David Lee Roth Shows Off His Herding Dogs in New Video
In recent weeks Van Halen fans have been reminded of a number of David Lee Roth's other passions and he addresses one -- sheep herding -- in this video from the Van Halen News Desk. The singer takes viewers through the art of training a dog to herd, mixing in quips that only he could think of along the way.
"Cattle are like hockey fans, two of them are drunk, the other one just wants to f--ck with you and the other one has no idea what is going on," Roth explains as "Ben" herds cattle a couple of minutes into the video. "Mike" is the real star of the show however, herding sheep and following whistle commands from 200 meters away.
First the border collie is shown doing hill work, rounding up a group of sheep and bringing them back to the camera and Roth. "We're trying to get a nice, straight fetch line with him," the singer explains. He's seen occasionally in the video, usually wearing cargo pants and a baseball cap.
"See how they're running and splitting like super models being chased by the wrong guy on a weekend night," he jokes. It's not the only uncomfortable comparison he makes. Later he likens the sheep to old, Jewish people hanging around the pool in Florida.
"There's nobody less qualified to be in these competitions than I," Roth admits. He's being humble again.
Once one gets over the surprising nature of this off-stage talent, the video is pretty entertaining. It's a look into a world that few have experience in. Who knew there were competitions? Roth is even heading to Nationals soon, likely not until after the band's tour of the U.S. wraps up in June.