I tried repeatedly to post this to Facebook but it wouldn’t work so I decided I’d just put it here.  This is a video clip of Quinn and I working this morning.  It’s far from perfect but if you are one of the folks who has seen him over the past year or so you’ll know what a giant step this is.  For him to listen to me and work off this flighty a group is awesome progress.  We still have a ways to go but there is a light at the end of the tunnel and it’s not a train.  Which even at the beginning of this year, this would have been.  He had been super reactive around stock this light.  Oh heck, even heavy stock.  Wouldn’t lie down, wouldn’t back off, just charged in and made a mess.   We did have one sticky, older ewe in at the beginning which I sorted off.   I actually like working Quinn again.    Please let me know if you can’t view the video.  Thanks, Sue, for filming.

With the radar looking like this:

And the sky looking like this:

The normal Sunday morning gathering of the SBSDC and guests was canceled for fear of being stormed on.  Since there wasn’t even a rumble of thunder yet I decided to beat the storms and get in some work with Rowan and Quinn as the countdown to August goes on.  As I’m writing this I think the blob of orange has arrived.  Quite a bit of noise and a heavy downpour.

But, prior to the unleashing of Mother Nature’s temper, I did manage to work both dogs.  Rowan is always first since she has to bring the ewes in and do the sorting.  I had planned on working her in the arena today so we needed to move the lambs into one of the take pens.  They were all hanging out by the first panel (course B) which gave me the opportunity to practice Row’s outruns and gathers from a distance.  I downed her behind the center pen and sent her from my side on an away.  She was a little flat so I downed her part way there and tried sending her again.  She did a better job of it, got behind the lambs, scooted them out of the corner and headed them down the fence line.  Things were going relatively well.  Rowan wasn’t being over pushy, the lambs were being fairly calm, I had the gate propped open and it was looking like a slam dunk.  Isn’t it amazing how things are not always as they appear?

The lambs decided they didn’t see the open gate.  That or perhaps they decided it was some big, evil, lamb-eating trap.  In either case they veered past the opening at the last minute and started to break toward the far end of the arena.  Here’s where a dog who’s decided she’s all about driving has a problem.  Instead of flanking out to their heads to stop the sassy buggers, Row dropped in behind them and proceeded to drive them away.  Yes, I was telling her what I’d rather she do but she was dead set on doing things her way.  Hmmm….doesn’t that sound like her mother.

Okay.  Down the dog.  Let the lambs settle.  Try the whole thing again.  This time as we got near the pen I strategically downed Row and moved in on the lambs myself.  We gradually pushed them closer and closer.  Row walking up when I asked, downing nicely, walking up, downing, staying down as the lambs squeezed past and scampered once more toward the far end of the arena.  Never say dogs aren’t smart arses.  Rowan’s expression clearly said, “Hey, last time they started to go I did what I thought I was supposed to and you yelled at me.  Go get ‘em your own self.”

Take three.  Now Row was getting a bit sick and tired of the whole game and her outrun was less than inspiring.  I decided I’d change tactics and just have her move the lambs around a bit.  They need dog breaking and Row needed something else to do.  That tactic proved to be a lot more successful for both of us.

Once we were done we brought in the ewes and yearlings, sorted a group into a pen for Quinn and Rowan called it a day.  I put Quinn in a down in the alley off the take pens, swung the pen gate open, backed into my sheep and asked him to walk up.  That part he has good.  A nice, steady walk, watching the stock, balancing.  I downed him and asked him to get back.  This, of course, is what we’re working on.  Release the pressure on the stock and get off my pressure.  I had to give him a few reminders and step into him, but I was using mainly a regular stick, voice, and body so for him that was a good bit of work.

Then I had him walk into the pen and down, swung the gate in on us and had him walk up to push the sheep into the small arena.  All very nicely done and a good down outside the gate as I got it chained.  Then it was more work on moving back and away before approaching the sheep.  His down was less than stellar so I needed to remind him a few times, but the rest of it was not bad.  I had to use the cattle paddle but by the end of the session probably could have switched back to a normal stick.  We did a few walk ups with my back to him and dropping him as he got beside me and the sheep moved on.  A little bit of flanking and a short walk.  It was a tad slick and I couldn’t get to him quick enough to get him to square up so I had him do a nice repen and called it a morning.

With thunder rumbling in the distance I called it a day.  Here’s hoping the weather cooperates this week and I get in some steadier work.

It occurred to me today there are roughly 50 some days until the Outback trial.  No big deal except I *really* intended on trialing Rowan and possibly Quinn and, well, regular work has not been happening.  So I began today.  Of course, it had to be super hot and humid, my least favorite type of weather.  And then there were the horseflies that have decided I taste much like horse.  Or they’re deer flies.  In either case, I’m not a horse or a deer.

