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Champion Taranaki dog triallist Bernard Murphy has been awarded the Queen's Service Medal for his services to sheep dog trials over more than 60 years.
The 81-year-old, who still puts in the occasional day's work on his sons' 100ha farm at Kohuratahi near Stratford, was relaxing with his wife Fay when he got the news.
Click here for full list of honours
"It was a surprise, certainly a nice one and I honestly didn't expect it," he said.
Mr Murphy - who went into his first dog trial competition aged 16 - is patron and a life member of the New Zealand Sheep Dog Trial Association.
He says he learned his craft "the hard way" on tough back country in Aotuhia, rural Stratford, in the early 1940s. He said his flock "could get quite cunning at times".
All thoughts of celebrating his latest prize have been put on hold as Mr Murphy is about to compete at the National Dog Trials in Blenheim today.
