Chelsea Marriner and her blue merle border collie Shift delight Easter Show crowds. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Chelsea Marriner and her blue merle border collie Shift delight Easter Show crowds. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Chelsea Marriner is teaching one of her six border collies a variation of the "fetch" command before her birthday rolls around in a couple of months.
The 17-year-old's performances with her flock of collies have been one of the most popular displays at Auckland's Royal Easter Show, drawing thousands of spectators over the long weekend.
Some fans have come twice to see her bag of tricks.
But her favourite trick - with Quest - isn't quite in the show yet.
"I turn 18 in June. I can't wait till Quest can get me a beer out of the fridge. I've been practising," she joked. "They're quite handy dogs."
Chelsea's mum Alix comperes the act and tells the cute 6-year-old she should be ashamed - which brings a giggle from the crowd when she covers her eyes with her paws in mock regret.
Training her mob is something Chelsea wants to make into a career - her blue-eyed 10-month-old Shift would be perfect for movies, she reckons.
"I think if you have a strong bond with your dog they sort of know what you're thinking and what you want them to do anyway."
The Marriners travel throughout the country now to agricultural shows, but the tight canine routines came only after years of naughtiness, Mrs Marriner said.
"Chelsea taught one dog to do this sort of bounce and dig trick. Unfortunately he dug right down to the floor boards of a rented house.
"There's been shredded sheets. She saw Tux Wonder Dogs when she was three and that was it."
Show organisers said although the overcast weather kept some away, attendance numbers looked likely to equal last year's 68,000 over the four days.
