Proof you can teach old dogs new tricks

Mr Bradford, a sheep farmer all his life who stepped down last year after 15 years as chairman of West Australian Meat Marketing Co-operative (WAMMCO), and Buc his kelpie dog, one of six on the farm, completed a working dog training course at Muresk Institute near Northam last week.

Both he and Buc learned new tricks in low-stress stock handling from acclaimed dog trainer Ben Page who is known across Australia as the working dog whisperer.

They attended only the second three-day intermediate course Mr Page has conducted in WA after Mr Bradford completed one of the fundamentals courses, also at Muresk, "by accident" in April.

"I had booked our farm manager David Grout in to do the course but he was ill and couldn't do it so I went along in his place," said Mr Bradford, who runs a 5000 head UltraWhite ewe flock sheep enterprise with his wife and Mr Grout while his son, also Dawson, runs the farm's cropping enterprise.

The sheep industry leader and breeder created the UltraWhite by incorporating one quarter Poll Dorset and three quarters White Dorper in his rams, infusing the best traits of both including muscling, early-maturity, taste and eatability, size, bare-breech and wool shedding in the ultimate easy-care sheep-meat breed.

Mr Bradford was so impressed with the fundamentals course, which can be used an as an accredited module towards a Certificate III in Agriculture, that he signed on immediately for the intermediate course.

This course involves more of Mr Page's trademarked theory lessons but with more focus on practical work moving a bigger flock of sheep around at the Muresk Institute shearing shed and yards, filmed above by a drone carrying a miniature camera.

"I've spent most of my life working sheep with dogs but I've only just learned how to do it properly," Mr Dawson said.

"I've learned more about working stock with dogs in the past couple of days on this course, and on the previous one, than I have in a lifetime of farming," he said.

"It seems that you can teach an old dog new tricks after all."

Mr Bradford said the "trick" was understanding how a dog saw things.

"The dog can do it, all he needs is to be told what to do.

"To do that effectively you have to understand the psychology of the dog - why he does certain things and why he doesn't, the dog pack hierarchy."

Mr Bradford's years of farming and his involvement with WAMMCO had taught him that profitable sheep-meat farming required good prices for sheep and a low-cost farm operation.

"There's very little skill left in the farming labour market these days and the cost of what skill there is left, is expensive.

"A good dog can save on labour costs and make stock work easier and more enjoyable," Mr Bradford said.

"We've got a spread out farm - 12,500 acres (5058 hectares) spread out over 25 kilometres - so you either need good dogs or a number of people to move stock, particularly when you are travelling on back roads.

"With good dogs you are always in control of the flock."

Mr Bradford was one of seven farmers to complete the intermediate course.

p For information on courses with the working dog whisper or see www.workingdogcentre.com.