the young dogs ruled the course and excitement ruled the dogs.
Often rushing the sheep or making mistakes that spooked the small flocks of
four, the dogs nonetheless showed great promise for a future as a farmer's working
partner. On Saturday and Sunday, the mature dogs took over and showed the youngsters
how the job is done.
The dog
The working Border Collie is a dog of many coats and colors and a workaholic
personality. Black, red, tri-color or mostly white; long-coated, medium-coated,
or short-coated; 25 pounds or 55 pounds, he is an obsessive-compulsive worker
of immeasurable value to the sheep farmer. Few other dogs can match his dedication
or his innate skill. Like the block of marble that awaits an artist to release
the incredible beauty within, the Border Collie needs an equally dedicated handler
to hone his skills and direct his energy. Although many breeds herd livestock,
none other has the Border Collie combination of eye, intensity, and working
style, characteristics developed in the border country of England and Scotland.
Here the sheepmen produced a breed of dog that made raising flocks in hilly
country a profitable venture. Without the dogs, the cost of manual labor would
have been prohibitive; with the dogs, an economy was built on wool.
Border Collies came to the US with Scotsmen who arrived to provide lamb meat
and wool for an expanding population. Sheep farms went west with the rest of
the population, and the dogs made it possible for shepherds to control large
flocks on a journey from New Mexico to the California gold fields to feed settlers
and travelers. Today, of course, Border Collies bring to obedience and agility
trials the same character and dedication that marks their work with sheep, but
it is in the field with the shepherd and the flock that the dogs excel.
Style
The Border Collie gathers sheep and brings them to the shepherd or takes them
to a destination as directed by the shepherd. Directions are given by whistle,
by voice, or a combination of the two. The sheep move because the dog pressures
them to do so; the dog must learn how and when to exert the pressure to keep
the sheep moving in the desired direction. Too much pressure makes the sheep
run, risking panic and loss of meat. Too little pressure puts the sheep in charge
of where they will go and when they will get there. Over the years, breeders
have sharpened the Border Collie into a dog with predatory behavior that makes
sheep wary but does not culminate in a kill. Creeping and crouching in the field,
running wide of the flock at times and close by at others, lying down on a whistled
command, waiting, moving, and dropping down again, the ideal Border Collie works
in a steady, unruffled manner to keep the sheep calm and in motion.
In a trial, the dogs must show their skill at each component of their herding
jobs. They must do an outrun from handler to circle behind the sheep several
hundred yards away; "lift" the sheep from their current spot to begin the drive
towards the handler; bring the sheep to the handler at the post; drive the sheep
away from the handler through two sets of panels set up as gateways; and finally
bring the sheep to the pen. Advanced dogs also must show their skill at holding
a single sheep apart from the rest of the flock.
Training
Young dogs are taught basic obedience commands and are accustomed to praise
for a job well done. At about 10 months of age, their ability to work stock
can be assessed by bringing the dog into a pen with a handful of sheep. A dog
with good working instincts will circle the small flock and hold them together.
With a few lessons, he will learn to keep the circle tight and to move the sheep
without running them.
The dog learns not only to move the sheep, but to heed instructions from the
handler, instructions relayed by whistle, command, or simple changes in body
position or extensions of the shepherd's crook. In this manner, the dog learns
to hold sheep to the handler as well as to hold them in a group.
It takes at least two years of training to get a dog to advanced levels of
competition. Each dog is different; a shepherd must read his dog to understand
its strengths and weaknesses and to use training techniques that complement
those strengths and minimize those weaknesses.
But all the training in the world cannot instill the instinct that makes a
Border Collie a great working dog. A dog has a sense of how to deal with sheep,
or he does not. He has a working style that sheep can tolerate, or he does not.
He can make decisions on his own when out of sight and sound of the shepherd,
or he cannot. Training can make a dog steady and give him confidence in his
own ability, but it cannot give him that ability. The training and the working
and the partnership between man and dog are a triumph of the human animal bond
as well as a practical application of that relationship.
For more information about Border Collies and
herding training and events, contact:
- The US Border Collie Association
www.bordercollie.org
- US Border Collie Handlers Association
www.bordercollie.org/usbcha.html or (254) 486-2500
- American Border Collie Association Inc.
www.bordercollie.org/abca.html
For information about other herding breeds and events, contact:
- Australian Shepherd Club of America www.asca.org
or (409) 778 1082.
- American Working Collie Association
208 Harris Road, FA 1, Bedford Hills, NY 10507; (914)241-7094
- American Kennel Club
www.akc.org or (919) 854-0198
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