Sheepdog Demonstrations

Overview

When you live in Scotland you tend to get a bit bored about seeing sheep and sheepdogs, but we have to admit that the sheepdog demonstrations at Leault Farm were something that we thoroughly enjoyed.

The sheepdog demonstration lasts for ~45 minutes and during this time you get to meet the dogs, learn about their training and gain an understanding about the commands used to control them. Neil Ross, the shepherd, uses a team of ~10 sheepdogs and each dog has its own set of whistle commands so that they can be individually directed. It is quite a mind-boggling bit of multi-tasking.

If you want to get a bit more hands-on, you can take a shot at hand shearing a sheep the old-fashioned way with a large pair of shears. Depending on the season, you can also have some fun with hand-feeding the new lambs from baby bottles. This is an entertaining spectacle as the lambs nudge and jostle with the sheepdog pups to get their share of the milk.

We were particularly lucky with the timing of our visit in early June because we were there in time to see the sheepdog pups having their first outing with Mum & Dad on the job. The pups are so cute that you will find it hard to resist taking them home and it is great fun to watch the interaction between the spring lambs and the pups.

For more details, email [email protected]