Into the Field

 I was recently asked to help prepare a group of Heifers for an annual Fall Fair Cow Dog trial. My job is to dog break the cattle which should calm them down for when they go to the arena. The trial is indoors and when you take a bunch of cattle that have never been exposed to that type of surrounding it can take a great deal of fun away from the trial.

This is a perfect time and place to evaluate the training my pups have received to date. I had my new pup, Wage, with me as well as this mother, Kate, and of course my main dog, the old guy. Each morning we would round up the Heifers out in the field and bring them into a paddock. We would then separate a few and move them into another paddock and work them for about 1/2 hour. We then join the separated ones up with the rest of the herd and move them back out into the field. We did this up to 4 times a day.

Wage working the flank

Here he keeping everyone on the straight and narrow

While moving the cattle I used as few commands as possible. Mostly “there” and occasionally a directions command “go bye” or “away to me”. This gives me an excellent opportunity to find out where we are in the reaction to the commands. So now that we are back home it back to the side commands.

Even in the paddock he is keeping order

It was very interesting to watch Wage, he is 8 months old, work the flanks with very little direction. He would swing out and run along to near the head of the herd and then turn into them and run back to where we were driving from. This appears to be natural to him. He exhibited the same technique in the paddocks. He certainly did not pull any punches when one of the Heifers stepped to far of the line.

After 3 days of this, training in the training paddock is not going to be as exciting. Back to working on sides

And the training continues

Training is moving right along with the sides being the key. I move the sheep, in the mornings, to the training paddock. It is 130ft by 60, ideal for teaching sides. Not to big so that the trainer is not run off his feet.

With straight sides and corners, I can teach 1 side at a time. The dogs have the stop command ("there") down pat as well as the "stay" command. When I get the sheep positioned and the dog in the stay position I can get the sheep moving along the side. I then send the dog with the appropriate command and he/she heads the sheep and we then work on the walk up command and bring them back to where we can do it all again. A week of doing this then I will start working on the other side.

On the walk up

Wage, the young dog, comes with me to the field each evening to round up the sheep. It seems that I have to go less distance each night and he is out there looking for them. He is now rounding them up and moving them back to the barn, mostly on his own. I don't think he realizes that he is being trained!!!!

The first day of the rest of there lives

The first batch of sheep arrived to day, I custom graze sheep and cattle. With the arrival of the sheep the start of custom training for Kate and her son Wage begins. Kate has been rough trained and is very effective with cattle. Wage has been exposed to sheep starting at 4 months of age and showed a remarkable talent for heading. Formal training is now underway.

Today the training is all about control. The dogs must learn, at this stage, that they will only work when told to do so. It's like boot camp where they learn the other side of themselves. First command is the "with me" command. This is some what like a heel command. Incorporated with this command is the “There” command. This is the stop command.

Today's training incorporating the above commands, was primarily shepherding. In other words we got to watch the sheep eat grass. It's a great self control exercise for the dogs and will be very useful in the future when checking cattle and sheep. This training will likely go on for about a week. All things being equal, we should begin to start on some directional commands: the "way to" and "go by" commands. Until the next time enjoy ....

Training Kate

 Kate is a New Zealand Heading dog/Border Collie, 18 months old and works Cattle instinctively. Her main job up to this time has been keeping cattle away from feeders while I put the hay in and then to bring them in. She also filled in nicely when moving cattle by taking up a flank position and all of this with minimal training and only a few commands. The time has come where commands need to be put on the dog for better control and directing her. In my case I want to eventually begin to do some trialling so will need that control.

After a lay off, both me and the dogs, this spring I have taken her to sheep on 2 occasions. I'm getting a different reaction from what I was expecting. She is not acting as strong as she does with cattle, you might even say that she is “soft”. I guess she thinks they are delicate. So its back to basics. 

If you have read my blogs in the past you will know that I'm not a fan of round pens for basic training purposes. Her training will take place in a small pasture that is 3/4's hill side with lots of dips and mounds. I start out the training on the flats and then will move to the hill side to give variety.

