Training restarted

I have been off and away for a few months, got a new knee. As a result the window of opportunity I had with my new bitch pup passed me by.

You will recall from an earlier post, I had started her when she was 5 months old. I know that a lot of people will say that is far to young and I agree with you. If you are starting a pup that young you have to be very careful and protective so that no harm comes to her. I do not recommend starting at this age.

Well along comes January and my annual ranch sitting job for some friends of mine. Feeding 160 head daily, moving them from area to area and doing physical checks twice a day is a golden opportunity for some REAL practical and stock dog training. In the mornings I fed all the stock. The training here is moving the stock away from the feeder and holding them until the bale was unwrapped and in the feeder. I will elaborate on what and how I did this in a later post.

In the afternoon it was more formal training in a paddock of calves (64). The task was to round up the 64 calves and move them from the feeding and resting area, out into a large field. The second task was to catch the calves, turn them and return them to feeders.

You may recall that when I start a dog I use minimal commands. In this case: “get around” and “there (stop command). The whole idea behind this is I want to develop that natural instinct. In short, I want her to start using her head

In my next post(s) I will take you through each step that I followed.

Until next time …..