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Herding Pre-trail


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Hello every one :laugh:

well guess what.....

Cooper and i got 2 passes today

that means he passed his pre-trail :love:

yeeeebbeeeeee

not bad start conciering this was his first entry in PT :cry:

i am so proud of my boy right now

just had to share with you all :cry:

cheers sam and Cooper who now has a PT next ti his name :rofl::cry:

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Hello every one :thumbsup:

well guess what.....

Cooper and i got 2 passes today

that means he passed his pre-trail :happydance:

yeeeebbeeeeee

not bad start conciering this was his first entry in PT :cheer:

i am so proud of my boy right now

just had to share with you all :thumbsup:

cheers sam and Cooper who now has a PT next ti his name :cheer::cheer:

Congratulations Cooper Baby

Gambit still isn't ready yet. Well, it's not him it's me, ho ho ho.

post-6277-1153632673_thumb.jpg

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Can I just ask what a herding pre-trial is? What do you have to be able to do? Can any breed participate?

I am involved in yard dog trials and so have no idea about the ANKC herding.

Thanks heaps

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Yay, go Cooper! :thumbsup: Congrats. Minty got one pre-trial pass a few weeks ago, I let her work too close in the first one and the sheep went haywire! We failed on "controlled passage of stock". Second trial was much better but I don't think she had as much fun. Not going for our second pass til October :champagne: So far away! Unless there is one sooner? I dunno.

Hey jesomil, I need info on yard dog trials, got a kelpie pup who won't be ready for a while but will definately be trial quality however ANKC herding probably won't suit him as he is a heading dog. I believe they say ANKC herding is mainly driving with a little fetching, whereas yard dog trials are the opposite?

Cheers

Hey Sam, are you going to go on and do started A course? Looks like fun!

Edited by hannahb
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I believe they say ANKC herding is mainly driving with a little fetching, whereas yard dog trials are the opposite?

Nah, not really. If anything, yard dog trials have the most driving of any Australian sheepdog trial. The dogs are often pushing sheep away from the handler (out of pens, up races, into other pens, out of the way of the handler's path) and crossing isn't the mortal sin it is in 3 sheep trials. There's only one place in the average yard course the dog can't cross (in the main yard)- the rest of the time it has to work between sheep and handler as well as fetch.

I often hear that Australian trial dogs (ie 3 sheep dogs) can't do ANKC-type work, because they can't drive (aren't allowed to or something) and its not true- those that are also farm dogs have to drive frequently, and in my state the majority of 3sheep dogs also do utility trials, where they have to do a yard course and paddock course.

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So there's yard trials, 3-sheep trials, utility trials...I am a little (very) confused! I've got the bug now, thanks to my current dog, who isn't much chop (sorry Mint) but gets the job done and is very patient with me :thumbsup:

So what are the main differences between the various trials?

Cheers

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Well, things vary a bit between states, but there are 3 main types of sheepdog trials in Australia:

3 Sheep or Arena trials:

the type of trial most people have seen in Australia, have been on TV occasionally. 3 sheep, as name suggests, are set out at one end of an "arena" (could be a footy oval, or a paddock, etc- varying size and landscape). Dog is cast from the peg, fetches sheep down the ground as straight as possible, then around peg, and then as handler walks a set course (down ground, around peg, to each obstacle) the dog has to keep the sheep within a set distance of the handler (ie in a marked corridor). At the obstacles, handler stands in a prescribed spot (eg rings on ground) to the side of the obstacle, and dog has to move sheep through or into pen. No crossing is allowed at any time- which can make for some short runs for beginners :thumbsup:

Yard trials:

Basically a course designed to test dog's ability to work sheep through yards. The sorts of courses and the rules vary a bit between states, so I'm told. But for example, the Novice course we ran this weekend involved going into yards- dog empties sheep from one small pen into a large yard, then moves sheep from another small pen into that empty one. Then you climb fence and dog moves sheep across large yard to clear a path to the other side, so you can walk across to the forcing pen, where you open the gate and dog has to push sheep into the small force pen. You can't shut gates until the sheep are totally clear, and once the pens are full, your dog has to go around to the next gate to clear it before you can walk over there. Then you force the sheep into the drenching race, which may require dog to back up race to fill it. More gate shutting and opening, and sheep go up into a truck- which often involved dog having to back up sheep on a sloping ramp, into the back of a truck- then down into another small pen, then dog holds sheep and pushes them into a drafting race, where handler drafts out set number of sheep. Points off for things like inefficient work, sheep breaking, crossing in the large yard, etc.