Moving up the flank to head

 I firmly believe that if all the training is done in one location, ie flat and no obstacles, the dog will become bored very quickly and lose interest in the training sessions. In each training sessions I use my main dog as a training assistant. His main job is to guard the gate and when we get into a sticky situation to lend a hand.

Jim lending a hand

That new pup - what should I do

Having placed a number of pups from my latest litter, the new owners have asked for some hints and tips for settling the pups into their new homes. The following could apply to any pup. It is very important that the new owners treat the pup as a pup and not a little human in pups clothing.

1. The most important thing to keep in mind at this time is; THIS IS A PUP, LET IT BE A PUP. Pups are playful so let the pup play. This is how pups learn and it should help you later on when you start your training program.

2. The pups have been started on puppy chow and gradually changed over to a good quality dry dog food around 8 weeks of age. It would not hurt, if you are so inclined, to add a little raw meat to the diet. I feed the pups twice a day and usually as much as they will eat in a 15 to 20 minute time limit. I then remove the dish. If the pup is fed away from other dogs and in a quite location, the pup should eat slowly and chew its food completely. This aids in digestion. Water is very important to the pup but too much water can kill (see earlier post on this topic).

3. The only training in the early stages should be a recall and a sit stay command. This is not formal training but rather fun training and taking advantage of the situation ie if the pup sits you give the command. The commands I use are: For recall - “here”. Sit is sit. I do not teach any of my dogs or pups at any time, a down command.

4. The most important thing you can do is to have the pup with you as much as possible. This facilitates the bond that is so important in future training and ultimately will make training easier and faster. In the earlier stages of ownership I like to have a crate beside the bed and that is where the pup goes at night. As they grow older I move them to an outdoor kennel and run.

5. As early as possible the pup should wear a collar and you should start leash training as well. The collar should never be on the pup when the pup is by its self. It does not hurt to gradually start tying up the pup for short periods of time. This can be started around 3 months age.

These few hints will help you get started with your new partner but remember this IS A PUP LET IT BE A PUP.

Working the young dog

Well as our job continues my little Kate has her ups and downs. This could be attributed to the fact that she is pregnant.

As in all training, repetition is the key to success. I pick up a bale on the tractor and place it over the round bale feeder then get out of the tractor and with my main dog start to move the cattle away from the feeder. The young dog usually moves right in with my main dog and start to move the cattle away. This is when I start to introduce the command "walk up"

It is important that once you have the cattle away from the feeder that you stop the dog. I use the command "there".

Doing this procedure over a couple of weeks usually is all that is required before the dog start doing it on there own. This is the sign of a useful working companion.

To finish off each feeding session I like to
add a little more training in such as moving the
cattle together. Again I use the walk up command.
From this training I will start to move to the gathering
command,which incidentally, she has been doing it on her
own up to this time. This would be a good time to start putting commands to it. I want to do this slowly as she has it figured out what way to go around the cattle.

Onward and upward .. the training continues.

Feeding Cattle using dogs

Well it's that time of the year again. Each year at this time I, along with my dogs, head north to look after a ranch for 2 months while the owners get away for a holiday.... hmmmmm what's wrong with this picture ... I'm here and the owners are in Mexico??????

One of my main jobs here is the daily feeding of the cattle. I feed using round bale feeders and when the cows are hungry it can be a real gong show around the feeders. Not only that it can be very dangerous; first to the cattle ... I'm lifting large round bales that can kill if they are dropped on the cattle, and secondly, when I am backing up or moving around with the forks down it is a potential mine field for the cattle. and Thirdly, when I am cutting the plastic and netting from the bale I'm in danger from hungry cows.

So what is a person to do? Well the obvious answer is to use dogs to keep the cattle back until the bale is placed and I'm out of the way. Of course that is exactly what I do and it not only make the job a lot easier, it gives the dogs the work that they so want to do and enjoy doing it.

Where do you start in training your dog to do this very valuable and useful job? I like to start away from the work area and do a little basic training. If you have been following my post you will know that I'm not really big on commands but there is one that I always teach my dogs before I let them do this type of work. The command is "behind". I want my dogs behind the tractor and hay wagon when we are moving to the work site. The second command is "get them or get out". I want the cattle away from the feeder and the dogs in the early stages need to learn this command. Eventually both of these commands will be used only rarely as the dog begins to understand and will get the job done.

