STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Ceri, a petite, lean border collar locked her eyes on a border collie trying to pen five sheep about 60 yards away.

At 2, the wiry collie is in what’s referred to as the nursery division of the Championship Sheep Dog Trials. And she had much to learn from this veteran dog trying to herd feisty sheep that had spent all summer away from civilization in the mountains north of Sun Valley.

“Ceri is dialed in, while my Joe, who is 8 and retired from competing in Sheep Dog Trials, is perfectly willing to lay back and relax,” said Jennie McInnis, gesturing towards a larger border collie with more hair lying in the shade of a pickup truck.

McInnis and her two dogs are in Sun Valley with Jennie’s husband, who was biking up Bald Mountain Friday morning, for the Championship Sheep Dog Trials. The Sheep Dog Trials have been a part of the Trailing of the Sheep Festival almost since its inception 29 years ago.

And McInnis and Ceri are working towards points in hope that Ceri can compete in the Nationals next year.

McInnis was 40 when she fell in love with border collies.

“They’re very athletic and very versatile and so smart it’s incredible. In fact, they’re the smartest of all the dogs,” she said.

When, for instance, Ceri couldn’t dislodge a ball that got stuck in a shoe, the 2-year-old took the shoe to McGinnis so she could take it out. When remodel work opened up a hole between the kitchen on the first floor and basement, Ceri dropped the ball through the hole when she heard McGinnis and her husband down there, hoping they’d play ball.

“I started my border collies in lessons and got hooked,” said McGinnis, who lives in Seattle. “Then, there’s this magic that happens as they get better and better.”

You can see the instinct kick in when the dogs are paired with sheep, McGinnis said. But they do have to learn to push away the sheep in competition, even though they don’t want to.

“That takes training because they want to gather the sheep and bring them to you, but they figure it out. They tell themselves, ‘I know what we’re doing. I’m going to please you.’ To be able to control a group of wild animals with another animal—it’s amazing.”

Dogs that are in nursery don’t work in as big a space as the pasture the Championship Sheep Dog Trials are being held on along Buttercup Road. They also skip some of the required maneuvers veteran dogs are asked to do.

“I grew up with horses back when you could drive a few miles from Seattle and be in country, and this is a different way to be around livestock,” McGinnis said. “I trained horses and a lot of it is the same—the patience, the repetition, making it easy for them.

But there are differences, McGinnis said.

“When you’re sitting on a horse, you can feel their feelings, and they can feel your feelings. It’s a little harder with dogs.”

You have to learn about the sheep as soon as you begin training the dog, McGinnis added. “The sheep want to run back to where they’ve come from so you’ve got to put the dog in position to block where the sheep want to go.”

It takes about four years to get a dog to the upper level, McGinnis said.

“And each dog is different. Joe will run into the bushes to keep from pressuring the sheep.  Ceri runs so far out the sheep don’t know where she is. A lot of dogs move sheep with their eyes; others with their bodies. It’s important to be able to get them to stop when you want them to. You’ve got to keep them from getting too close. Otherwise, the sheep might break like in pool.”

McGinnis gazed around at the other herders watching the trials.

“I used to be afraid—I just imagined everybody was perfect. But now I realize they struggle. And you may have a great run one day with a quiet bunch of sheep. Then the next day you get one wild sheep that keeps running off, or maybe a whole group of wild sheep. You never know what’s going to happen when you stand at the post and send your dog out.”

McGinnis doesn’t regret for one moment the day she fell in love with border collies and began going down this path.

“It’s awesome to watch Ceri because her instinct has been bred into her family tree for generations. And we definitely have bonded over this.”

SEE THEM FOR YOURSELF:

The Championship Sheep Dog Trials continue from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today—Saturday, Oct. 11—on Buttercup Road north of Hailey. They will conclude on Sunday with the finals between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Spectators are encouraged to bring their own lawn chairs. Leashed dogs are permitted but coolers are not. Food and beverages are available for purchase, as well as Festival merchandise and the wares of 30-plus vendors.

Cost is $10 for bikers and pedestrians on Fridays and Saturday and $5 on Sunday. Vehicles with two-plus passengers cost $20 a day, or $45 for three days. Vehicles with single occupancy cost $10 per day or $25 for a three-day pass. Children under 5 are free.

Also today, the free SHEEP FOLKLIFE FAIR will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Roberta McKercher Park in Hailey. The fair offers craft vendors featuring soaps, sheep cheeses and handmade items made of wool, a Kids’ Fluff booth of children’s activities, sheep shearing demonstrations and sheep camp displays and more.

Music and dancing will be provided by the Boise Highlanders bagpipers, drummers and dancers, along with the Oinkari Basque Dancers and Peruvian Dancers and Musicians.