“You have to react in a quarter.” Breeders compete in a herding dog competition

Dog trainers train to turn their animal into a real herding dog. On Sunday 11 August in Arudy in the Basque Country, around ten breeders competed in a herding dog competition.

Simple instructions are enough. “Good, go!” Pierre only needs to raise his voice and whistle for his dog, Rio, to rush out to meet the flock of five sheep. “It’s a sport where the racket is the dog, the ball is the sheep, except everything is alive.” compares the sports instructor. For several years, the former driving dog handler (ed. note) – has developed a passion for this new discipline. “We have to react to a neighborhood, the dog has its vision, the sheep has its, and we have to manage a bit of everything, it’s fascinating.” he enthuses.

This Sunday, August 11, in Arudy in the Basque Country, dog trainers are in the spotlight during a herding dog competition. On the course, the sheep must be guided through obstacles of varying difficulty. The winner will be the pair that achieves the best time. “He a sheep must not pass to the left or right of the obstacle, otherwise we lose points”, specifies Grégory, who ends his visit satisfied. “She was very attentive, calm, she didn’t scare the sheep, which therefore moved at a decent pace.” All year round he trains his Thai dog in English to guide the flocks. “She already does agility in French, I try to separate the order of the two disciplines.”

A little further on, Pierre gives him a more mixed assessment of his performance. “I had a lot of difficulties as I expected, the course is tight and my dog ​​has a lot of power, it galloped a lot”, he regrets. We have hours of training behind us, so we always hope to do something right. I’m fourth there, but I hope to get on the podium tonight.”

This year, for this very first edition of the competition, around ten participants, professionals and amateurs, competed in Val Éveillé. “When you’re a professional, it’s very square, so it’s also good to see other types of dogs and give those who want to come and have fun,” says Jean-Louis Laborde, breeder and member of the organizing association “Un chien un berger”.

We try to explain to beginners the work done by dogs and give them the first basis for starting the training of a herding dog.

Jean-Louis Laborde

Breeder and member of the organizing association “Un chien un berger”

Among the spectators, many are discovering the discipline. Like Ophéline and Violette, young holidaymakers in the region. “We don’t see too many dogs leading the pack towards our house, we’ve never seen one before today.”

Sitting in the front row in front of the obstacles, Louise says that she is also impressed by the dogs’ obedience, which she “Always been afraid of it.” “They each have their own way of reacting, they’re all different, it’s really interesting.”

“The basis is cooperation with the animal, training as positive as possible, with rewards and a lot of love, insists Grégory, dog trainer. Under duress, the dog will not achieve it with so much desire.”

The educators confront each other in the burning heat. Refreshments are provided for spectators, and the four-legged participants can enjoy an impromptu swim. “Go Rio, into the water!”