In my next post I will give more detail in keeping the cattle away from the feeders using my partners.

Beginning Training

At a recent clinic most of the participants came saying that there dogs did some work but they wanted to know how to control the dog ie sides and stopping. The common comment when the dog did not do what was expected was that the dog does work at home, or the dog will only work for me. These are common comments and point more to the handler then the dog. At this particular clinic every dog demonstrated to me, at one level or another, the ability to work. In other words if the drive was not strong, it can in most cases be brought out with the proper approach to training.

An other interesting observation is when the newbe trainer stands in one spot and attempts to direct the dog with their voice. As anyone who has successfully trained a working herding dog will attest, training is hard work and fantastic exercise. When a dog has good instincts, it is up to the trainer to help the dog understand what it is YOU want it to do. The only way I know how to do this is if you are there with the dog.

As far as the participants are concerned, they deserve high praise for participating in a clinic. As in most training situations, if you do not put into affect some of what you have learned with in a couple of days you will very likely have forgotten most of what you learned with in 10 days. Good on you and practice practice practice.

Exercise, Disipline, Affection

If you watch any TV these days you may recognize the title. You hear this frequently on the Dog Whisperer TV show. Well this applies to the herding dog as well, particularly the young herding dog. 9 times out of 10 when I am asked about the potential of a dog/pup, I find that the dog/pup receives no exercise, discipline is not consistant and affection is ALL ways given at the wrong time.

On the exercise part of this, the owner will ALL ways say that the dog/pup has the run of the place and gets lots of exercise. Again 9 times out of 10 this is not exercise. A dog needs to focus on the running part of the exercise and this just does not happen when they are "playing" around the yard or fields.

Now I understand the time limitations of the busy rancher/farmer. Some times taking a 1/2 hour first thing in the morning can be very theraputic. Using this time to exercise the dog/pup can also make the difference between a real valuable working stock dog and just a pet. I usually recommend that the owner take the dog for a run at least for 20 to 30 minutes. Now before you turn off, there is a simple way to do this. Most ranch's have a quad, 4X4, ATV, or what ever you want to call it. This is an excellent way to exercise your dog. At an appropriate speed ie. the dog running just behind the quad, at a comfortable rate, it not only benefit the dogs physical well being, but also his mental state. As an added bonus, the bonding will be strengthened also. And as an added added bonus, it will do the handler a world of good as well.

Thoughts?

Starting the stock dog pup

As I discussed in an earlier post I like to take a pup to stock at 5 or 6 months. This is not a training session but more of an evaluation session. What I am looking for is the reaction of the pup to stock. I usually use sheep for this and try to get a group of somewhat passive sheep if possible All I do is release the pup in the general area of the sheep and stand back and watch what happens. Several things can happen:

1. There will be no interest.
2. The pup may show some signs of curiousity.
3. The pup may advance towards the sheep.
4. The pup may charge the sheep.
5. The pup may start to circle (head) the sheep.

When checking this out you should try and have the sheep moving slowly. This may spark some interest to the pup. Now if there is no interest after a few moments, at this early age this is no real problem. The hormones and instinct have not kicked in yet. I will take the pup away and try again in about 1 month's time. There is no sense in trying to force the issue as you may end up doing more harm the good.

Now if the pup takes an immediate interest and starts to do something then I will give her a few minutes and then call the pup off. I want you to note what I said here: “I call the pup off”. This is very important because if you can not call the pup off you have not done your preliminary training. With a pup 5 to 6 months old and for that matter any new pup or dog, I will not expose them to sheep for at least 3 or 4 weeks later after this initial exposure.

Handlers have to accept the fact that not all pups can be started early. I have known dogs that were18 months before they were turned on. I'm not sure if I would want to wait that long and usually would place the dog in a good home.

If you take a look at the following picture, you will see a very young bitch pup displaying obvious herding instinct. No commands are attempted and she is allowed to “do her thing”.




