Spring 2011 is here!
Posted By Sandy Wilson on March 31, 2011
Delta moving along tire track boundary.
Although Spring is here, it certainly doesn’t feel like it. It has been unseasonably cold here in PA, 30-40 degrees F by day and in the 20′s overnight. The temperatures don’t seem to be rising very quickly over these past few weeks, and April will be here soon. In spite of the cold though, at least there is some grass growth and so there is some forage for the sheep to nibble on and the dogs now have some work to do herding.
Right now I am working with Delta on gaining more independence from my direction. She is starting to work more on her own, but I am still a big part of her focus. During this time, I have been doing dry runs with her at home in a field with boundaries cut out and some posts around the corners. She has been great about not cutting corners and I am also working with her on the placement aspect. I have her stop along the boundary and then I call her in a few steps at a time with stays in between. Once she has done that successfully, I then direct her out of the graze back onto the boundary to go around again and work the boundary as she would if there were sheep in the graze.
I do like training the obedience part with the dog as a dry run without sheep at times, as then there is no other distractions for the dogs to deal with and also you can correct or help the dog without having to worry about disrupting a flock. Delta does very well with this and she is so easy to teach and direct. At first when I would call her in, she would come in so quickly, as she was excited that I called her into the graze, but now she slowly takes a few steps and I am using my crook to signal her also, so she has put that together and is doing very well with that.
We are also working on having her stand while the sheep are moving past her and so far she is doing pretty good with that. Although I must say I have been close to her at this point, but we are just starting this, so I am sure over time, she will get that training down and I’ll be able to work farther and farther from her.
Moving along the back boundary.
The boundary work is coming along well and now we are also working on moving the flock. In the beginning, Delta didn’t want to move far away from me to cover the flock, but each week, I can see she is doing better and better and she is getting the idea. I think one of the things that is the hardest about moving the flock in the beginning, especially when your new to learning this, is directing your dog so that you don’t confuse them, but also staying in front of the flock and being clear to the sheep and the dog. I think sometimes your so concerned about what your dog is doing, you loose sight of what your doing. A mistake everyone makes in the very beginning, but I know it will get better. I never realized how difficult it was to walk in front of the sheep and direct your dog, as you have to use your crook also to direct the dog in the beginning. I think once the dog knows what to do and your comfortable about what your doing, then you can relax more and things go more smoothly, but that’s training – things are always a bit rocky when your first learning and putting all the moves together to make things look polished just takes time. I am a long way from that!
Working calmly along the boundary watching her sheep.
Pictures taken by Meghan Rabon; thanks Meghan!
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