Written by
Australian Dog Lover
10:11:00
-
0
Comments
And away they go! The 2020 Cobber Challenge starts today, with 12 dogs from around the country competing to win the title of Australia's hardest working dog.
Over three weeks the dogs will wear GPS collars tracking how fast, how far and how long they work.
The fifth annual Cobber Challenge will see past competitors return as 'All Stars', going head to head with fresh-faced 'Contenders' in each state.
"The Cobber Challenge is about celebrating the unsung heroes of Australian farms - working dogs," said Kellie Savage, Cobber's Marketing Manager.
"This year's a bit different with the new All Stars vs Contenders format, so we're all excited to see how it will play out."
So, what are our fierce competitors getting up to on Day 1?
Harrison Park and his three-year-old Kelpie Elsie from Western Australia will be keeping busy on day one marking stock.
Harrison reckons Elsie has got the dedication to go the distance across the 3-week challenge.
 |
| Queensland Heidi Mulder with her dog Socks |
Meanwhile, on the other side of the country in Queensland, All Star competitor Heidi Mulder and her Border Collie Socks will be mustering cattle for pregnancy testing.
"We've got a lot of mustering to do throughout the next few weeks, so Socks has quite a few kilometres to travel over the three weeks of the competition," Heidi said.
"We'll give it our best shot and hopefully we'll come out on top."
 |
| Victoria Contender, Kelpie Cub (lead photo) |
She and her two-year-old Kelpie Cub will be moving stock between properties.
"There's about 11 kilometres between the properties, so Cub will definitely get some distance up on day 1," Skyla said.
"There'll also be some preg testing and lamb marking, so we've got a bit on."
Skyla reckons Cub's athleticism and stamina will ensure they clock a bit of distance and climb the leader board.
"Cub loves to run. She's always ready, no matter what time of day it is, or what you're doing, she never stops."
"Day one will be a good indicator of how hard these dogs work," Kellie said.
"But as we've seen in previous years, the winner isn't decided until the very end, so we're excited to track each dog's performance over the next three weeks."
Picking a winner isn't easy, but Peta Bauer, the owner of last year's winner Jed, is tipping All Star team Damien and Larry from Victoria to take out this year's title.
"He's done it before so he knows what it takes," she said.
 |
| Western Australia's Rebecca Martin dog Bruce - All Star team |
Peta's advice to this year's competitors is to make sure the dogs get plenty of fuel throughout the challenge.
"Make sure they have plenty of access to water while working and feed them lots of food at night to keep their energy up," she said.
First Week of Competition Update:
Since last Monday (17 August), the 12 dogs competing in the 2020 Cobber Challenge have been wearing a GPS collar to record how far, fast and long they work each day.
Their owners upload data from the collars each day. Points are awarded based on how hard they work and published each weekday morning on www.cobberchallenge.com.au
NSW dog Buddy is leading the pack, having clocked the highest distance and duration of work.
The Kelpie-cross covered an impressive 260km over nearly 32 hours in the first week, to record an average speed of 8.16km/h during the time he was working.
Owner Glenda Rogan expected Buddy to be a strong competitor thanks to his toughness and work ethic.
In the past week, Glenda and Buddy have spent much of that time mustering cows and calves on the family’s “Cinnabar” property in northern NSW. They’ve had to muster the cattle further than they usually would, after the yards closer to the breeder paddocks were burnt down last year.
She says as well as a great worker, two-year-old Buddy is a “great mate”. It is Glenda’s second time competing in the Cobber Challenge, having been runner up in 2018 with another of her dogs, Jess.
“After seeing Jess out there, I knew the dogs cover big distances and work hard, but Buddy’s performance has still surprised me,” she said.
“I know we’ve still got a long way to go before the end of the competition.”
For the first time, this year’s Cobber Challenge is seeing past competitors like Glenda return as ‘All Stars’, going head to head with fresh-faced ‘Contenders’.
In second place at the end of the first week is new Contender Pip Flower and her dog Hurricane, from Tasmania. The young Border Collie recorded 235.5km over a total time of 25.5 hours in the first week, to achieve an average speed of 9.2km/h.
In third place is West Australian dog Elsie, who has also recorded over 200km at an impressive 12.13km/h average speed.
Cobber Working Dog food provides the fuel for these dogs, as it does for thousands of working dogs every day around the country.
In the past week, Glenda and Buddy have spent much of that time mustering cows and calves on the family’s “Cinnabar” property in northern NSW. They’ve had to muster the cattle further than they usually would, after the yards closer to the breeder paddocks were burnt down last year.
She says as well as a great worker, two-year-old Buddy is a “great mate”. It is Glenda’s second time competing in the Cobber Challenge, having been runner up in 2018 with another of her dogs, Jess.
“After seeing Jess out there, I knew the dogs cover big distances and work hard, but Buddy’s performance has still surprised me,” she said.
“I know we’ve still got a long way to go before the end of the competition.”
For the first time, this year’s Cobber Challenge is seeing past competitors like Glenda return as ‘All Stars’, going head to head with fresh-faced ‘Contenders’.
In second place at the end of the first week is new Contender Pip Flower and her dog Hurricane, from Tasmania. The young Border Collie recorded 235.5km over a total time of 25.5 hours in the first week, to achieve an average speed of 9.2km/h.
In third place is West Australian dog Elsie, who has also recorded over 200km at an impressive 12.13km/h average speed.
Cobber Working Dog food provides the fuel for these dogs, as it does for thousands of working dogs every day around the country.
Competitors for the 2020 Cobber Challenge: All Stars Vs Contenders
 |
| Jack Febey and his dog Monty |
· Glenda Rogan and Buddy, Copmanhurst NSW
· Heidi Mulder and Socks, Prairie QLD
· Matt Scharkie and Mitch, Terowie SA*
· Sam McCarthy and Max, Jamestown SA*
· Damien Clifford and Larry, Woorndoo VIC
· Jack Febey and Monty, Epping Forest T AS
· Bee Martin and Bruce, Moora WA
Contenders
· Jacinta Bradley and Digger, Tumbarumba NSW
· Oliver Armstrong and Roudy, St George QLD
· Skyla Milgate and Cub, Broadwater VIC
· Pip Flower and Hurricane, Greater Launceston, TAS
· Harrison Scott Park and Elsie, Badgingarra WA
*Unfortunately, none of the South Australian Contender nominations were eligible for the Cobber Challenge this year. For this reason, both of the South Australian competitors are All Stars.
MEDIA RELEASE, 17th August 2020 (last updated 25th August 2020)
No comments
Post a Comment