She was first taken to sheep at 5 months and displayed similar behaviour. She is 6 months in this photo. I took her off the stock after approximately 5 minutes and chained her to a post while I did some training on another dog. When I finished the training session I let her have another short go at the sheep be for calling her off. I will follow this routine every couple of weeks and watch as her confidence builds. I suspect at 7-1/2 to 8 months she will be ready for daily training as well as doing some work with the other dogs.



Now this all may sound like I am trying to force the training issue. Quite the opposite. If a pup is ready then it will become more satisfying to the pup, after all, these are herding dogs and that is what they do. The key is don't force it. Also remember “exercise, discipline, then affection” makes for a happy pooch.

Until the next time

Bonding

Well you have a new pup. The question(s) is when should I start training. I am of the opinion that training can not start until there is a bond between you and the pup. Now if you look at that statement something should leap out at you! If the pup is going to bond to you then how can you send it away to be trained? That is a good question for which there is many answers, some good and some not so good. This will be the topic of another entry in the blog in the future

When I get a pup for myself, I start out with the pup spending a good part of the time with my wife. That mothering instinct goes along way to eventually bonding with me. A pup has to be a pup. A pup has to learn some basic manners and the mothering instinct usually facilitates this and usually in a very short period of time.

During this phase, I feed the pup, as I do with all my dogs. You know where I'm going with this. If I am feeding the pup the pup begins to see the association between me and the pack and quickly begins to find it's place in the pecking order. I also take the pup in the car/truck anytime I go on short trips. This is usually to town for one reason or another. When I am in town I will put a leash on the pup and take her for a short walk exposing her to different sounds, smells, noises, and people. Holding a leash during this time also allows her to associate me as the pack leader. Of course there is plenty of praise, at the appropriate time, which she will also associate with pleasing me as the leader

This routine will continue until she is ready for training. I will take the pup to, usually, sheep, the first time at about 6 months of age. If the interest is there in any form, then this is my que to having the pup move from my wife to me. The pup is now officially mine and will be with me most of the time. The the real bonding begins.

When I am asked to train a dog, I usually turn the possible engagement down for the reasons stated above. I am often asked to evaluate a dog to determine if it is ready for training or shows any interest. I have found quite often a handler will say they want to begin training a dog but there is no bond there. As most of my trainig is now handler training, I will usually send the handler home with instructions to bond with the dog. When this is done then I will start working with the handler and dog. Training goes much quicker and usually with better results.

There is some food for thought. Comments are always welcome

When is it time to quit?

I attended a cow dog trial the other day with my 11 year old Heading dog. You could tell that the desire was there but the power was not. After the trial he was exhausted. He slept for a long time and any time he moved he moaned and groaned. He was hurting. He tried but the results were not there. It is time for him to retire. Now what?

My thinking is that I will use him to help me train my new pup. Contrary to what some dog experts say!!!!!!!, dogs learn from each other. If you have a well trained dog, it is a good way to start your pup. I usually let the pup out with an experience dog and after a few moments of disaster, the experienced dog will get things under control and the pup begins to watch .... it's magic. It sure speeds up the initial basic training.

I would be interested in any comments on this topic

My Dog(s)

You will notice in the header picture a different looking cow dog. Most folks think that the only good stock dog is a Border Collie. Well I have not met to many of them I did not like. Having bred, raised, trained and worked BC's for many years, I just could not get the consistency I wanted in my breeding program. Also I encountered that aged old problem of getting only 1/2 to 3/4's of a day of work from them. I know that I will get lots of discussion on this and so be it.

In my BC breeding days, the most consistent question I would get from "working" folks was: Will your dogs work all day? I could not answer that question in the affirmative and that always struck me. I had good breeding stock and some as tough as nails, but the working all day in mountainous terrain, heavy bush, was always a problem.

I was introduced to a new breed, the "New Zealand Heading Dog", or some times called the "New Zealand Collie". The dog works with a heads up style and is a really great thinking dog. But more on that in a later post. What I have learned about stock handling and herding I attribute a lot to my dogs. This has also changed the way that I now approach training the working stock dog.

I will get into some thoughts on training in general in my next pot