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TRIAL STORY

     This is a story about the perfect stockdog, a fictitious Border Collie called Shep, and a trial in which gets a perfect score, as usual.  This story is presented as a means for displaying a number of photographs of sheepdog trials and to show the flow of a typical ISDS style trial.  The links go to pictures.

SHEP'S PERFECT TRIAL

     The day was sunny but cool with light clouds drifting across the sky, a perfect day for a sheepdog trial.  When it came to Shep's turn he entered the field by his owners side and walked calmly to the post, always keeping an eye on the sheep waiting at the top of a rise 400 yards away.  Shep paused by his owners side at the post and with a murmur from him sped away on a perfect pear shaped outrun.  Shep slowed quickly at the top of his outrun, at the same moment the sheep took notice of his presence and Shep stalking slowly toward the sheep executing a perfect lift.

     As always Shep executed a perfectly paced and arrow straight fetch without a sound from his handler.  After turning the sheep sharply around the post Shep pushed the sheep away steady and straight toward the drive panels, despite some initial resistance from the sheep.  Shep's handler had only spoken twice since shep had started his outrun, once to flank shep around to turn the sheep and once to stop him and indicate the drive line.

     Shep drove the sheep straight and steady through the drive panels and with two brief whistles from his handler turned the sheep sharply around the panel and began the drive the sheep across the field toward the second set of drive panels.  The pace at which Shep moved the sheep remained the same constant steady pace it had been throughout with the sheep moving at what amounted to a fast walk.  After driving the sheep straight through the second set of drive panels another whistle from his handler had Shep turning the sheep sharply around the panel and began the return drive to his handler.

     As the sheep entered the shedding ring Shep's handler walked from the post to the center of the shedding ring.  Shep stopped pushing the sheep at the perfect point such that they stopped just in front of Shep's handler.  Shep moved carefully from side to side with the instructions of his handler pressuring and eyeing the sheep such that the marked sheep were all together then upon a word from the handler, Shep executed a perfect shed with a single quick move.

     Shep's handler walked to the pen with Shep bringing the sheep along behind.  The handler held the gate open as Shep brought the Sheep to the pen.  The sheep stopped at the entrance to the pen and looked to the side, Shep moved to cover there escape and push them into the pen.  As Shep's handler swung the gate closed Shep moved around ahead of the gate to cover any possible escape.

     Shep moved around behind the pen and pushed the sheep back out again as his handler opened the gate.  While Shep's handler closed the pen Shep moved the sheep back to the center of the shedding ring and held them there while his handler walked over.  Again Shep moved swiftly back and forth at his handlers direction and then upon a word from his handler Shep swept in to split of a sheep and hold it for his single.  As the small crowd clapped and roared its appreciation Shep quietly gathered together all the sheep and took them from the course with his handler following behind.  Just another typical trial for Shep and another perfect score.

DOG CREDITS