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Noonbarra Butch is one of our best known Trial performers. He has won at State and National level and numerous championships and other Open Trials.

Noonbarra Butch's new owner, Michael Johnston didn't have any trial experience when he bought Butch from us. He was however a good stockman and able to read both sheep and dogs. Michael put a lot of time and effort into him right from the start and they soon turned into a top working team.

Michael started him in trials at a very young age. He placed 3rd in his very first trial at Burraga in 1990. A few months later he won first place in the Encourage section of the Southern NSW Yard Championships at Wagga. He then won the Novice Trial at Taralga in 1990. When he entered into the NSW State Yard Championships he was advised to enter into the Improver section only. This is for dogs that have won at Novice but not at Open. You can now win 2 Novice trials before you go into the next division but I think in those days you could only win one. Anyway Michael decided to enter both the improver and the Open up against the most experienced Yard Trial dogs in the country including the great Glenlogie Lucky.

Michael told us that he was used to working large numbers of sheep through the yards and shearing shed with Noonbarra Butch and couldn't see any reason why he couldn't win here. There were a few sniggers from experienced trialists but Butch didn't let Michael down and after a first round was in the Semi-finals and then went on to the finals winning the event against famous Trial Kelpies such as Capree Watch, Phils Creek Sam, Glenlogie Lucky, Capree Shep  and National Kelpie Trial winner, Chobi Mindy.

During the early and mid 1990's he was regarded as the best yard dog in Australia. This is even more amazing as he was bred as a paddock dog and had a strong leaning to this work. Michael said he was excellent at mustering the rough timbered hilly country around Taralga. He often cast out so wide and far that Michael said he couldn't see him without binoculars. He was also a very good dog on cattle and at 12 months of age was filmed working cattle for a Toyota car Ad on television.

Noonbarra Gabe was the sire of Noonbarra Butch and a very good yard dog in his own right but more of an allrounder who later went on to win and place in Arena three sheep trials, Yard trials and Utility trials. He was also our best sire during the 1980's and early 1990's. We also used a full brother to Noonbarra Butch in Noonbarra Boss II over our top breeding and working female, Noonbarra Tina. This litter produced a number of outstanding Kelpies and Noonbarra Valerie and Noonbarra Wendy were kept in the Stud and they also became superb breeders.

His dam, Rockybar Valerie came from the well known Rockybar stud in Queensland. We waited 18 months to purchase a Kelpie of her quality and she was a very stylish worker. She was bred solely for paddock work and Arena three sheep type Trials. She had no real backing ability but her combination with Noonbarra Gabe brought in the best traits from both. Gabe's line went back to many great Kelpies including Liscannor Pace and Kalari Basil, both good backing dogs in the yards but regarded as all round workers. Pace won Yard and Arena Trials on dozens of occasions and was the biggest trial winning Kelpie of his time.

As we said, his first big win was the 1991 NSW State Yard Dog Championships. The trial featured over $10,000 in prizes, making it at the time the richest Yard Trial in Australia. Some of the best dogs in the country attended. Handlers like Jim Luce, Chris Stapleton, Kevin Howell, Robert Cox, Steve Weyman, Peter Moore, etc. Michael and Noonbarra Butch were not really considered as possible winners. Most were expecting the renowned Capree Watch to win. Chobi Mindy, Phils Creek Sam (Pat) and Capree Shep were also all strong contenders and all ended up getting placed. However Michael with Noonbarra Butch romped home 5 points ahead of Chris Stapleton with Capree Watch.

He had to trial three separate times to win the event as there was first round, second round and then the finals. He was up against over 75 other dogs. He also won the separate Improver Trial (for dogs that have not won an Open event). He won a number of prizes including cash, a large stock-trailer, dog food and products etc. He was even photographed with the Bathurst showgirl and interviewed by newspapers. Articles about his big win were printed in 'The Land', 'The Western Advocate', Rural News, and the Southern Magazine. This run along with other famous Kelpies can be seen on our 1991 NSW State Championship video. Click here for video

In 1992 Michael and Butch travelled all the way to South Australia for the National Australian Title. He was once again up against Chris Stapleton with his renowned yard dogs. To everyone's surprise Noonbarra Butch proved the State Championship wasn't a fluke and won the Australian National Yard Dog Championship. This made everyone sit up and take notice of him.

