Dog Events / Info
Dog Events
This page is for advertising up coming working dog events.Such as:
- Dog Trials
- Dog Trial centenaries
- Shepherd Trials
- Dog Training days
- Dog sales
Or if you have a business associated with working dogs let us advertise it here.Cost neg.
What price do I pay for a dog?- Pups range in value from $50 to $500 depending upon breeding
- Very good broken in dogs from $1000 to $5000+ depending upon how well they are broken in, age,breeding,mustering ability or dog trial experience
- A good rule of thumb is $100 per month of age, ie 6 mths $600 8mths $800 or though the older they get the more time they should have had spent on them.For example a 9 mth old dog for $900,should have a stop and good basic work commands.
- Whats your view on dog prices?
Dog Training Days
Training days with Anna Holland:
Matawai 18th September - contact Adriana 06 862 1553
Wairoa 20th September - contact Kirby 06 837 5627
Takapau 22nd September - contact Vaughan 06 374 7611
Dog Information
Heading / Huntaway Farm dogs fall into two main classes, heading dogs and huntaways.As the names suggest, they are classed according to the work they do.
Dogs that can do both tasks equally well are called handy dogs.
HEADING (Eye dog:) These dogs are generally used to gather sheep and draw or pull them towards their handler. Their place in mustering is to round up the scattered sheep and bring them into the main mob.When sent after sheep, a heading dog makes a wide run out to one side, travelling to the far side of the sheep to place them between himself and the handler. This is called the cast out.The dog then starts the sheep moving towards his handler. The first movement of the sheep is called the lift.The action of drawing is called pulling.A good heading dog keeps the line of pull as straight as possible with a minimum of commands from his handler. A heading dog is not expected to bark when working.
HUNTAWAY: These dogs are used to hunt and drive separated sheep into a mob, which is quite different from the rounding up and pull of the heading dog.A good huntaway has a strong forceful bark and turns the mob right or left on command. turning the mob is called slewing.A huntaway generally works tail-on to his handler, this is known as facing up.Because of his noise, the huntaway is the dog to use in the sheep yards.
HANDY DOG: These all-rounders are probably the most useful type of working dog, especially on a small farm where only one dog is needed. Some handy dogs head or hunt sheep equally well, but most have a leaning towards one or the other. You need a high degree of control when working a handy dog, owing to the variety of work you ask him to do.
Backing dog: Derived from huntaways, these dogs are used where sheep packed tightly in a race are reluctant to move. He runs over the backs of the sheep, usually making plenty of noise, which causes the mob to loosen up and travel freely along the race.
Leading dog: Basically heading dogs, leading dogs were more common wnen drovers often drove stock along the road. The leading dog stayed in the front of the mob, stopping them from stringing out to far.
