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7th Annual Cat Round-Up In Meekatharra
Western Australia - It started out as a wager some years ago, that a certain Australian Shepherd dog named "digger" could herd house cats the way his breed are known for herding sheep. So several men who live near the city of Meekatharra in Western Australia started what is becoming an increasingly popular sport: cat herding.Meekatharra was once known for its open pit gold mine, long since abandoned, but while the pit might seem a good place for the competition, it is held on a large open field instead. The objective is for five ordinary cats to be set together in a group, then the dog must herd the cats to a cage, some 10 meters away. No mean feat, even for a highly skilled herding dog. The cats are just strays, with no previous experience in being herded. And while the task would seem impossible for anyone to perform, the rare dog has actually succeeded in getting them all in the cage. Par performance is usually only a single cat being caged. Killing or seriously injuring a cat costs a dog points. Truckloads of caged cats are now imported for the event, a given cat only being used once before being turned loose. Beginning with the 4th Cat Round-Up, extra spice was added to the event by awarding the owners of the top dogs with illegal firearms and ammunition in addition to a sizeable purse--something guaranteed to attract the harshest scrutiny from the Australian government. But no one in the closed fraternity has yet been arrested. And because the animal welfare movement in Australia if far less powerful than its English or American cousins, prospects are small that enforcement will happen, at least for the next few years. But what started out as a local event of a few friends eight years ago has grown as an underground, and unlawful, sport much like cock fighting in the US. It is the ultimate contest for Shepherd owners, and some have come from as far away as Scotland to participate. Last year's event drew a crowd of several hundred, yet was either not known to the local authorities or was ignored. The banning of fox hunting in Britain has assured this years' event to be a sell-out. Posted by: Anonymoose 2005-03-05 |
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