We finally got out to work sheep this evening after days of afternoon rain and slippery mud. I was afraid we’d be stepping back a few steps after a 5-day layoff but once again, Moss surprised me. He just picks up where he left off the last time.

We worked on a down stay so I can get in front of the sheep. I’ve worked him maybe 4/5 times on teaching him to stay and he did it right in front of the sheep. Whata boy! He is really one smart little dog.

One smart dog.

He is learning both directions although come bye is his better side. He’s still fast but once in a while he slows down on his own. I can’t wait until we can go again in the bigger pen. I think with another dog to hold the sheep we’d be fine now.

Dog Collars

I just wrote a bit about choosing a collar, halter or harness for your dog. It’s on Wizzley HERE. Let me know what you think.

Moss was so good to model all these for me!

 

Being able to work Moss on sheep for 3 consecutive days has made a world of difference.He has slowed down and even glanced at me a few times as if to ask me what he’s supposed to be doing. The problem was the pen had 3 corners that the sheep could crowd into and Moss has started flopping back and forth, not able to bring them out. I realized that I was trying to push him into the corner to get the sheep out and he was resisting. The light dawned. I backed up and let him just bring me the sheep along the fence line. That did it. He not only brought them along but then could slip in and get them in the middle of the pen. The pen’s already too small for him and I’m concerned that he’ll learn to stay too close to the sheep but maybe once I have some control, I can try him in the bigger pen again.

But, boy, isn’t he ever the good dog when we come home!

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Sheep Dog Lesson

The original pen.

Moss was just too out of control on sheep. The pen was so big that at one time three of us couldn’t catch the long line he was dragging.  He wouldn’t listen to me at all since he can run faster than I can and would be at the other end of the paddock before I could do anything about it.

We made a smaller pen for the wild man today. I thought it was going to be too small, but it turned out that for today, it was just right. I could get myself into position and block him when I needed to. He even took the command to lie down 5 or 6 times. That’s huge! And we spent some time just standing there chillin’ since he usually acts like a husky about to be hooked up on the dogsled team, barking and rearing to go.

There’s another pen we can put the panels across and make a slightly bigger pen and gradually enlarge it until he’s a bit more under control. I’m just thrilled to actually get to train him. I’ve been invited to come out the next two days while the owner is working horses and help myself to pen and sheep. Yahoo!

Why I Love Dogs

There was a challenge on Squidoo to write about my life. Since I already had written one for Squidoo “Who the Heck is Ragtime Lil?” and one for Wizzley, “My Life So Far”, I decided to write about my dogs. The article is “What I Love About Dogs.”

Hope you like it.

Midnight Ramble

I woke up this morning with the dogs beside the bed as usual. I thought it was a little warm, and a little light…as I got up, I realized that the door was open. Apparently the dogs had been outside to take care of business. Now they were back inside – but what happened in between?

I’ll have to try to fix a safety latch on the door. It’s a little sprung and hard to close sometimes. We’re too close to a busy road to have dogs wandering around while I’m asleep. That will NEVER do!

 

Moss and Doc taking a nap.