Back on his feet thanks to four-legged friends

Dog triallist John Bartlett credits the sport with saving his life and getting him back on his feet - after a farm crash broke his back last year.

When the quad Bartlett was riding flipped on a steep farm track, it was the dog tray that took most of the crushing impact against the ground, and the tray provided breathing space as he waited four hours for help.

(...)

Bartlett and his canine team were tasked with keeping several sets of yards stocked with sheep, as the lambs were brought in for a pre-weaning drench.

It was the start of a busy week that was going to be "quite hard on the dogs".

With the first set of yards filled up, Bartlett was driving with his dogs on the back to the yards, when he spotted something that made him detour.

Some sheep in a nearby paddock were heading away towards an open gate that would have taken them further away from the stockyards.

"I thought, "I'll just nip up there and shut that gate, and save time later in the week,'" he said.

Several factors combined to create the disaster that followed. MORE>>