Petra at the Bluegrass Classic ( Lexington, Kentucky) last May.
Submitted photo
Beth Murray, of Lynchburg, is an avid border collie handler and has qualified for the United States Border Collie Handlers Association (USBCHA) National Sheepdog Finals at the Belle Grove Plantation in Middletown, Virginia to be held Monday, Sept. 30 through Sunday, Oct. 6.
She has been competing in sheepdog trials for about eight years and works with her dogs Petra and Audrey.
Murray said it is gratifying and challenging to work in a sport involving people, dogs and sheep.
“You have three different species trying to accomplish a goal of doing the course correctly, and it’s amazing how the dogs partner with you and how you can train them and teach them to accomplish it,” she said. “Another amazing thing is I don’t know of any other competition where you can be a backyard person and compete with people at the very highest level of the sport.”
So far this year, Petra’s accomplishments have included wins or placings in eight trials.
“It’s very thrilling to have your dog listen to you, partner with you, and want to do it, but also border collies have so much instinct to do it,” Murray said. “You can take a four-month-old border collie puppy that’s never been on sheep, and they’ll often go around the sheep and bring you sheep without even knowing anything because it’s bred into them.
Murray is retired, but she is a veterinarian by training.
Before the national finals, Murray will be competing at the Meeker Classic Sheepdog trials from Sept. 4 to Sept. 8.
“I’m more looking forward to Meeker, which is in Colorado, in about a month,” she said. “It’s really exciting to work sheep that live out wild, and your dog has to be pretty darn good to be able to handle those kind of sheep and the pressure the sheep put on them and be able to get around the course. The finals are just kind of like icing on the cake.”
The USBCHA National Sheepdog Finals take the top 150 teams in the country, and Murray and Petra have been sponsored by Jennifer Looper, also of Ohio.
“How you do depends a little bit on the group of sheep you have – sheep work much better in the morning than they do in the heat of the day,” Murray said. “You can be a good handler and have a great dog and not do well just because of poor luck like if it suddenly starts raining and your dog can’t hear the whistle that’s too bad, so there is a lot that has to coincide to be successful on a given day.”
Murray will be doing a sheepdog demonstration during the Highland County Farm Tour on Saturday, Sept. 14.
“Everybody should see it and see for themselves how amazing it is,” she said.
Reach John Hackley at 937-402-2571.
