When Matt Best of Mt Egerton is not selling New Holland tractors, he is running a few hundred sheep on the side.

Matt has a team of koolie dogs who give him a hand. Some are quite good with the sheep, however Duke is not one of them.

"He's not much of a sheepdog really," Matt admits. "He'd rather play than work.

"I think it hasn't helped I have had other sheepdogs are much more willing to work. So he's more of a pet, really."

When it comes to play, though, Duke is a star performer.

At the Ballarat Show last month he won a ribbon in the dog jumping competition. The year before he qualified for the state championships after finishing runner-up in his class (50-60cm) at the Ballarat Show with a leap of 1.92m. 

It is an impressive result, particularly for a dog which has had his share of injuries, including a broken foot.

Matt is a member of the Ballarat Agricultural and Pastoral Society's youth committee (at age 32 he admits he is the least youthful member of the youth committee). He entered Duke in the dog jump last year as much out of curiosity as anything else, so was pleasantly surprised he got so close to one of Victoria's top dogs. 

"I was pretty proud of him," Matt admits. "He obviously has plenty of energy but I didn't know he would do as well as he did. 

"He wasn't as strong this year but still managed to win a ribbon, although I'm not exactly what for."

If Duke has a favourite sport it appears to be netball. He would happily bunt a netball with his snout for hours if someone was to toss it at him. He's pretty good at it too, popping it straight back to the thrower with a consistency that would impress anyone from the Melbourne Vixens. 

"At one stage there I got 30 in row without it touching the ground," Matt says.

This shouldn't be a surprise, Matt's wife Rhonda is a junior netball coach at the nearby Gordon Football Netball Club. 

Matt says koolies combine some of the best qualities of a border collie and a kelpie.

"My grandfather had German koolies (the name may be a carry over from German settlers in Australia who used the breed). They are a bit rarer (than kelpies and border collies) and I like their temperament," he explains. "They have as much energy as a kelpie but they have a temperament of a border collie. They can go pretty hard but they can also be quieter whereas a kelpie will be all over you." 

Jumping may prove to be in the blood too, according to Matt. Duke's son Nugget also has an impressive leap for a six-month old pup."