Global appeal a key selling point for both vendors and buyers
Looking back over recent years at working sheep dog sales, both live and online, it is clear to see how they have and continue to effectively cater for all-comers – nationally, internationally, even globally.
Live sales do, of course, hold greater appeal for prospective purchasers who much prefer to ‘see before they buy’ and good crowds have been welcomed from across the UK, supplemented by multiple online bidders watching livestream.
However, it is the power of the online selling system that truly demonstrates the flexibility of this format in being able to match dogs from handlers both in the UK and abroad with buyers right across the globe. Online videos submitted by vendors remain key to interested parties unable to attend live sales in person.
While multiple dogs continue to be sold and bought by customers from across England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, also into the Shetland Islands, Isle of Man and the Faroe Islands, both overseas vendors and buyers have successfully sold and bought dogs.
Two prime online examples are a sale of a dog from a German handler to a buyer in the US, another from a vendor in Finland to a South Korean buyer (see below). Purchasers from Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands have also figured among the expanding list of European purchasers.
From Germany to British Columbia ...
Last year alone, two Kevin Evans dogs, one an unbroken 15-week-old bitch, Kemi Joy, the other a fully broken dog, Storybrooke Guy, were claimed by the same German buyer, Lara Sander, who runs a small farm with horses, sheep and a few dogs in Bergheim.
Lara enthused: “I am excited to work with Guy and hope it will be such a pleasure and give happiness like it is with Kemi Joy, who I am really happy with - she works with style and focus, showing a good sheep sense. I want to start her on nursery trials this year.”
On Guy’s arrival and after settling in, Lara added: “He has worked for me from day one. For trialling, of course, we have to grow together for more precision, but the normal farm work is no problem. He has a great character, nice to have around, friendly with every person and all our other dogs.”
At 2024’s final sale, a part-broken two-year-old bitch, Astra Fern, from Shropshire’s Janet Beale, Much Wenlock, went to Shannon Joe, an online buyer from, Fort St James, British Columbia, the westernmost province of Canada. Fern duly arrived on her flight to Vancouver mid-December, with Shannon then facing a 10-hour wintery drive home.
She explained: “For the past year I have been working on building up our new little farm and raising/training dogs. Currently we have ducks for eggs and selling ducklings in Spring. I got into ducks years ago before we had our property, as something I could train the dogs on and also have in our backyard.
“This was how the farm got its name - my partner Jason jokingly called it "ducking dogs," so we've been Ducking Dog Farm ever since! We've been working on fencing and cleaning up the barn to add sheep this Spring and I’m also finishing multiple dog training certifications, as working with dogs is the passion that got this all started. We also work closely with the local rescue and take on foster animals regularly.
“My late father was an accomplished bagpipe player, so my sister Melissa and I spent most of our childhood summers travelling all over Western North America to watch the pipe band compete at Highland Games. It was there I saw my first sheepdog and agility trials as a child and knew I had to have Border Collies.
“In October of 2004, I imported my first-ever Border Collie, Maddie, a tri-colour bitch pup, from Northern Lights Border Collies in Scotland. One year later I imported two more from the same breeder and those three dogs were the start of everything. I bred one litter and kept the two male pups with whom we went on to get herding lessons with Lee Lumb, a Canadian National Champion.
“Lee was hours away for lessons though and encouraged me to get some stock any way I could, so that was when the ducks came along. I bred one litter out of one of those boys, and so Taf, my current 11-year-old grandson of the original Scottish imports, is the first dog I raised and trained start to finish as a stockdog on my own.”
Moving to Skipton online sale day, Shannon said: “Melissa and I follow many sheepdog trainers and breeders online. We had been watching auctions through posts by Kevin Evans and marvelling at the dogs he was listing. At the same time, we knew that Jane Beale was unwell and facing the heartbreaking job of selling off her dogs. I had been following Janet for many years, as Maddie was a granddaughter of Dolwen Chips, who Janet owned at the time.
“After watching one auction and seeing a couple of Janet's dogs not meet their reserve, Melissa and I were expressing regret that we hadn't looked into bidding and decided that if we had another chance we would go in on a dog or two together. I had sent an email a couple days before the start of the auction to get verified as a bidder and I think it was the day of the sale that I got the email saying I could bid.
