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Smiles at Australian Kelpie Muster as rain falls on drought-hit Casterton
Rain is usually unwelcome at outdoor events, but in the drought-stricken of Casterton there were smiles all around during the Australian Kelpie Muster over the weekend.
"You could just about hear the smiles on people's faces," said event founder Jack Matthews.
From Friday night to Sunday morning, 48.6 millimetres of rain fell in the western Victorian town — more than the rest of the year to date combined.
Saturday's rainfall total was the highest since a huge hailstorm struck the town last October, damaging roofs and cars and creating ongoing disputes with insurance companies over who should pay for the clean-up.
Since then the land has dried up and over summer, the region was also hit by bushfires.
So an influx of thousands of dogs and their owners for a range of kelpie-themed competitions boosted locals' spirits and brought much-needed dollars to local businesses.
The Albion Hotel and the Casterton Distillery, owned by Geoff Phillips with his wife Julie Phillips and stepson Jason Pope, still has scaffolding up as the roof is not fully repaired from the hail.
Mr Phillips said the rain was "fantastic" nonetheless.
The first kelpies were bred near Casterton in the 1870s.
The first Casterton Working Dog Auction was held in the town in 1997, and the Casterton Kelpie Festival was made into a three-day event — Australian Kelpie Muster — in 2001.
The top bids of $17,500 at this year's auction were for two south-west Victorian dogs — Billy, bred by Jack Leonard from Casterton, and Beloka Skye, from Ash Caruana in Penshurst.
"These results reaffirm Casterton's reputation as host of Australia's premier working dog auction, where quality speaks for itself," Casterton Kelpie Association president and Glenelg Shire Mayor Karen Stephens said.
Local farmer David Botterill said the social
aspect of the event was important for Casterton.
"There's a lot of people here that we know," he said.
"You can connect with people, have a chat, debrief, talk about how everyone's going, what they're doing well … how they can improve.
"Just getting off the farm … getting your head a different space and just having a moment out [is great]."
The event brought visitors from all over Victoria and South Australia, and from as far afield as north Queensland.
Anne Mallia has been coming to the muster from Melbourne since 2019, after buying her own kelpie.
She launched her children's book called Mackie, after the kelpie, on Saturday.
The story shares Mackie's challenges growing up, with parallels for children reading the book.
"When this idea first came to my mind, I just wanted to share it with this community because it's meant so much to me and my family," Ms Mallia said.
The event continues on Monday with a working dog school run by Daniel Ball from Sale, in Gippsland, who has volunteered at the muster for more than 20 years.
He said the ABC TV show Muster Dogs had grown the public's interest in working dog training.
"There's lots of people here and lots of opportunities to take," Ms Ball said.
