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borough farm displays
July 1st sees the start of a new season of sheepdog and Falconry displays at Borough Farm with David Kennard, Jonathan Marshall & ‘Mist’, star of Channel Fives ‘Sheepdog Tales. Our displays will take place Wednesday evenings at 6pm, throughout July and August. We hope you’ll be able to join us for an evening of amazing sheepdogs and breath-taking falconry.
David Kennard will once again be providing the sheepdog display, joined by his team of four dogs. Jake and Fern are now old hands at displays, and will once again be competing in their weekly game of sheepdog rounders! For those who haven’t played before (and that is every one other than Jake and Fern) the game involves Jake fielding a distant group of five sheep, whilst Fern tries to drive her own few sheep through four sets of gates and into the pen before Jake completes his task. Last season finished with Jake won 10 times and Fern won 3. With a bit of extra encouragement perhaps Fern can do better this year!
Whilst Jake and Fern show off what well trained sheepdogs can do Eddie will be on hand to show what problems a forgetful sheepdog causes. Poor Eddie he always gets something wrong and it’s usually just when it matters most!
Jake and Fern’s talents aren’t limited to sheep, they also love to work the Borough Farm ducks. The ducks are a big hit with the children and with a series of obstacles to negotiate they provide Jake and Fern a different sort of a challenge.
The Borough Farm display couldn’t be complete without the star of the show Mist, and it’s Mist who rounds off the sheepdog display by showing us just what being a working sheepdog is all about. With a hundred or more sheep to round up in a distant field, Mist really encapsulates all the skill speed and stamina that is required of a working sheepdog.
With his array of Peregrine and Lanner falcons, Harris Hawks and Kestrels Jonathan’s falconry displays are simply amazing. Just as with David’s sheepdogs each of Jonathan’s birds is very individual and excel at different parts of the display.
Harris hawks are unlike other birds of prey in that they naturally live in small groups. They are at ease with human company which means that they are happy to fly to the hand of members of the audience
Pingu the Kestrel has a charm all of his own. He’s a tiny bird weighing only a few ounces but delights audiences with the ability to hover a few feet over head. Kestrels are a common site as they hunt along the grass roadside verges, but to see such a bird flying at such close quarters is just wonderful.
But the highlight of any of Jonathans displays is undoubtedly Erin the Lanner falcon. He’s breathtakingly fast, swooping low into the display ring at speeds of up to 100 mph. And with that speed comes an unerring precision in flight. In the wild Erin would use the cover of hedge rows and trees to catch his prey, in his display work he swoops in through the narrowest gaps in the audience to attack the luer that Jonathan swings for him.
In the amazing picture below Erin is flying between children, while trying to catch the luer. If you look carefully you can see his leg fully extended while flying full speed
These are a few of the highlights of the Borough Farm sheepdog and Falconry displays, David and Jonathan look forward to seeing you at one of the displays this summer
WEDNESDAY EVENINGS 6pm JULY & AUGUST