FOR Simon Leaning, dogs are not only a man's best friend, they are also his top employees.
Marionvale Working Dogs was founded about 20 years ago after Mr Leaning purchased a kelpie pup to help round up a small flock of sheep on his 1.6 hectare Mount Helena property.
At the time he was working with troubled youth at the Federation of Western Australian Police and Community Youth Centres, using farm work and dogs as a congruent to break the offending cycle.
When the program folded, Mr Leaning started working for The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions - Parks and Wildlife Service, before branching out to pursue Marionvale full-time.
In his own words, finding a working dog started as "a necessity, which soon became a hobby, then a passion and finally a job."
"Initially we would line up our neighbours and friends in a big row and would try to round up the sheep that way," Mr Leaning said.
"Often the sheep wouldn't come in, which was a bit of a nightmare.
"We realised pretty quickly that we needed some extra help."
Mr Leaning snapped up a red kelpie, but promptly ruined its chances of becoming a working dog because he didn't know how to train it properly.
The dog became a pet and the search for a "really well bred working dog" continued.
It was then Mr Leaning found an exceptionally talented 12-week-old pup, Gypsy.
"One day Gypsy got through the fence and rounded up all the sheep and lambs.
"There were about 50 of them in the yard at the time and I thought, 'wow, I need to get some advice'.
"I was lucky enough to have some good people to help me with training when I first started."
Mr Leaning started attending schools and clinics, before Gypsy's skillset and discipline - as well as the encouragement of experts in the field - pushed him to enter sheep dog competitions and trials.
They were quick to make their mark and claimed a number of beginner level titles.
Soon enough the tables turned and instead of Mr Leaning asking others for help, people were asking him for advice on training working dogs.
So he started passing on his knowledge and Marionvale Working Dogs evolved with training sessions held at Landsdale Farm School, Darch, every Sunday.
"I started with city dogs, who would come and get a turn on the sheep," Mr Leaning said.
"There are kelpies and border collies living in the suburbs that were put on this earth to work sheep and never get an opportunity to do so.
"Many of my students, who have gone on to win competitions, don't even live on farms.
"They are from the city, but they have a passion.
"So I found training bridges that divide, while also creating an understanding of the agricultural industry and the importance of working dogs and the livestock industry."
But it is not just the city dogs Mr Leaning trains - he also takes on dogs for farmers.
"Farmers will ring me and say 'look I haven't got time, I'm out on my tractor, can you start my dog for me?'
"I will take the dog on, start it, get it working for them and give it back to them to get experience.
"Sometimes maybe they will give it back to me again, so I can finish it off for them."
Since Mr Leaning started competing in sheep dog trials in 1999, he has received a national championship, as well as numerous Statewide competition titles.
Competing at a national level, also put him in the international sheep dog training spotlight and has given him the opportunity to see the world.
Mr Leaning was travelling across the United States and Europe to run training clinics twice a year before COVID-19 hit.
And as could be imagined, he has noticed significant differences in handling sheep overseas compared to in Australia.
For example in Norway sheep are cut free to run through the mountains and do so in smaller family groups, as opposed to larger flocks.
"The sheep go to sleep on a small cabin verandah," Mr Leaning said.
"There are people walking their dogs through those areas all the time and because of that the sheep are used to them and become very tame.
"Farmers tend to have to track them down and round them up before winter comes, which is a big job in the mountains.
"GPS collars are used to track them from home, so the location of most are known."
Meanwhile, in the Netherlands farmers run sheep on the banks of dikes using the grassland areas.
Again, tourists on bicycles and dogs were constantly passing by, so the sheep became accustomed to the environment they are in.
Mr Leaning said a dog would need a "bit of horsepower" to move the sheep in those situations.
He said they would have to come in from the side, whereas Australian working dogs have to feel their way in.
British bred European sheep, which can also be found in Australia, are managed in a different way again.
"A lot of the European guys come to Australia to learn how we manage our sheep and then they implement those plans over there," Mr Leaning said.
"It is exciting to watch them put big flocks of sheep together, as opposed to having the smaller flocks, grazing for longer periods outside.
"Judging in Europe and America you watch and learn how the really good handlers handle their dogs and that always gives you some new tricks up your sleeve.
"I don't think you ever stop learning."
People living overseas aren't the only ones who have learned about Australian agriculture and sheep dogs through training with Marionvale.
The working dog classes have also taught Australians a thing or two about farming in their own backyard.
For Mr Leaning it has been all about bridging the city and country divide.
He even recalled a time when students visiting him at the Landsdale Farm School couldn't tell the difference between a sheep and an alpaca.
"I actually had to point them out," Mr Leaning said.
"I was walking along a paddock of alpacas at Lansdale and these city people were walking alongside me with their dogs.
"I said jokingly 'these are the sheep' and they looked up at the white alpacas and said 'holy smoke, they are bigger than we thought.'"
Mr Leaning said interestingly enough people from the city, who have had lessons with Marionvale, had gone on to invest in small properties, so they could continue running their dogs with sheep.
He said it was almost addictive.
The main dogs Marionvale works with are border collies and kelpies, which have been labelled the super dogs of the sheep dog world.
Six dogs make up the team and are spread across two properties, including Mount Helena and 40.5ha of land at Jennapullin.
When it comes to training the dogs, there are some differences in the two breeds, particularly when it comes to mindset.
"Kelpies tend to be a little more independent thinking, so when you ask them to do something they will say 'what for?'" Mr Leaning said.
