Couch Potato Dogs Find A Higher Calling

A sense of timelessness hung over Stew and Judy Williams’ Idaho ranch Labor Day weekend.

There, in a broad valley, herding dogs and their owners gathered to reenact a drama possibly older than the Selkirk Mountain foothills that surround the farm.

Smooth and rough collies, Australian shepherds, Shetland sheepdogs, Cardigan and Pembroke Welsh corgis, Belgian malinois and Belgian tervurens were there to do their job, what their instincts confirm is their life mission.

They were there to herd livestock.

The fact that many of the human and canine competitors do not live on a working ranch didn’t matter. What did was the intimacy between the two - a bond strong enough to transcend modern lifestyles.

You could almost taste the salty ocean air as the American Kennel Club-licensed herding trial and tests got under way early on a clear morning. It was easy to imagine yourself in the Shetland Isles, France, England, Scotland, Wales or Australia as breeds that originated in these countries started to work sheep.

Trial-level competition began with the advanced sheep class, then moved down to classes for less-experienced dogs and handlers. At almost every level, the dog moved a small herd of sheep across a field, through several different chutes and into a pen - all while responding to only voice and body signals from its owner.

Herding trials are graded on a point system. Each handler and dog begins with 100 points. Deductions are made when the dog and handler do not move livestock correctly.

The goal is to finish with as many points as possible. Each dog and handler team needs at least 60 points to complete a class, and the pair must earn at least half the points available at each obstacle on the course.

Pretrial and herding tests are for inexperienced dogs or handlers. They are graded pass/fail, and run on a much less complicated course than the herding trials.

“We’re looking for enthusiasm at the pretrial and herding test stages,” Stew Williams said.

After the sheep herding competition, handlers switched fields and moved to a small arena where their dogs herded ducks around and through obstacles similar to those on the sheep herding courses.

Linda Ward, president of the Inland Empire Collie Club, said many herding dog owners train with ducks because they are more accessible and easier to keep than sheep.

“It’s hard to work sheep because they are faster and fewer handlers own them, so it’s hard to get the practice time in,” said Ward, who competes with two rough collies.

The Williamses have sponsored a herding competition at their ranch for the past four years. The event is the only one of its kind in the immediate area, Ward said.

Besides the breeds at the Williamses’ ranch competition, other herding breeds include: Australian cattle dogs, bearded collies, Belgian sheepdogs, border collies, bouvier des flandres, briards, German shepherd dogs, old English sheepdogs, pulis and even rottweilers and samoyeds.

Suzanne Schwab said one reason she began competing in herding trials and tests was to negate stereotypes about collies.

“It’s incredible to see the first time you take a couch potato dog out there in the field to herd and something clicks, and it’s apparent the dog has found what it is meant to do,” she said.

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For a calendar of Inland Northwest dog events, see page E8. If you’d like a dog event publicized, write: Mary Sagal, The Spokesman-Review features section, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210.