A couple of weeks later Ailsa was unfaithful to me – she left me home alone all day and she went off and with another Koolie. His name is Darcy Dugan and he is only 20 weeks old - I just know she is feeling clucky. Like me he was going to be shot and was rescued from a farm near Cooma. She picked him up from the lady who saved him and took him out to Young where she was handing him over to Bill his new owner who is a shearer near Parkes. When she came home she just smelt of another dog and a boy at that - she had clearly been holding him and he had been licking her face.
The next weekend we went to Bungendore near us and went to a special sheepdog school run by a famous New Zealander called Bernard Arends. He talks a bit funny but he was really nice to me and taught me some more about working sheep. I wondered whether if we went to visit Grandma in New Zealand we would have to learn to talk that language but Ailsa said she was sure everyone would be able to understand us. The workshop was on a farm which is owned by the local butcher in Bungendore – he is going to represent Australia at the next World Herding competition. He has lots of sheep and we also saw some cows and some horses who came over to watch what we were doing, especially when Bernard made the people be sheepdogs. The horses could not believe what they were seeing and I think they will be talking about it for a long time to come. One thing I have learnt is that people do not make very good sheepdogs. They had to take 5 sheep around a field with a few obstacles in and most of them could not do it – I was proud of Ailsa because she only had one spot of trouble towards the end when she lost a sheep through a hole in the fence. Bernard said that I work the sheep very nicely so I was pleased because he did not say nice things about all the dogs.
After that school we had one more school with Robert and Brad before Christmas – I got promoted up a class so I think Ailsa was really pleased with me. It was getting pretty hot though and I did wonder if Ailsa was going to be up to coming to school through the summer because she does not like hot weather.
We spent Christmas at home – the strange tree grew in the living room again – I don’t know where it came from or where it goes the rest of the year. I managed to get a few more glittery things for my treasure chest and this time Ailsa decorated some of the lower branches with pigs’ ears and yummy dog biscuits that she made in Christmas tree shapes. I went to see Father Christmas at the dog’s Xmas party and gave him a good licking. It was a good investment because on Christmas Day I got lots of new balls and a whole bag of dried liver – I offered Ailsa a bit but she told me I could have it all.
More next time,
Perry, well on the way to being sheepdog first class
The next weekend we went to Bungendore near us and went to a special sheepdog school run by a famous New Zealander called Bernard Arends. He talks a bit funny but he was really nice to me and taught me some more about working sheep. I wondered whether if we went to visit Grandma in New Zealand we would have to learn to talk that language but Ailsa said she was sure everyone would be able to understand us. The workshop was on a farm which is owned by the local butcher in Bungendore – he is going to represent Australia at the next World Herding competition. He has lots of sheep and we also saw some cows and some horses who came over to watch what we were doing, especially when Bernard made the people be sheepdogs. The horses could not believe what they were seeing and I think they will be talking about it for a long time to come. One thing I have learnt is that people do not make very good sheepdogs. They had to take 5 sheep around a field with a few obstacles in and most of them could not do it – I was proud of Ailsa because she only had one spot of trouble towards the end when she lost a sheep through a hole in the fence. Bernard said that I work the sheep very nicely so I was pleased because he did not say nice things about all the dogs.
After that school we had one more school with Robert and Brad before Christmas – I got promoted up a class so I think Ailsa was really pleased with me. It was getting pretty hot though and I did wonder if Ailsa was going to be up to coming to school through the summer because she does not like hot weather.
We spent Christmas at home – the strange tree grew in the living room again – I don’t know where it came from or where it goes the rest of the year. I managed to get a few more glittery things for my treasure chest and this time Ailsa decorated some of the lower branches with pigs’ ears and yummy dog biscuits that she made in Christmas tree shapes. I went to see Father Christmas at the dog’s Xmas party and gave him a good licking. It was a good investment because on Christmas Day I got lots of new balls and a whole bag of dried liver – I offered Ailsa a bit but she told me I could have it all.
More next time,
Perry, well on the way to being sheepdog first class
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