Utility trials:

Yard + paddock. We have all our yard trials held combined with a utility trial, but I think they are less common in other states. Starts out like an arena trial- handler at post sends dog to cast and fetch 5 sheep- brings them down to handler, then they walk over to yards, run a yard course, then the 5 sheep drafted off at the end of the yard course are taken out into the paddock, and walked through a set of obstacles (same rules as for 3sheep), finishing with the pen. Utility is a bit nicer for beginners- a cross in the paddock is just points off, and if you mess up an obstacle, the judge will just give you zero for that obstacle and you can go on to the next one (in 3sheep you can lose all your time and points on one obstacle). Great utility dogs are awesome to watch- adapting from the up-close power of the yards to the finesse and speed of the paddock work.

I know some states have cattle dog trials too, and short course trials etc, so they would be different. And then there's the Trans-Tasman type courses which are sometimes run, which include driving sections as per the NZ courses.

The ANKC trials are different again (A, B, C courses) - and pretty well described in the rules.

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Hi Mjk, What state are you from? Just wondering cause you said that trials can have some variation between states.

Hannahb, Kelpies are great dogs. What type of working lines is yours from? Some are more 3 sheep and some are more yard types. My boy is definately a yard/utility type.

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What state are you from

WA. I've never trialled interstate (obviously- I've only just got brave enough to enter a few trials here, and we're hardly setting the trials scene alight :D ). But from what I've heard/read there are a few regional differences- yard courses, esp in states with dedicated yard trialling fraternities (basically most people here do all types, or they don't get many trials) and judging variations (what constitutes a cross in a yard run, overcommanding, judging a dog that works outside the race etc), plus things like let-out techniques.

Some references with yard/utility rules

Yard/Utility rules

and arena rules/course:

Arena rules

Arena course

and the Supreme:

Course

Rules

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Cool, thanks mjk05, have printed that out.

jesomil, Cash is Capree/Liscnanor lines, I believe (spelling?). From two Beloka bred dogs. Double cross of Beloka Scooter. Can't really tell what his forte will be at this stage (he's only 18weeks, thought I'd better start doing my research early) but he already displays a lot of eye (the sheep humping is another story :thumbsup: ) and likes to go to the head. This is my first kelpie, so it's going to be a steep learning curve, I think. :D

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Mjk05, thanks for all the info.

Hannahb, sounds like you have a great pup there. You will have much fun and learn heaps with him.

I can relate with the sheep humping :thumbsup: . Once we were filling a race and instead of jumping up along the sheeps backs as usual to encourage them to move along, he started humping the end one instead. How embarrassing. It didnt get them moving any faster :D Luckily he only did it the once.

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Hello and thanks everyone :rofl:

hey hannah....havent see ya for ages, will need to catch up one day :rofl:

hows your new baby going???? did see you and ya baby training in puppy class a few weeks ago, but didn't get a chance to come over and say hello :o

Hey Sam, are you going to go on and do started A course? Looks like fun!

yep wouldn't mind having ago.....but me thinks Cooper and I need a bit more training :)

cheers sam

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Can't wait for daylight savings - then we can have park parties again.

Pup's going great! He's got fantastic focus and is a smart cookie - what am I saying, he's a kelpie after all! :o He already knows more than I do about the noble art of sheep-herding ( although that wouldn't be too hard, novice that I am).

I'll be at training Sunday, will you be there?

jesomil - I had hoped Cash would grow out of the sheep humping, now I'm not so confident! :rofl:

I guess kelpies use whatever tricks they can to get those sheep moving :rofl:

Edited by hannahb
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hey hannah,

yeb i will be there with bells on.....dog training that is.

Coopers got his first obed trail next week end so need to get as much training in as possable :rofl::rofl:

might see ya there

see ya sam

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i will be there with bells on

I'll keep an ear out for ya :rofl:

State obedience trial? We're going too...trying for second open pass. Hope it's really cold and rainy! Perfect obedience (and herding for that matter) conditions. :rofl:

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Hannahb -

Not going for our second pass til October :laugh: So far away! Unless there is one sooner?

There's a (double) Pre-Trial at Riddels Creek (Central Highland/Lancefield Kennel Club) on the 6th of August...

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There's a (double) Pre-Trial at Riddels Creek (Central Highland/Lancefield Kennel Club) on the 6th of August...

I can't seem to get any info on entering, have tried calling the club secretary with no success. Any idea when entries close if they haven't done so already? We're also entered at the state agility trial on that day but I want to get that pre-trial pass so I can enter started in October. :laugh:

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