BEGINNER HERDING
Once you have the foundation in place you're ready to build your herding skills.
This set of six lessons allows you and your herding dog to grow in confidence with your choice of livestock.
These will be held in a variety of small arenas so you can gradually increase in difficulty and gain experience, as you practice real-life herding skills and learn to communicate with your dog. Set of Six Lessons/ 30-40 minutes each
SHEEP
Week 1
GEESE
DUCKS
GOATS
Designed for dogs and their guardians who already know the basic principles and have been instinct tested , but are looking to develop their skills on specific livestock under the guidance of an instructor. We'll progressively begin teaching your dog the concepts of: Lie-down, Calling Off Stock, Taking Sheep Off a Fence, Lengthening the Small Outrun, Holding Sheep To a Fence, Developing and Moderating Pace. Your dog will also become familiar with classic sheepdog terminology: Come Bye (Come with the Clock), Away (Away from the clock), Lie Down/Stand, Walk up/Get up, This, Here/ That'll Do. *Please note* for Ducks/Geese they remain inside of a containment pen or on a leash until the herding dog in training can sufficiently demonstrate the control and restraint needed for them to be released (this means a calm, relaxed demeanour, flank commands and lie down).
While familiarization with commands is a key component of beginner herding, the overriding goal in these classes is to cultivate the desire to work with a good mindset, introducing structure gradually when the dog is ready. Your dog enjoys the benefit of advancing their skills on different stock with different style and temperaments that introduce a variety of herding concepts. Eg. the goats follow a person very willingly, and ducks help teach pace. When all of these are put together it can make an excellent, truly capable and versatile herding dog with natural 'feel' for stock.
