Red Dog (Pilbara)

Last updated

Red Dog
Red Dog Statue Front View.jpg
Red Dog statue.
Other name(s)Bluey
Dog of the Northwest
Species Dog
Breed kelpie/cattle dog crossbreed dog
SexMale
BornTally Ho
1971 (1971)
Paraburdoo, Western Australia
Died21 November 1979(1979-11-21) (aged 7–8)
Karratha, Western Australia
Resting placeSecret location, Roebourne, Western Australia
Known forTravelling throughout Western Australia's Pilbara region
Title The Pilbara Wanderer
OwnerColin Cummings (former)
John Stazzonelli (former)
The Pilbara Wanderer Red Dog The Pilbara Wanderer Notice.jpg
The Pilbara Wanderer

Red Dog (c. 1971 21 November 1979) was a kelpie/cattle dog cross that was well known for his travels through Western Australia's vast Pilbara region. Red Dog had a series of owners and lengthy periods travelling on his own, essentially becoming a beloved friend and mascot of the greater Pilbara community. A statue was installed in his memory in Dampier, one of the towns to which he often returned. [1] [2] He is frequently referred to as a "red kelpie" [3] or a "red cloud kelpie". [4]

Contents

Story

Red Dog was believed to have been born in the town of Paraburdoo, Western Australia in 1971. [5]

Red Dog was called by a variety of names by those who knew him, including Bluey, Tally Ho, and Dog of the Northwest. [6] Tally Ho was his first name, given to him by Colin Cummings, who is believed to have been his first owner, and brought him to Dampier. The nickname "Red Dog" has been attributed to the red dirt of the Pilbara region (although "red dog" is a common nickname for red kelpies and heelers, much in the same way as "blue dog" or "Bluey" is a common nickname for the Australian cattle dog).

His second owner was John Stazzonelli, a bus driver with Hamersley Iron, who took the dog with him in his bus. With Stazzonelli, Red Dog travelled as far as Perth, Broome, Roebourne, Point Samson and Port Hedland. [7]

Following Stazzonelli's death in 1975, Red Dog spent a lot of time travelling on his own. He was also taken in by many members of the community, and a veterinarian who treated him. Each time he visited the vet, it was with a new owner. [6] Red was made a member of the Dampier Salts Sport and Social Club and the Transport Workers' Union, and was also given a bank account with the Bank of New South Wales, which was said to have used him as a mascot, with the slogan "If Red banks at the Wales, then you can too." [6]

Although Red Dog was well liked, it is believed that he was deliberately poisoned in 1979 with strychnine. [8] [9]

Red Dog was buried, by veterinarian Rick Fenny, in a secret unmarked grave around Roebourne, Western Australia. There is a plaque, fixed to a boulder, very close to where Red Dog was buried, about 3.7km outside of the town of Cossack WA. There is a pin on google maps showing the spot, although it is a little tricky to find it. [10] [11] Fenny's book Pip – My first red kelpie talks about his time with Red Dog. [12]

Legacy

Soon after Red's death, Australian author Nancy Gillespie wrote and compiled anecdotes and poetry written by several people of the Pilbara region for her 1983 book Red Dog , [13] as did Beverly Duckett in her 1993 book, Red Dog: the Pilbara Wanderer. [5]

Red Dog's story and statue have caught the attention of a number of people passing through Dampier, including British author Louis de Bernières. He wrote a book loosely based on Red's legend, called Red Dog . [14] A four-wheel drive club has been named in his honour. [15]

De Bernieres' novel was adapted as a critically acclaimed [16] feature film about Red. It was made in Australia and released in August 2011. [17] Based on a screenplay by Daniel Taplitz, [18] it is directed by Kriv Stenders. The title role was played by Koko. [19] In 2016 a prequel was released, Red Dog: True Blue , which imagines an origin story for Red Dog. [20] Louis de Bernières also wrote a novel called Blue Dog to go with the prequel film.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian Kelpie</span> Dog breed

The Australian Kelpie, or simply Kelpie, is an Australian sheepdog capable of mustering and droving with little or no guidance. It is a medium-sized dog and comes in a variety of colours. The Kelpie has been exported throughout the world and is used to muster livestock, primarily sheep, cattle and goats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dampier, Western Australia</span> Town in Western Australia

