*Elin doesn't have capacity to accept mentoring applications currently. Please contact Awel Jones on 07961 958 807 / awel.jones2@menterabusnes.co.uk to discuss your other options.*
Why Elin would be an effective mentor
- Fluent Welsh speaker Elin grew up on a hill farm in Cwm Eidda, Snowdonia. She always enjoyed helping out with farm duties, but her passion from an early age was working with family’s flock of 300 Welsh Mountain sheep, which she says instilled in her the importance of working with good well-trained sheepdogs.
- With Elin’s father already heavily involved in breeding, training and competing with their sheepdogs, and some of her nine brothers and sisters taking interest too, it was no surprise that she developed her own lifelong interest as well.
- She soon developed an eye for selecting puppies from the family’s litters herself (‘one of my favourite things ever’), and with experts all around her happy to pass on their knowledge, she quickly learnt the handling skills needed to train up her own dogs.
- As a young teenager, Elin was accompanying her dad to watch him compete and judge competitions as far afield as the Netherlands and Italy. By the age of 14, she was also competing herself, and winning numerous ‘youth category’ awards. These days, Elin, who is now a full-time primary school teacher, is also in demand as a judge at sheepdog trials throughout Wales and beyond, although she still enjoys success as a competitor too.
- In 2010, she was invited to take part in the popular tv series ‘One man and his dog’, which she says was a fantastic opportunity. In her early teenage years, she started competing with her bitch, Eryri Taran, with significant success at an International sheepdog trials in Cumbria.
- Elin was also invited to coach the instructors for the British Wool Board training courses.
- As a school-teacher, Elin has all the skills and experience needed to inspire and encourage others – of any age - to handle and train their working dogs, which have a crucial role in helping farmers manage their sheep flocks effectively.
- A good communicator in both Welsh and English, you’ll be inspired by Elin’s calm and consistent approach, and will learn how to replicate the bond she has clearly built up with her own working dogs.
Current farm business
- Elin and her husband recently took over a tenanted 600 acre beef and sheep farm near Llanrwst on a share farming arrangement
- The couple are currently building up a new flock of Welsh Mountain ewes
- Herd of 50 Hereford breeding cattle
Qualifications/achievements/ experience
- Aberystwyth University - BSc in Agriculture & Business
- Bangor University - Teacher Training Course
- Ysgol Bro Elwern - Primary teacher
- Former member of Ysbyty Ifan YFC and former secretary of Bugeiliaid Nant Conwy
- Secretary of Ysbyty Ifan Sheepdog Trials
- Capel Garmon Primary School - Assistant Headteacher
Top tips for business success
"You must have plenty of patience, because you need to develop a close bond with your dog, learn to trust each other and enjoy the ride!”
“When you first start working with a young dog, expect good days but challenges too; a consistent approach, with regular daily practice will enable you both to improve.”