I do have to say that things started out super awesome.  It was the kind of moment I regret having no one there to see and not having on video.  The ewes were in the far pasture so Rowan and I headed up the alleyway around the arena to bring them in.  This has been a near nightly job for Row, bringing in either the ewes or the lambs and putting the opposite group out.  I usually don’t have a stick with me but tonight I had grabbed one and brought it along, intending on working on her outrun and fetch.  Usually a close in, slight split, look back, hey slow down! sort of outrun and fetch.  Tonight, however, was a thing of beauty.  Row started out-pacing me before we reached the end of the arena.  I let her go thinking she’d do her usual trot out into the field then turn and look for me.  The ewes were all the way across the far end of the field so a good 250  feet or more away.  Rowan turned through the gate and hugged the arena fence line until she got almost even with the ewes, then headed out on a way to me.  I never said a word, just watched from the gate to see what she would do.  This kind of distance for her is not normal.  I could see two ewes hanging back but because of how tall the grass is wasn’t sure Row saw them.  The rest of the group started moving and I was about to yell to Row to look back but she kicked out around the stragglers and 28 sheep were heading steadily toward me.  Now usually this is done at a high rate of speed with me yelling to Row to steady up.  As she turned and settled in behind the ewes I held my stick up and Row immediately slowed.  The sheep pushed past me and down the alley and Row walked up looking very pleased with herself.

And well she should have been.  I know I was.  After that, she decided it was too hot and humid to do training.  Not her favorite thing anyhow.  So I did a few things with her and put her up.

Quinn I took into the wide alleyway, opening the take pen full of sheep, stepped back into them and asked him to walk up.  He came up nice and steady, dropped when I asked, and then I made him get back.  Remember, this is our weak point right now.  I had to step into him but he went.  We did that three or four times then I took him into the small arena for the first time in a month or so.  He forgot what the get back was the first couple of times I asked for it.  Thankfully he remembered his down.  I didn’t work him very long, just enough to get two or three nice gives out of him.  Get backs where he actually moved away from me and the stock and not just wider on a flank.

One day down, 5o some to go!

I had to trim Lace’s feet yesterday and it was a battle.  That’s nothing new.  It’s the same battle we’ve been having for the past 15 years.  I explain to her how shorter nails and less hair between her pads will make walking easier for her and coincidentally less noisy for me.  She doesn’t care.  She never has.  The only difference this time around was that I couldn’t help from wondering how many more times we’d get to have this battle.

Not that Lace has given any indication she’s heading for the Bridge any time soon.  Quite the opposite.  For a 15 1/2 year old she’s going strong.  Still does the stairs, several times a day, which amazes quite a few people.  Still takes long walks all over the yard in her old dog wanderings, sometimes even breaking into a run just because she feels like it.  But her front feet are breaking down a little and she’s stiffer now when she gets up from a long nap.  She slides off the couch instead of leaping down.  Her health is good.  Her heart going strong.  All things considered the years are treating her kindly.

But the reality is Lace is old.  Ancient, in dog years.  And even though life is tenuous at best by it’s very nature, hers is made even more so by the mere toll of the years.

I’ve thought about what course I’ll take when she leaves us.  I was looked at in shock when a non-dog person overheard me discussing digging a hole for her before winter, just in case.  They were mortified that I would even consider it and here I thought I was just being practical.  We pre-arrange our own funerals, yet I’m not supposed to plan for the inevitable loss of a dog?  I tease Dave that I’m going to have her stuffed, lying down, head on her paws, ears up, eyes open, and lay her on the couch staring at him.  It’s one of her favorite past times.  Although at this point I can’t be sure she really sees him from her vantage point.  But he’s always in the same place on the couch so it hardly matters.

I tell myself I’ll be strong and not weepy when she goes but I know that won’t be the case.  She’s been an awesome dog and we humans are selfish creatures.  We don’t want to lose something that’s ours, something that holds a piece of our heart.  And dogs become such a part of our lives.  Even with five others, I know the house will seem oddly empty when she goes.  The baby gate will no longer be needed at the top of the stairs to keep her from wandering all night.  There won’t be wispy, white, evasive fluffs of Lace hair everywhere I look.  There won’t, at least for a time, be a full time house dog (Dave would say never but I know differently).  I won’t have my shadow following my every move and tripping me when I turn unexpectedly and we’ll finally be able to replace the patio screen door which Lace pops out of the tracks whenever she wants to go out and we’re not paying attention.

