JT the German Shepherd dog won second prize in this morning’s ‘wave’ (heat) of the Dock Dogs competition at the Lismore Show.

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As the cheering crowd of school students watched on, JT’s companion, Mandy Arndell, threw a toy into the water of a large pool - and JT had no hesitation about jumping in after it to retrieve it.

Some dogs in the competition jumped further than others, and some wanted to get back into the water immediately.

Mandy, from Morayfield in Brisbane, said JT loves the water.

“Today, he jumped 19 feet, which is a personal best for him,” Mandy said. 

Mandy and JT at the Dock Dogs pool at the Lismore Show.

“This is only his second competition - his previous best was 14 feet – and that’s pretty good considering his large size.”

Mandy said JT is tracker dog in the wintertime, and she was looking for something fun for JT to do this summer.

“So I went online and found Dock Dogs on the internet and signed him up for the competition,” she said. 

“We practice in the lakes and dams at home.

“I wouldn’t do it if he didn’t love doing it.

“When he’s up on the side of the pool and he hears the crowd cheering, he dances around and gets into it.

For more Lismore Show information, visit: Lismore Show

Dock Dogs organiser Farmer said there are 22,000 dogs participating in Dock Dog events around the world.

“We have 320 participants in Australia,” he said. “It’s been around for 20 years.

“It started when two duck hunters got sick of shooting ducks and had an epiphany – and they got their Labradors jumping off the jetty.

“The sport grew from there. 

“Nest year, the World Dog Games is coming to Australia and the Dock Dogs competition is a part of it.”

Farmer Dave said any dog six months or older can take part in Dock Dogs and if anyone has a dog they think would like it, they can contact Dock Dogs via their website https://dockdogs.com

“It’s good for the dogs because there’s no impact on them and they can do it until they are quite old,” he said.

“Vets even encourage it because it keeps dogs active and moving.”

Farmer Dave said he because interested in Dock Dogs when the Station he was working on was hit by drought and he wanted to do something else.

“Now I work with young people on the Rough Track program,” he said. “It’s for young blokes who get in trouble with the criminal justice system and we give them dogs to train and work with.

“It keeps them engaged in education and not in lock-ups.

“The boys I have with me here today are on the tenth week of the program. They travel with me to events as part of the program.

“We found that crime rates dropped 80% in areas where the program was running.”

“When they’ve trained their dogs, we give the dogs to working farmers to work on the farms.”

Farmer Dave said there would also be a high jump competition for dogs in the main arena at the Lismore Show, and spectators could also watch the trained dogs scale a climbing wall. 

The Lismore Show runs for three days from Thursday October 17 until Saturday October 19.

Events will be happening each day, including poultry, cattle and equestrian events. 

There’s also comedy shows for children, the community stage with a big line up of performers each day, monster trucks, carnival rides and a Lego building competition. 

Entry is free for school children and adult tickets cost $12.50.

The schedule is available online at http://www.northcoastnational.com.au/2019-schedule/