"Whereas a border collie will often say 'OK what next?'
"You have to negotiate a bit more with a kelpie and explain it better.
"They will certainly comply very quickly."
Pups aren't able to start introductory lessons until they are at least 16-weeks-old and training until they are a minimum of eight months of age.
If they are any younger, they physically are not big enough.
Mr Leaning said it was important pups had a bit of leg under them to get ahead of and outrun the animal they were rounding up.
"Sheep are fast and short-legged puppies aren't fast enough (to catch them)," Mr Leaning said.
"Generally around 16 weeks is the first introduction, then after that we develop their mind and start the real training between eight and 12-months-old - sometimes even a little later.
"Not all dogs are ready at any particular time, some dogs take longer."
That is the same for how long dogs need to be trained for.
Mr Leaning has found some dogs are "as ready as they will ever be" at 12 months, with strength, confidence and experience to follow.
Whereas others are learning new skills beyond training and develop right through until they reach middle age.
So what makes a good working dog?
Confidence and train ability are important, as is the dog's temperament matching that of their owner.
Mr Leaning said it was as simple as some dogs not suiting certain personality types.
"If you are a feisty character you don't need a dog that is laidback, you need a dog that matches you or works with you," he said.
"You don't need a sensitive dog if you have a loud voice or if you lose the plot in the yards.
"It really comes down to what makes a good dog, that you like the dog and that it has the elements of a working dog that you need.
"Farmers need a dog that can put sheep together because some dogs split them apart, which isn't good.
"And the dog needs to have confidence when dealing with sheep because sheep and rams especially can be pretty scary.
"Cattle can be even more so."
Physical attributes are also important, including finding a fit and strong dog, who wants to run and has good endurance.
Mr Leaning recommended people look at the parents of a working sheep dog before they wanted to commit to before purchasing the pup, as it would give them a good indication of what they would be in for.
He said if someone wanted a dog to herd in mobs of sheep, then ideally they would look for dogs already working mobs of sheep.
"That's where all those qualities come from - the parents of the dog.
"Don't look at the puppies first, look at the parents and then look at the puppies."
It is also important people remember "every dog is different".
Some dogs are more suited as a specialist yard dog, others more so to cattle.
When Mr Leaning is looking for a new pup he has his sights set on an all-rounder, capable of doing all of the jobs.
They are called utility dogs because they have utility ability across the field.
"Utility dogs can work in the yards," Mr Leaning said.
"They can gather sheep in the paddocks and they can still be settled and calm by the end of the day.
"Highly strung dogs can be really difficult because they don't listen, usually they're too busy in their own mind to do so.
"So calm sheep dogs are always better."
Meanwhile, when it comes to the trainer, Mr Leaning said his natural ability and good feel for the livestock and dogs made a difference in his development.
He said understanding sheep was really important because "there was no point trying to train a dog if you didn't know what the sheep were going to do".
"It is like an apprenticeship, it takes a long time and a lot of patience," Mr Leaning said.
"I was lucky enough starting off and training for other people that I had the opportunity to train many, many hundreds of dogs in a really short amount of time.
"It was a really steep learning curve.
"With my background I had an ability to communicate really well and teach, which makes passing that knowledge on a really important part of what I do.
"Lots of people can do it, but not everyone can teach it."
There are two types of trials dogs are trained to compete in including field trials and utility trials.
Field trials use three sheep in a paddock, working three obstacles in a 10 metre corridor.
Each obstacle is worth a certain number of points and points are taken off according to any "mistakes" made, which include stepping outside or around the obstacle or breaking away.
Yard and utility trials are more simulating work and include backing in and loading trucks, among other tasks.
Anywhere between 15 and 20 sheep could be used in these trials to simulate real work.
Fresh sheep are used each time, otherwise the animals will learn the course and the dogs won't be challenged.
To train the dogs for these trials Mr Leaning starts with three or five sheep for flock work and then continues to double the numbers until they reach 100.
He said a dog could work 100 to 200 sheep comfortably because they knew where the outside of the sheep were.
Whereas if a trainer jumped from five sheep to 100, the dog would easily get lost in the middle of the flock.
"In cases where there are 600 to 800 sheep, two dogs can run provided they take up positions and aren't running together," Mr Leaning said.
"Some dogs are right-handed, some dogs are left-handed.
"Most of the farm dogs are right handed though because that is the window farmers yell at them from.
"If you have a lot of work to do, the big stock guys will carry a team of six to eight dogs on the ute and they will spell them - one off, one on, one off, one on.
"That is so the dogs don't get burnt out, otherwise they will overheat because they don't stop working.
"They would die rather than quit working, it is really important people take care of their dogs."
Herding cattle is different to herding sheep, but dogs still need to get the animal from point A to point B.
Mr Leaning said cattle were more inquisitive than sheep and would walk towards a dog, instead of away from it.
He said it was important a dog had confidence when dealing with cattle because of their size and temperament.
"Confident and calm dogs are much better with cows, not dogs that are barking and pushing," he said.
"So dogs that can hold their ground are good.
"Good sheepdogs and strong sheep dogs tend to work the cows well too."
What does Mr Leaning love most about his job?
It includes spending time with his dogs, meeting people and travelling.
"I get to go out to farms, run schools and clinics and meet lots of dogs and people.
"It is a really interesting job and it is always fantastic for the work you put in at home to appear on the trial ground.
"It's very different to chasing bad guys as a policeman."
