Juli Bayot and his six-and-a-half-year-old border collie Atila won the 37th Concurs de Gossos d'Atura (Dogs of the Fold contest) in Prades, Baix Camp, on Sunday morning. The event took place at the town’s football field and drew around 800 spectators.

The contest, part of the Catalan championship circuit, featured ten shepherd-and-dog teams from Catalonia, Mallorca, the Valencian Country, the Basque Country and Aragon. It marked the second stop in a five-round championship that began in Canillo, Andorra, and will continue on 16 August in Llavorsí, 30 August in Castellar de n’Hug and conclude on 6 September in Ribes de Freser.

The competition consisted of two stages. In the first, dogs had to navigate between flags, halt twice, gather a flock of sheep and guide them into a circle in front of the shepherd. They then had to drive the flock through gates and into a pen, all within eight minutes. Only the top four teams advanced to the final round.

In the final, dogs retrieved sheep from the far end of the field, brought them to the shepherd, guided them between the shepherd and a flag, drove them into a pen, and then moved them back out, all within five minutes.

"I thought the Basque contestant would win; in the end, it was a bit of a surprise,"

said Bayot, who did not specially train Atila for the event. Though the dog had won contests in the Valencian Country, Bayot noted that Atila had not previously stood out in Catalonia, where competition is stronger. This marks Bayot’s fifth overall win in the contest, though with different dogs.

Bayot, who keeps sheep on his farm, trains his dogs through daily work rather than structured sessions. He currently has three dogs, Atila, his mother and his sister, and gives each commands in a different language.

"They recognise the sound, and that’s enough for them,"

he said.

Preserving a pastoral tradition

The Prades contest began in 1988 and is held annually on the first Sunday of August. It honours shepherding as both a profession and a tool for wildfire prevention, as grazing helps clear underbrush.

Joan Musté, secretary of the Prades Dogs of the Fold Association, said Saturday’s events included a wool workshop, a sheep-shearing demonstration in the main square and a tasting of local wines and cheeses.

"These contests are valuable because they highlight a trade once undervalued and now at risk of disappearing," Bayot said. "Eventually, it may only survive as a cultural practice."

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