I still had a few months left of my alternity leave from work, so now I had time to help Samuli on the farm. Jessica had set up the electric fence for our summer sheep, Jonna and Ari had fetched them from Rymättylä, most of them where Oxfords and a few crossbreeds. They where very lively and run like hell from corner to corner, okey to train with the older dogs, but not so good to start the youngsters with.
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| Coel and Jessi dogging texel ewes, Pohjanmaa |
The first was at Kotikoskis on midsummer, Rhy run okey and became second the first day I think, the other day he had a better run but gripped in the single. Disq.I was most pleased with the fetch, he kept a good distance without a bigger fight and didn´t upset the ladies
Then we organized the first trial ever at Samulis farm Rönnäs Gård. Samuli had done a huge job in advance, so the facilities were great. The course was fun, over two fields, the fetch gate was a bridge over a big ditch. Me and Rhy had a bad run, noting more about that.
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| Price giving class II, Rönnäs gård |
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| Father and son |
In July at the first team qualifications at Inkilänhovi in Juva, we run like shit, both me and Rhy. It´s not an excuse but it was very hot, and we were unlucky to run both days with the sun on it´s hottest. The sheep where young lambs, who didn´t want to move or knew where to go. Rhy was slack and didn´t want to cooperate at all, we didn´t get any control of the sheep...managed to get a around but it was horrible, never been worse.
I was really broken, not for not being in the pricelist, but because I didn´t recognize my dog anymore...what had happened to the Rhy I knew? Where was the fire and the desire to push and control sheep...had I "killed" him...? I was totally clueless.
Nothing else than herding, can take you so high and then totally crash you...it´s not only about one course, you start to panic that you have lost it all and that you´ll never get it back. So, I thought that I would try to not "train train" him this summer, only work and do fun things.
At the same trial I decided to enter Coel in the open class. It was a tricky outrun, not all dogs found the sheep or could fetch them. Coel found them with one extra command, we missed the drive gates when the lambs where so heavy so I didn´t want to struggle with him before the gates. But hey, he did the course, very happy with my little Harry Potter!
At Peppis farm Jaakkolan tila in Salo Rhy run a bit better and had a good fetch again, was second one day, but still not himself though. I would had liked to run Coel (he wasn´t pre-enterd) the other day, and at first I was promised I could swap and run Coel (the judge knew I was going to)...but in the morning the judge said he won´t allow it. Aha, that was it then.
I really can´t understand why it´s such a big thing in Finland, to allow the competitors to decide which dog to run, when it´s only a small village trial. This trial was the last one to collect points to the last qualification trial for the team...so it was clear I wouldn´t be able to run Coel there...
The summer went on with work on the farm etc, training the young ones now and then in a small field on our summer sheep. I also started Samulis Frost (Rhy x Meg), he was about 6-7 months, a very keen stylish splitface. He´ll be a handful for Samuli, but he´ll be alright I think, going a bit wide to the right because of the preassure from me. His brother Merc was also keen like hell, but not ready for training yet. My little cute Zak (Maico x Kylie) is interested in sheep but not ready to be trained yet, he is very soft and obedient...hope not too soft, we´ll see.
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| Kent (Kemi Rhys x Meg) , living with Kevin Evans in Wales |
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| Samulis youngster Frost (Kemi Rhys x Meg) |
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| Jessicas youngster Merc (Kemi Rhys x Meg) |
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| Zak (Maico x Kylie) and Merc |
Then August came and it was time for me and Leena to pack the car again, this time first towards Denmark to represent Finland at the Continental Sheepdog Trial (European championships). After that to Tain in North Scotland to the World Sheepdog Trials.
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| Me and Leena starting the trip to Denmark and Scotland |
At the Continentals Finland has got 6 places, me(captain), Leena Jussila, Minna Eronen, Kari Kotikoski and Severi Hirvonen with two dogs. At the World Trials Finland has got 8 places, so Heikki Teittinen and Juha Moisander would join us there
Me and Leena were the first offenders in the team, so it was kind of fun to be the captain in the middle of all "old hands".
We had a very nice cottage, but it could have n´been a bit nearer, it was 40 minutes drive to the trial
field.
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| Kari and Leena walking the course, first gate very close to the bushes |
The first impressions when we came to the trial field was; Jeez, we are in Africa on the savannah! The field was huge, with two small sand roads on each side of the field. There where bushes, high grass, small trees (like bontsais) and ferns. The outrun was 450m, the drives where normal for a big trial, the cross drive seemed very long. Then shed, pen and single.
Because I was the captain, I would run very late the second day among the "big boys"...oh help me God...
The ewes were big texel crosses, who were VERY touchy, if the dog came too close or upset them at all, they turned and wouldn´t move one step more. A lot of dogs crossed the outrun no matter if they sent left or right, a lot had trouble to lift and fetch them, a lot had troubles after rounding the post because the ewes didn´t want to go back in the high grass where it was hard for them to move.
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| Waiting for our turn at the Continentals in Denmark |
Rhy went out to the left, went too wide as I had expected, whistled him in but he didn´t take it. Saw him disappear between the bushes towards the sea and then I couldn´t see him for a long time, when I finally spotted him in the horizon....he had run all too far, about 900m when he should go 450m. He had seen the outletting pen and headed for that, I called him and he turned and came on to his on sheep. Lift and fetched were okey, drive was quite good hitting all the gates and I couldn´t believe when they suddenly where in the shedding ring with out any struggling. I guess he was so tired after all running so he was perfectly relaxed and not stressing the ewes.
I got a good shed and waited for the course director to call it meanwhile Rhy was holding them...and waited, the unshedded ewes had run away and where close to the exhausting pen...I looked around and couldn´t figure out what was wrong...finally I had to turn Rhy and get to other ewes back. My concentrating was gone, but I made a shit shed which they accepted and I could move on to the pen. The ewes laughed at me and walked over me...I wasn´t focused, the shedding still bothered me...time out at the pen.
When I came of the course, I asked people around me if they knew why it wasn´t accepted...nobody understood why. It had been a long day for them too...maybe they wanted the shedded ones to move, that it wasn´t enough that he held them even if they wanted to join the away running ones, maybe...
I was confused and disappointed at myself, for not being able to focus at the pen, by getting stuck on what happened in the shed. After all I was pleased with Rhy how he handled the difficult ewes, a Scottish judge (spectator) came to tell me that he liked my dog a lot and wondered how he was bred. Even if it doesn´t matter what other people think, it´s nice when people are nice, the best thing was that the real Rhy was back on track.
Wiet van Dongen won, Jo-Agnar and Tika second and Serge third with Gary. I was most impressed with Jo-Agnars and Serges international sheds, they danced with the ewes, wow.
My first (hope not last) real big trial was over, we didn´t perform our best, but it was okey
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| Lambs at Rönnäs gård |
_____________ to be continued ______________
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