Tux Talk

The Tux National Dog Trials are being held in Marlborough this week. The South Island Championships are well underway and competitors, their dogs and support crew have come here from all over New Zealand.
Tux Dog Biscuits are a very longstanding and popular food for dogs...working dogs in particular. They are now made by the Purina company which also caters for all breeds of dogs and cats. Tux are the principle sponsors for Dog Trialing in New Zealand.
The venue for the event is Meadowbank Station and it is stunning. The elevated views from the dog trialing areas are beautiful. But I was not there today to capture the landscape.
I spent time watching the "Heading" dogs at work. They are also known as "Eye" dogs. I know this type of dog very well as our Gypsy is a natural heading dog... Something Fergus does not appreciate when she persists in heading him off.
Then I moved on to watching the noisy "Huntaways" in action. They are usually much bigger dogs than the headers and I love the way they get so excited and can't wait to get into the competition. I watched one whining quietly with anticipation while his master had him at heel waiting for the the sheep to be released for them to work.
The bond between the shepherd and his/her dog is incredible to observe. These dogs are the backbone of our farming industry and good ones can command very high prices....anything between $4,000 to $10,000. I reckon they are our country's treasures.
Today's image shows two competitors and their dogs deep in an animated discussion whilst waiting for their turns to compete. I understand the young woman works on the Molesworth Station, our biggest High Country Station. (If any of you ever want to see some great Kiwiana just check out "The Molesworth Cattle Muster" on YouTube. It is pure magic viewing.)
With any luck I will be heading off to the Dog Trials again tomorrow morning for some more slices of Kiwiana.