Kelpie Muster smashes through $4million mark

Auction regular and renowned trainer Paul Macphail took home the triple crown, selling the $4million dog, top-priced pup and top-priced dog at the 2024 Australian Premier Working Dog Auction.

In its 28th year, the June Long Weekend auction, hit the $4million mark just three years after hitting $3million.

Casterton Kelpie Association president Karen Stephens said it was mind blowing to think the past four auctions had yielded one million f=dollars in sales given it took 25 years to hit the $3million mark.

“It’s a testament to the increasing realisation of the value of the working dog, particularly our beloved Australian Kelpie, and to the recognition our Australian Premier Working Dog Auction has provided for the Kelpie breed,” Mrs Stephens said.

Lot 11, Beloka Jock II secured $15,000 and the $4million record, whilst stand-out female Beloka Laila ticked all the boxes and sparked a bidding frenzy in person and online through AuctionsPlus, receiving the highest-price at $20,000.

Confident and strong on stock, Beloka Bootz showed plenty of push and bark throughout the auction demonstrations netting a $9000 final call at Island Park, joining sibling Jock on farm with Australian Boxing champion Mitch Leek for his father John at their Simmental Stud.

The 28th Casterton Kelpie Muster kicked off on June 6 with the official opening of the Rotary Club of Casterton’s Kelpie Art Show and the 2024 Acquisitive Art Prize. The event was judged by Hamilton Gallery director Joshua White a proud Kelpie owner himself.

Gayle Newcombe’s piece ‘Away to Me’ captivated White and was awarded the top prize for its quintessential representation of Casterton’s famous working dog.

“It was a great representation of a Kelpie at work,” Mr White said.

Sandford artist Collin Tenney was honoured with the Gorman Real Estate Portraiture Prize for his self-portrait, described as evoking elements of Cezanne, Matisse, and Van Gogh.

Casterton artist Rita McInerney also had a notable weekend, receiving high commendations for her entries in the portraiture and Australiana sections and she was also awarded the Glad Laslett Patrons Award for her watercolour painting ‘Autumn Leaves’ at the Clarice Beckett Art Show on Friday night.

The annual Artists of the Valley and Gorman’s Gallery event paid special tribute to Casterton-born artist Clarice Beckett.

Julie Kent of Sandford was commended for her attention to Beckett’s palette with her piece ‘Sign of the Waves’, which won the Artist’s Rendition of Clarice Beckett’s Style award.

The major Clarice Beckett Art Prize was presented to regular exhibitor Meagan Lonsdale for her work ‘Beck and Call’ which interpreted a Kelpie at work, aligning perfectly with the weekend’s theme.

Saturday’s muster, the 28th Eukanuba Australian Kelpie Muster, drew thousands of visitors from across Australia and abroad as it celebrated and showcased the remarkable talents of the Australian Kelpie.

The much-anticipated Kelpie Triathlon was led, as always, by the Kelpie Dash and Georgie Price and Winx led the charge to take the first trophy of the day, racing 50metres down Henty Street in a time of 4.95 seconds, narrowly edging out second-placed Jet by .02 seconds.

Kathleen Smith and Walker – all the way from Western Australia – took the honours in the high jump, reaching 2.67 metres, while Niamh Haines broke a record in The Geelong College Junior Competitor High Jump with a 2.21metre final hurdle with Rouge, securing first place in the Junior Competitor category overall.

At the end of the day, a speedy corgi may have stolen the limelight with a mischievous dash up the Hill Climb but the ribbons and cash prize went to Annette Ditchburn, with Chivas finishing three seconds ahead of last year in 22.56 seconds, narrowly beating Molly in second place by 0.1 seconds.

Damon Peacock stood three points clear of local competitors in the Stockman’s Challenge, excelling in the horse, dog, and final overall selections and displayed remarkable endurance and strength in this challenging event.

“Our town – our volunteers, our traders, and our sponsors – just up the ante every year, and the response from across Australia keeps growing,” Mrs Stephens said, thrilled the event attracted visitors from North Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania.

“I don’t think there’s a single, active organisation in town that doesn’t play some role in the weekend.

“The Muster puts around $1.7 million into our community over the weekend. We know that people now have Casterton on their bucket list as a place to visit, which is really exciting for us.

“We are already planning next year’s event and aim to make it even bigger and better. The support and passion from everyone involved drive us to continue celebrating the incredible Australian Kelpie.”