Top dog with world-class breeding attracts bidders
The grandson of a world champion heading dog showed his style and class at the annual Lawrence dog sale, fetching the top price of $4400.
Leading Eastern Southland dog trialist Mike Joyce was on his way home from the Tux South Island Dog Trial Championships in Geraldine and stopped off at the Lawrence Gymkhana Club’s annual dog sale, run with the Waitahuna Collie Club.
He gave his promising young 18-month-old heading dog Pace a run in the club’s rodeo ring in front of a large crowd.
Pace is the grandson of Welsh sheepdog breeder Aled Owen’s Roy, a pairing that won the world championship title six years ago. After his international success, Owens brought Roy out to New Zealand, where he was mated with a couple of bitches in the North Island before going on to stud duties in the United States.
Joyce secured one of Roy’s pups from those matings and has continued to breed pups from that paternal line.
‘‘I don’t normally sell a lot of dogs but keep breeding bitches to Pace’s father and end up with too many dogs,’’ he said. ‘‘I get two pups each time from breeding with this dog so I don’t want to keep too many.’’
Apart from the top dog, PGG Wrightson’s auctioneer Barry Osborne said the overall quality of dogs offered at Lawrence was ‘‘just average’’ but there was a good crowd with 72 registered buyers, most from the lower South Island.
Pace attracted strong bidding and sold for $4400, the top price of the day. Fifteen of 18 heading dogs offered all sold for an average price of $1800 and only three dogs were passed in. Four huntaways offered sold for an average price of $2700, with the top price of $4200 paid for Brian Wilson’s Brace.
Three well-bred 12-week-old heading dog pups offered by a former national champion dog trialist, John Tweed, from Waitahuna, stole the show when they wriggled out of the rodeo enclosure and ran into the crowd during bidding.