Herding Dog
Monday, April 27, 2020
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Show dogs catch the popular eye, but in rural areas the worker rank tops. The show dog and the one used in the field provides a tremendous medium for sport throughout the country, but in the rural areas, the straight worker on cattle and sheep still has a place. The elementary obedience training that enters into the development of the others also plays a part in the foundation of the herding dog. He should, however, come of herd-dog stock, with the appearance of less importance than qualities of intelligence, agility and physique. The dog that comes of working parents has the herding instinct born into him. Dull or timid dogs should not be used. Some owners often prefer the male to the female.
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| Herding Dog |
It is particularly important that the herding dog is taught to walk at heel. A dog at the heel is always ready to carry out an order, and that is how you will want him when you start working him on his special task.
The first actual herding lesson should be on a narrow fenced road so that the animals cannot scatter. All commands to drive the animals should be given both orally and with a motion of the arm. In bad weather, the arm motion may be the only way a command can be given, so the dog should be made to use his eyes as well as his ears. Well-trained dogs often can receive commands from as far away as 300 or 400 yards.
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The command, "Hup 'em!" or "Drive on!" or any other words you choose should be given with the arm pointed horizontally. A stick or a white cloth in the left hand will help the dog observe the motion of the arm even if he is at a considerable distance. The dog should be encouraged to drive on the flock. If he is too aggressive, it may be necessary to keep him on a leash for the first few lessons. Later, a long cord may be used to restrain him from driving the animals too fast, which he may do at the start.
The command, "Slow" should be given and he should be checked with the leash or cord. To stop the dog, the command, "Stop” or "Down" should be given, accompanied by a downward gesture of the left hand. It usually takes from twenty to thirty days to teach a dog to drive a flock in the direction indicated and to make him understand that he must listen and watch the trainer for directions and commands.
The next step is teaching the dog to encircle the flock and bring the animals to you. The trainer should give the command, "Around!” pointing in the direction and advancing a few steps in that direction. A circling motion with the arm should be made when the command is given to show the dog the direction in which you want him to go.
A good beginning for this training is to get a few sheep (about a dozen) up against a fence in an open space, walk-in among them, making them scatter, and then encourage the dog to head them back into the flock. Do this several times, sometimes catching one of the sheep to help the dog understand that the idea is to bring the animals to you. Repeat this operation until he learns to hold the flock up against the fence. Drop the dog every now and then while you are working to keep him under complete control.
Next, the sheep should be driven into the centre of a large, open paddock. Order the dog down, then encourage him to run around the flock and bring the flock to you, giving the arm motion and the vocal command. As he circles in one direction, advance along the opposite side of the flock and when he is half-way around, at the head of the flock, give the "Come” command and he will circle around to meet you. As in the training for other tasks, praise should accompany each effort even though the performance is far short of perfection, which it undoubtedly will be at first.
The early drills will include teaching the dog to take hand and voice directions. Place the dog between you and the sheep. If you wish him to circle to the right, step to the right, with the right hand extended, and say, “This way,” at the same time giving the order to fetch. To have him go to the left, reverse the procedure.
To teach the dog to bring stray animals into the flock, point to the strays and give the command, “This way!" When he has reached the strays, make a sweeping gesture toward the main body of the flock and give the command, "Fetch them!" at the same time taking a few steps in the direction of the flock so that the dog will understand that he is expected to drive them into the flock. The same method should be used to train the dog to gather up sheep that have been left behind the flock, except the command, “Go back!” is used. If the dog starts to dart off in the wrong direction, drop him until he has cooled off and looks at you and is prepared to think about what he must do next.
When animals are being driven along a road, the dog must be taught to prevent them from turning off into a side road. To teach this, the dog should be urged forward to the front of the flock and stopped at the turn-off and told to "Stay,” so that he will station himself at the intersection and head off any animals that show an inclination to run up the side path.