2017 July August

stock horses in it, or on an ATV. Other than some really huge
ranches, cattle are not miles of open country away from where they
will need to go. If the dog is going to have to follow men on
horseback or trail cattle for miles, the horses and cattle will be
walking. The dog in order to conserve strength and breath would
be in a slow jog or walking and then jogging to keep up.
Let me move to the farm dog for a minute and this applies to
the dogs on large ranches, too. Dogs are used a lot when cattle are
rounded up to be branded and/or vaccinated, dehorned, etc. People
who have livestock have corrals and chutes to do this work, and
they will be reasonably close to where the stock is grazing. Once
the stock is in the corral, they are usually sorted, cows from their
calves, for instance. Dogs are used in the corrals, but they better
be quick, agile enough to duck under a gate to keep from getting
trampled, and capable of getting in and out of a situation fast. When
working cattle through the chute they will need to be able nip one
through the fence that does not want to move forward and often
are used to run one into the next corral after it has been released
from the chute. This would be a very short distance – a sprint.
This pen work is a situation where Aussies do well because
they do like to work close and they are quick. For this reason
working Aussies are used at sale barns where the job is moving
stock up and down alleys and taking them out of pens and putting
them through gates. The stock often has not been worked with dogs
and can be aggressive, so once again the dog’s ability to get out of
the way by ducking under a gate or fence is important. Feed lots
also use this type of dogs in the same way. If a steer is sick or
injured it will need to be separated and treated but is not going to
want to leave the others. Not much long-distance trotting needed.
These days a lot of stock operations use rotational grazing.
This is a scientifically proven method to keep livestock on good
fresh grass and not to over-graze. This can be sheep or cattle and
varies from small pastures of a few acres to pastures of 100 acres
or more. The stock may be kept in there for just a day or for a week
or more, but they must be moved before the grass is grazed too
short. Often the stock does not want to leave since there is still
Stockdog Corner
feed, and the dog is just what is needed to encourage them to do
so. That nice extended trot can be utilized in this job and the dog
also may be required to sprint fast to get stock that decides to cut
back away from the others.
Aussies are used on dairies, and I knew a dairy that used them
to bring the cows in for milking. Now dairy cows are usually lined
up at the barn door at milking time, but in the case I saw there were
always just a few cows who decided to stay out in the pasture. All
it took was the dog to go out there and start them toward the barn,
but it saved steps. With a pasture of heifers that needed some kind
of vaccination or work, the situation was the same as on a ranch
with beef cattle.
Dogs of all breeds have from the beginning been judged by
written Standards describing the ideal of each breed. To ascertain
structural soundness, movement at the trot observed by a judge
from the side and coming toward the judge and away have been
the established procedure. This is the only practical way to evaluate
a dog in a small area and on a leash. However, many breeds of dogs
were developed for a purpose whether it is to work livestock, to
hunt in specific ways – retrieving in water, chasing and catching
prey, working in brushy terrain flushing birds. Some were developed
to pull sleds or other vehicles, but all are evaluated in some way
by movement. It would be foolish to believe that observing a dog
at a trot is going to evaluate the physical traits necessary to do any
of these tasks each breed was created to do.
In judging the Australian Shepherd whether for work, play, or
show, it would be well if all understood the varied types of work
a stockdog may need to excel at. The Aussie was not developed to
be a long-distance trotting dog, neither at a jog or an extended trot.
The jog trot is far more often seen than a fast extended trot as it
serves no purpose. Stock is if at all possible ideally moved at a
walk. If an Aussie is indeed a dog to do the jobs I have explained
above, the dog must be an athlete which means a fast sprint, able
to jump, duck, and turn quickly. It will be doing all of these things
much more than it will be trotting, and an awareness of this allows
us all to better evaluate dogs within the breed.
UPCOMINGt
JUNE
• 9-11: Frenchtown, MT. Frenchtown Fling: Friday AM/PM
Farm trials both Cattle and Sheep and two days of AM/PM
arena trials Saturday and Sunday with cattle, sheep, and
ducks. Judges are Deb Conroy and Gail Winnick. Contact
Jim McKay 406-546-4069, Betty Williams 406-535-7342
or Tom Morarre 406-273-0608 for more information. Event
information is also available on the club website: www.
ascofmt.org.
JULY
• 14-16: Frenchtown, MT. Cow Country Classic Stockdog
trials. 3 days of AM/PM arena trials – cattle, sheep, and
ducks. Judges: Tony Padgett and John Knepper. Contact
Jim McKay 406-546-4069, Betty Williams 406-535-7342
or Tom Morarre 406-273-0608 for more information. Event
information is also available on the club website: www.
ascofmt.org.
AUGUST
• 18-21: Lewistown, MT. Summer Roundup: Post Advanced on Friday
and arena trials on Saturday and Sunday. Ranch trials on Monday. Dana
Mackenzie and Robyn Gharret-Johnson will be judging. Contact Jim McKay
406-546-4069, Betty Williams 406-535-7342 or Tom Morarre 406-273-
0608 for more information. Event information is also available on the club
website: www.ascofmt.org.
OCTOBER- NOVEMBER
• The 2017 ASCA National Specialty will be hosted by the 2017 Texas
Consortium: Hill Country ASC, Central Texas Working ASC, Heart of Texas
ASC, Eastex ASC, and New Hope ASC on October 27 – November 4, 2017, at
Brazos County Expo, 5827 Leonard Rd., Bryan, Texas. There is a Facebook
page and a Facebook group, as well as a website, asca2017.com.
AUSSIE TIMES May-June 2017 85