By Lacey Olsen
McCoy Hurst has had registered border collie cow dogs for nearly 3.5 years and has been going to trials for two years. He participates in trials in the Mountain States Stockdog Association, which holds trials in the US and Canada with the finals in Afton, Wyo. every July.
In the trials, competitors use their dogs to move the cows through different obstacles. The trails are hosted in arenas and out in the fields. Hurst trains all of his own dogs and he also trains dogs for the public. Hurst not only uses his dogs for trialing: he uses them in his everyday life, such as moving cows and on the farm.
The dog that he has been using the most is named CR Chase. This year at the finals, Hurst competed in the intermediate class. He won Reserve Champion in the intermediate class, competing against 29 other dogs. Because he won Reserve Champion, he will now compete in the open class, which is for the top handlers. Hurst also recently won the Blue Sage Classic in the intermediate class, which is hosted in Castle Dale in March.
Mike Johansen from Huntington also competes with this association. He ended up taking third with MISR Cooper and fifth with 7J Sis in the nursery class. The nursery class is for dogs that are under the age of three. He also ended up sixth with 7J Sis in the intermediate class. Furthermore, Johansen won Reserve Dog of the Year with his dog 7J Cash. That title is won by winning the most points throughout the year, which runs from July 1 to June 30.