Dampier is a major industrial port in the Pilbara region in the northwest of Western Australia. It is located near the city of Karratha and Port Walcott.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian Cattle Dog</span> Breed of herding dog originally developed in Australia for droving cattle

The Australian Cattle Dog, or simply Cattle Dog, is a breed of herding dog developed in Australia for droving cattle over long distances across rough terrain. This breed is a medium-sized, short-coated dog that occurs in two main colour forms. It has either red or black hair distributed fairly evenly through a white coat, which gives the appearance of a "red" or "blue" dog.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louis de Bernières</span> English novelist

Louis de Bernières is an English novelist. He is known for his 1994 historical war novel Captain Corelli's Mandolin. In 1993 de Bernières was selected as one of the "20 Best of Young British Novelists", part of a promotion in Granta magazine. Captain Corelli's Mandolin was published in the following year, winning the Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best Book. It was also shortlisted for the 1994 Sunday Express Book of the Year. It has been translated into over 11 languages and is an international best-seller.

<i>Red Dog</i> (novel) 2002 novel by Louis de Bernières

Red Dog (2002) is a short novel by Louis de Bernières charting the life of a popular dog, a "Red Cloud Kelpie" nicknamed Red Dog, in Dampier, Western Australia. A movie based on the novel was filmed in Australia in 2011.

Karratha is a city in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, adjoining the port of Dampier. It was established in 1968 to accommodate the processing and exportation workforce of the Hamersley Iron mining company and, in the 1980s, the petroleum and liquefied natural gas operations of the North West Shelf Venture. As of the 2021 census, Karratha had an urban population of 17,013. The city's name comes from the cattle station of the same name, which derives from a word in a local Aboriginal language meaning "good country" or "soft earth". The city is the seat of government of the City of Karratha, a local government area covering the surrounding region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roebourne, Western Australia</span> Town in Western Australia

Roebourne is a town in Western Australia's Pilbara region. In the Ngarluma language, Roebourne is called Yirramagardu (Ieramagadu). It is 35 km from Karratha, 202 km from Port Hedland and 1,563 km from Perth, the state's capital. It is the only town on the North West Coastal Highway between Binnu and Fitzroy Crossing; over 2,000km. It is located within the City of Karratha. It prospered during its gold boom of the late 19th century and was once the largest settlement between Darwin and Perth. At the 2016 census, Roebourne and the surrounding area had a population of 981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Point Samson, Western Australia</span> Town in Western Australia

Point Samson is a small coastal settlement 1,579 km north of Perth and 18 km north of Roebourne in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The town is a popular holiday location for the nearby mining towns, including Wickham, Karratha and Dampier. Fishing is the main industry.

Red dog or Red Dog may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bluey (dog)</span> Australian cattle dog owned by Les and Rosalie Hall

Bluey was a female Australian Cattle Dog owned by Les and Rosalie Hall of Rochester, Victoria. She previously held the Guinness World Records as the oldest dog to ever live, until being surpassed by Bobi from Portugal in 2023.

Karratha Airport is an airport in Karratha, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The airport is 14 km (8.7 mi) from Karratha and 5 nautical miles south of Dampier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pilbara newspapers</span> Newspapers published in the Pilbara region of Western Australia

Pilbara newspapers is a selection of newspapers published in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Red Dog is a short story by Nancy Gillespie and a collection of anecdotes and poetry written by several people of the Pilbara region, chronicling the life and travels of the Red Dog. Colonel Cummings is documented as the Red Dog's original owner, and later John Stazzonelli took ownership before dying in a motorcycle accident. The Red Dog, not knowing that Stazzonelli had died, went looking for him across Western Australia's Pilbara region. Gillespie channelled part of the sales of this book to The Karratha Rotary Club to say thank-you for their help in making the book possible. Pictures of the Red Dog are featured in the book, including a map charting the many places the Red Dog had visited.

<i>Red Dog</i> (film) 2011 Australian comedy-drama film

Red Dog is a 2011 Australian comedy-drama family film written by Daniel Taplitz, directed by Kriv Stenders and produced by Nelson Woss and Julie Ryan. It stars Koko as the title character, Josh Lucas, Rachael Taylor, and John Batchelor. The film is based on the true story of Red Dog and uses the 2002 novel Red Dog by Louis de Bernières as the primary source. At the 2011 Inside Film Awards, Red Dog was nominated in nine categories and won seven, including best feature film. The film was also nominated for seven AACTA Awards and won for Best Film. The film was theatrically released on 4 August 2011 by Roadshow Film Distributors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koko (dog)</span> Australian Kelpie film actor and fundraiser

Koko was an Australian canine film actor and fundraiser, an Australian Kelpie who was best known for his role as Red Dog, the title character of the 2011 film Red Dog. He was owned by Nelson Woss, a producer of Red Dog.

