Young people flock to shepherd school

Shepherding is one of the oldest occupations on Earth.

But the reality of the modernday shepherd is far removed from the image of a robed figure at rest in a flower-filled meadow.

From fencing and shearing to training that most invaluable of four-legged apprentices, the sheep dog, there is no lying down on the job for the 21st-century shepherd.

At Otiwhiti Station Landbased Training School near Hunterville, teens aged 16-18 years train in the skills of this ancient vocation.

Husband and wife Charlie and Jo Duncan partnered with a tertiary education provider to create the school 13 years ago. They were motivated by a lack of quality candidates for this essential work and have since seen around 140 students graduate.

The Duncans’ approach was, ‘‘Don’t moan about it, just get on and try to fix it’’.

While the school takes a hands-on approach to learning, there is a classroom component too. The Duncans teach life skills and how to live ‘‘together in a community’’.

The school, one of just a handful of its kind in New Zealand, started out with nine students but now takes 16 a year. ‘‘We basically say, ‘Here’s 16 positions available and we’ll take the 16 best people’.’’

For the Duncans, being able to give back to their community makes all the hard work worthwhile.

Country Calendar, TVNZ 1, Sundays