Patrick Shannahan will judge the 2021 Meeker Classic. Originally set to serve as the Official Judge in 2020 (that was cancelled due to the pandemic) we are thrilled to announce that Patrick will join us in September to judge this year. Hailing from Caldwell, Idaho, Patrick Shannahan is recognized by his peers as a talented trainer, handler and widely loved as a clinician. Patrick is also respected as a judge. Patrick has competed at Meeker, but this will be his first time judging the Meeker Classic. Patrick has judged nearly every major trial in the United States and Canada, including the Canadian National Finals, the USBCHA Finals, and Soldier Hollow.
Patrick Shannahan at the pen – photo courtesy of Patrick Shannahan
Patrick has been herding with sheepdogs for over 26 years, both competitively and on his farm. He is recognized as one of North American’s leading handlers, judges and trainers. Patrick is well known to USBCHA (United States Border Collie Handler’s Association) members and Board Members as a former board member himself.
photo courtesy of Patrick Shannahan
Patrick got his start in the livestock industry without the help of dogs. He soon learned that a dog could do the work of several men and women. His dogs have now become a full-time occupation. Patrick has experienced great success in the competitive world. He is a two-time US National Champion, first with Hannah in 1994 and more recently in 2010 with Riggs.
Patrick and Amanda Milliken 2015
While in Meeker, Patrick has a rigorous full five days of judging. He will judge each of the 135 dogs as they make their preliminary run over the first three days of the event – Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The top eight scoring dogs of each day will automatically advance to the Semi-Finals on Saturday. Following the completion of the preliminaries on Friday, the top six scores that haven’t already qualified to the Semis will advance to the semi-finals. That brings 30 dogs onto the field for the Semi-Final competition on Saturday, September 11th. The top twelve scoring dogs of the semis will then go on to the double-lift finals on Sunday, September 12th.
Although successful competitively, Patrick’s goal is to provide good working dogs for the livestock industry. Patrick lives on a small sheep ranch in Caldwell, Idaho where he runs a commercial flock of Katahdin hair sheep and Red Top Kennel.
Patrick writes frequently about training, breeding and livestock handling. We look forward to sharing time with Patrick in September!
Some pics below of Patrick’s ranch in Idaho . . . .