Main Roads Western Australia controls the major roads in the state's Pilbara region. There are two main highways in the region: Great Northern Highway, which travels north through the region to Port Hedland and then north-west along the coast, as well as North West Coastal Highway, which heads south-west from Port Hedland. A series of main roads connects towns to the highways, and local roads provide additional links. The majority of these roads service the western half of the region, with few located in the various deserts east of the Oakover River. Roads are often named after the towns or areas they connect.

<i>Red Dog: True Blue</i> 2016 film directed by Kriv Stenders

Red Dog: True Blue is a 2016 Australian family comedy film directed by Kriv Stenders, written by Daniel Taplitz and starring Jason Isaacs, Levi Miller and Bryan Brown. It is a prequel to the 2011 film Red Dog, detailing the early days of the Red Dog, the Pilbara Wanderer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pilbara shrublands</span> Terrestrial ecoregion in Western Australia

The Pilbara shrublands is a deserts and xeric shrublands ecoregion in Western Australia. It is coterminous with the Pilbara IBRA region. For other definitions and uses of "Pilbara region" see Pilbara.

Desert Vet is an Australian factual television series. It follows the work of emergency veterinarian Dr Rick Fenny. The series is filmed in Western Australian locations such as Karratha, Port Hedland, Shark Bay and Kalgoorlie.

Manuwarra Red Dog Highway is a major road currently under construction in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, between Karratha and Tom Price. Originally known as Karratha-Tom Price Road, it acquired its new name in September 2020 after community consultation. Manuwarra means "'heaps' or 'masses'" in the Yindjibarndi language and is the indigenous name for the Red Dog Gorge in the Millstream Chichester National Park. Both the gorge and the highway acquired its English name from the eponymous Red Dog, a famous Kelpie/Cattle Dog and Pilbara mascot from the 1970s.

References

  1. Ashworth, Susie; Rebecca Turner; Simone Egger (2004). Western Australia. Lonely Planet. pp.  203–204. ISBN   1-74059-459-2.
  2. "Dampier". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 February 2004. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
  3. Mark Sanderson (24 September 2001). "Animal Tragic". The Evening Standard. Retrieved 6 April 2008.[ dead link ]
  4. Toby Clements (22 December 2001). "A Modest Proposal". The Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 15 April 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
  5. 1 2 Beverley Duckett (1993). Red Dog : the Pilbara wanderer.
  6. 1 2 3 Gordon, Ruth (2000). It Takes a Dog to Raise a Village: True Stories of Remarkable Canine Vagabonds. Willow Creek Press. pp.  137–151. ISBN   1-57223-300-1.
  7. Candice Silverman (23 September 2006). "Life as a Dogged Hobo". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
  8. "The Red Dog Story". reddogwa.com. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  9. Fraser, Andrew Kidd. "The Red Dog vet". stories.uq.edu.au. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  10. "Where was Red Dog Buried". reddogwa.com. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  11. Balaam, Kellie (19 May 2021). "Vet ponders a Red Dog's life". North West Telegraph. p. 4.
  12. "Press Release: Red Dog Vet". Rick Fenny Group. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  13. Nancy Gillespie (1983). Red Dog. Stockwell. ISBN   0722317972.
  14. De Bernières, Louis (2001). Red Dog. Pantheon Books. ISBN   0-375-42155-6.
  15. "Red Dog 4WD Club". 5 April 2008. Archived from the original on 28 April 2010. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
  16. RED DOG: TRUE BLUE at Rotten Tomatoes OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  17. Stephanie Bunbury (29 July 2011). "Tall tails". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  18. "WA's legendary Red Dog on track for the big screen". Media Newswire. 5 August 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
  19. Vicky Roach (10 August 2009). "Roll out the red carpet for Koko the movie star". Herald Sun. Retrieved 10 August 2009.
  20. Andrew F Peirce (28 December 2016). "Red Dog: True Blue Review". The Curb. Retrieved 16 July 2022.