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Photography by Reed Hutchinson
UCLA Photographic Services
Albion Urdank and one of his sheephearding dogs, Maeve
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Prof, pups to enter contest
BY meg sullivan
UCLA Today
Played out before an enthusiastic crowd of spectators, the scene
on a recent afternoon at UCLA’s Intramural Field certainly
felt like a clash between longtime rivals. But this was no ordinary
sporting event: The contenders had four legs, and one team wore
wool coats.
Welcome to the epic saga of sheepdogs versus sheep, courtesy of
Albion Urdank. For the UCLA history professor, the furry friends
constitute not just a personal passion but also a legitimate academic
pursuit.
This spring Urdank offered a Fiat Lux course on the James Browns
of the canine set, renowned for their hard work. In addition to
teaching “Sheepdogs and Shepherding in History: The British
Border Collie, Past and Present,” Urdank is writing a book
on pastoral society along the Scottish/English border.
“Depending on my stamina, I may narrow this to the three
valleys of the Scottish border, the Ettrick, the Jarrow and the
Tweed,” he said.
But Urdank’s interest is not purely academic. He is a member
of the 30-person American team that will compete at the July 7-10
World Sheepdog Trials in Tullamore, Ireland. This is the first time
Americans have participated in the event that’s considered
the Olympics of the 132-year-old sport. Until now, regulations calling
for a six-month quarantine of dogs brought into the U.K. and Ireland
effectively kept foreigners out of the competition.
Thanks to a monthly regimen of sheepdog trials throughout the West,
Urdank certainly seems prepared.
“You feel a connection with nature and history,” he
said of the sport that’s taken over his life. “Plus,
you form a connection with this highly intelligent, empathic being.”
Urdank was just looking for companionship when he allowed a neighbor’s
puppy to adopt him following a dispiriting divorce in 1990. He had
no ambitions for Bart until the puppy caught the eye of a trainer
at a local dog park. Urdank thought Bart was playing with the other
dogs. In fact, the border collie was actually herding them.
The rest is sheepdog history.
Bart died in Urdank’s arms last January of complications
associated with old age. Urdank acquired more sheepdogs and moved
to a five-acre ranch 80 miles east of Los Angeles in a rural community
called Nuevo. In addition to numerous dogs, he keeps 40 sheep; their
only purpose is to drill his border collies.
Urdank says sheepdogs have been bred to have distinctive characteristics,
such as the ability to sneak up undetected on sheep and to carry
out tasks without supervision. Trialing is designed to showcase
these characteristics.
For Urdank’s final Fiat Lux class, he trucked in seven sheep
for a demonstration. With nothing more than a whistle and a Bo Peep-style
crook, he paced his three best dogs through two hours of “runs,
sends, lifts, fetches, drives” and other feats of the sport.
“You hear ‘shepherd,’ and it seems like a simple
concept,” said Becky Nelson, who took the Fiat Lux course.
“But there’s more to it than you think.”
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