Residents of the Ave Maria nursing home in Tooreen, Ballyhaunis, Co. Mayo, revelled in a sheepdog demonstration at the facility recently.
The village is known for its famous hurling club, founded in 1957, which won its first county senior title in 1966, and its ballroom of romance, founded by the late Monsignor James Horan.
Local nursing home owner Anne Feeney said that approximately 40 residents – some of them retired farmers – visitors and staff were enthralled to witness the highly skilled Birch at work, under the guidance of Paul Walker of The Newport Shepherds.
“I just happened to see their van and looked them up online. I rang Paul to find out more as I thought it would be something our residents would be interested in. Paul came out to see me, and brought one of their sheepdogs,” Anne said.
“We agreed that a sheepdog demonstration would work well as we have a big sitting room with big windows and a big green area.
“I asked the residents if they would be interested in a sheepdog demonstration and they were delighted with the idea. Some of them had watched the TV series ‘One Man and his Dog’.”
For the event, Paul brought along Birch, a seven-year-old Border Collie with lots of experience in mountain gathering.
“He has a great temperament with people. He is our main dog for visiting schools and nursing homes,” Paul said.
“We also brought along Ruby, a five-month-old pup we use to show how breeding makes them work from a very early age.
“The breed was developed by hill farmers on the border of Scotland and England – that’s the origin of their name,” said Paul, who had the assistance of his partner Leah Henry in organising and running the event.
“We have a sheep trailer with a portable round pen that we set up outside the nursing home or in any area beside schools.
“We brought three breeds of mountain sheep to show how well adapted they are to our environment and also explained basic information about sheep, ruminants and their importance in biodiversity,” he said.
“At Anne’s nursing home, we started by talking about the breed of sheepdog and its origin. We paid a small tribute to the farmers that bred them back in a time when they where essential for feeding their families.
“We also explained how we train them, their commands either vocal or whistle, and showed Birch working inside the pen and then outside in the field. We then proceeded to talk about the sheep,” Paul said.
“After, we took Birch inside the nursing home and offered if any of the residents were interested in asking further questions or petting the dog.
“We were honoured to have the presence of George Flanagan at 93 years of age, a very well-known breeder and trainer of border collies.
“George and his wife were delighted to be able to come to the demonstration and he asked me a few questions about the dogs and sheep,” he said.
“The event was a very rewarding experience with lots of chatting and smiling. The retired farmers felt so connected to the dog and everyone loved the demonstration,” he added.
Anne was delighted with the response from residents, neighbouring farmers and locals to the sheepdog demonstration, which was followed by refreshments, and hopes to host another one in August.