“We were up early to watch the entire auction with a handful of dogs saved, but also having to be cognizant of the cost of transportation and the exchange rate. I think there was only a minute or so left on Astra Fern and her reserve still hadn't been met. It was a very last minute decision knowing other dogs with similar levels of training had sold that I threw in the winning bid.
“Both Melissa and I were shocked and ecstatic that it worked out the way it did. Though if I knew then what I know now about transportation, we might have bid on a couple more! At any rate, it felt like a special connection 20 years later to be bringing in another tri-coloured UK bitch.
“Neither Melissa or I have trialled, but now with a little more time and looking at some sheep of our own it is a dream to get into competing and keep learning for years to come.”
... to Norway, South Korea, Japan and Virginia
Online buyers were also in action at live field sales last year. Dewi Jenkins sale of a 20-month-old black and white bitch, Aran Mia, to Norway’s Jon Arne Sand has rekindled the septuagenarian’s interest in trialling. Jon was also buying at Skipton for the second time - his first online purchase in 2021 was a £12800 Kevin Evans dog.
Himself an accomplished trialist, winning eight Nationals and one Continental, also competing for Norway in the 2005 ISDS World Sheepdog Trials, Jon says he is still trialling, but on a minor scale. He is planning to test Mia on the trials field and hopefully have a litter with the current ISDS World Champion, fellow Norwegian Petter Landfald’s Max.
Aled Owen made an online sale of his Nantmel Don to Dutchman Pim Visscher, who with wife Jolyn run runs Visscher Border Collies near Utrecht. The couple provide dog and obedience training, also running sheep herding masterclasses and workshops.
It was Pim’s first Skipton-bought dog and he commented: “I am really happy to be able to buy such a talented dog of great breeding. My plans are to get him ready for trials and see how far we can go together. I really hope we can make a good team.”
Interestingly, Don is a son of Aled’s 2022 Welsh National and Reserve Supreme Champion, Llangwm Bud, since sold privately to South Korean handler Jaehoon Lee, from Namhae-gun in South Gyeongsang-do Province, who became the first-ever buyer from his country to acquire a dog sold through Skipton at an online sale in 2022, paying £6900 for a 15-month-old dog, Wyverne Max, offered for sale by Southern Finland’s Ian Dodd, Mustajoentie..
In March, 2023, James Jones, Rhayadar, consigned a 22-month-old bitch, Brondrefawr Misty, a daughter of Kevin Evans’ dual European Nursery and Royal Welsh Champion, Tanhill Glen, who had been mated prior to the sale to Dewi Jenkins’ 2022 Supreme Champion, Jock.
Misty was closely followed online before falling to Japanese bidder, sheep farmer Shinjro Kigawa, of Deergrove Sheepdogs in Shizouka, a city on the south coast with views of Mount Fuji.
While sheep are not prevalent in Japan, he runs a 70-strong mixed hybrid sheep flock and
Mr Kigawa, who competed in the 2017 World Sheepdog Trials, commented: “I am grateful for the opportunity to raise the next generation of dogs.”
American buyers have also shown keen interest. In June, 2023, another Evans dog, Kemi Nan, sold online to Karen Thompson, New Kent County, Virginia. Dr Thompson, a retired theologian, has been working, training and breeding Border Collies for some 40 years.
She was herself a well-known triallist in the 1970s and 1980s, serving on the board of directors of the North American Sheepdogs, later The American International Sheepdog Society, now the American Border Collie Association. “I’ve been importing steadily from Kevin Evans since 2012 and he’s never failed,” she commented.
Seeing is believing
Other potential buyers have travelled from afar, attending live sales in person to see dogs of interest at work on the trials field. One of several was Scottish Highlands’ hill farmer Raymond Ross, who last year set off at midnight from his home in Rogart, Sutherland, to make the seven hour trip south on what was his first visit to Skipton, with a successful 4000gns acquisition of a two-year-old dog from Red Rose sheep farmer Michael Woods, Lathom.
He travelled down purposely in the hope of purchasing Roy after first seeing him at work on video and being impressed with his ‘strength and style.’ Mission successfully accomplished, Roy accompanied Raymond on the long drive back north and went to work on a 700-strong flock of Scottish Cheviots.
While well-bred dogs from leading handlers, a good number related to National, International and Supreme Champions, continue to sell at a premium at Skipton, there remains choice aplenty for all tastes and pockets, with ready access to well-proven broken dogs, some with trials experience and successes, others to bring on for either work or trial, plus others to break.