In 1998 after a lifetime of hard station work and a bad leg injury that caused him to limp quite badly, Michael decided to retire Butch. Later that year he had entered a few of his Kelpies into the Southern NSW Championships when a bitch came on heat and he needed a substitute. He decided to take Butch out of retirement and give him a run. Michael of course didn't expect much from him so it was a wonderful surprise when Butch showed what he was made of and won the Open Championship.

Michael always felt he never mated Butch to top bitches and regretted that in later years. We also tried to use Noonbarra Butch as a sire after he was retired but we were too late. We wanted to mate him to Noonbarra Megan and spent a considerable amount of money working with Vets to get a viable semen sample but by that time the sperm count was very low and Noonbarra Megan failed to get in pup. It was a big disappointment for us.

One bitch Michael did mate Noonbarra Butch to was UD Ginger. This was a cream bitch owned by Sandy and Geoff Meller. She went back to Liscannor bloodlines and also to Capree Zap, a very good Kelpie in the 1980's. Zap was a cream Kelpie as well. This mating produced Reedy Creek Lucy, bred by Peter Healy and owned by Brad Pavey. Brad later tried to breed Lucy to Noonbarra Dusty III but he was a day or two too late and her season was finished. Lucy was bred to Milburn Basil and produced a very nice male called Bonorong Rex.

When we first saw Rex work we both liked him instantly and when we complimented Michael on the dog he told us that Rex was a grandson of Noonbarra Butch. Rex had a lot of strength but also had the eye and style of the old time Kelpies. We later used Bonorong Rex in our Stud over two different bitches (Noonbarra Wendy and Noonbarra Sarah) and the combination worked very well and we got some terrific pups. We still have Noonbarra Cassie, Noonbarra Mouse, Noonbarra Kay and Noonbarra Sue in the Stud from these matings.

Michael bought other Kelpies from us over the years in Noonbarra Penny, Noonbarra Nell and Noonbarra Toby but most were more paddock dogs and all-round station dogs than Yard trial types and he sold them on. Noonbarra Nell was sold to a man at Wellington (NSW) that already had two Noonbarra Kelpies. He said she had the widest cast he has ever seen and although it took a bit of time to get into position behind the sheep it was well worth it as she could lift them so gently they just drifted off her without any panic or stress. He then mated Noonbarra Joe to Nell and kept a very nice dog called Jack. Joe and Nell have both passed on now.

Noonbarra Butch was no doubt a very good dog, but his handler, Michael Johnston must get much of the credit too. He handled Butch very well and put a lot of time into his training. Unfortunately, these days not too many farmers do much training of their sheepdogs. To really prove his first big win wasn't a fluke he also won the Yard Dog Title for the whole of Australia in 1992. In 1994 Noonbarra Butch won the West Wyalong Open. Milburn Basil was 2nd. Through the 1990's Michael Johnston along with Chris Stapleton and his Capree Kelpies dominated the Yard Dog Trials.

Michael had a good understanding of animals and was a person who could read what his stock was going to do. He had the same puppy problems with Noonbarra Butch as all handlers have but he put the time into teaching the dog and reaped the rewards. If Butch had gone to someone else he probably wouldn't be as well known to the general public.

Noonbarra Butch also has a number of progeny working overseas in Holland through the Paradise Kelpie Stud.

Michael later moved to Darby Falls near Cowra and now runs his own breeding Stud under the prefix, Milburn. In 1997, Milburn Basil repeated Noonbarra Butch's effort and won the State and the Australian title as well. He is presently trialling a new sire, Bonorong Rex, who is a combination of Noonbarra Butch lines and Milburn Basil lines.