What I will have are all the memories, the photos, the video I just came across of Lace and I doing agility in her younger days.  I’ll have her sons and daughter here to remind me of her constantly, although none of them have her wicked fine sense of humor.  I’ve got her grandson as well.  I’ll have all the little bits and pieces of her life here, things that were hers that will be passed on to another dog.  And even when she’s no longer with us in body she’ll still be hanging around, of that I’m certain, watching over her kingdom and making sure everything is running according to plan and that she knows precisely where everyone is at all times.

I’m hopeful she’ll spend another Christmas with us, and see another crop of spring lambs.  But if she decides to leave before then I’m okay with it.  I’ll still be sad but I’ll be okay.  She’s been a pushy, independent, alpha bitch if ever there was one, traits that have not diminished with age and won’t, I’m sure, in whatever after life dogs enjoy until they are reunited with their people.

And in her honor, my first attempt at adding a video to the blog, I’m still trying to figure out how to do this so hopefully it works.  An old agility run from 10 years ago.  My handling has greatly improved since then but it was fun to watch.

Working with dogs can be extremely rewarding, not to mention a whole lot of fun.  There’s nothing like working hard at getting your dog to understand some new skill and then putting the pieces together and watching it flow.  On the flip side, training can be very frustrating.  There are times when you aren’t sure how to make your dog understand what you want, think your dog ought to already know what you’re asking for, or have reached one of those plateaus where it seems you’re either taking steps backwards or not moving at all.  Throw livestock into the mix and you have a whole new level of frustration, especially if you’re not used to dealing with stock on a regular basis.  Suddenly your dog knows way more than you and, worse, knows he knows more than you.  Depending on your relationship with your dog that’s going to be either a blessing or a curse.  A good dog can save your bacon when you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time.  A good dog with a wicked sense of humor may or may not be inclined to be so generous.

The more I work with dogs the easier it’s become to accept that some days it’s just not going to happen.  You’re not in the mood, or the dog isn’t, the stock isn’t, or maybe the planets are just out of alignment.  Whatever the case, sometimes it’s better just to forget training and do something else.  And sometimes you just need a reminder that it really is all about the little stuff.  Your dog holds that down for longer than it takes to turn your back.  He squares up on a flank.  He moves off your pressure.  You don’t trip over your own feet trying to get around the sheep.  If we only count the big success and forget all the little steps it took to get there we’re going to spend so much time being frustrated we might as well give up dog training all together.

About then it’s time to sit back and ask yourself why you’re doing this.  For me the short answer is, because I enjoy it.  The long answer has to do with loving my particular breed of choice and wanting to do my small bit toward preserving what they were created to do.  And, yes, some days it’s harder than others to take joy in the little accomplishments.  Some days I’m as frustrated as the next person to be backing up so far in my training it feels like starting over.  But at the end of the day I wouldn’t trade any bit of it.  I’ve met some great people through my dogs.  I’ve learned a lot through my dogs.  Life is fraught with frustrations.  How many sources of that frustration will love you no matter what?

One of the training exercises Steve introduced us to at the clinic is what he calls The Circle Game.  It’s what he likes to start a lot of his working sessions with.  I’ve actually done a variation of this game with my dogs and have had my students do it with theirs.  However, lacking the solid foundation mentioned in yesterday’s post, it wasn’t quite the same nor quite as effective in the long run.  I used it mainly to solidify verbal and visual flanking cues as well as get my dog comfortable dropping anywhere on the circle.  Which, with Quinn, meant a lot of pushing out and arguing about downing.  The pushing out that I thought was him giving to me but was really avoidance.

Steve’s version of the circle game assumes your dog has a down, a get back, and an understanding of what moving off your pressure is all about.  The Foundation.  The dog starts in a down, is given a get back (Steve uses “go” but since my dogs are already somewhat accustomed to “get back” I’ll continue to use that), there, down, and then a flank.  At any point in the game if the dog starts pushing, you push back.  Just remember to keep praising your dog when they are right and use the opportunity to repeat the verbal flanking cue as your dog is circling.  In the beginning you’ll use verbal, visual, and body language to cue your dog.  As the dog starts to get it, you start dropping one cue at a time until the dog is working only on verbal.  If the dog is wrong, tell them no, lie them down, start it again.

From this exercise you can then start working on fetching and the basics of driving.  The real benefit of The Circle Game as I see it is that you are solidifying some very basic commands that will be the basis of everything you do going forward.  The down, get back, and your flanks, combined with a steady or easy gives you just about every command you’ll need while working.  If your dog knows to give to your pressure, getting them to steady up as they approach the stock becomes a much simpler process.  Especially when they have firmly grasped the visual cue for the get back.  If they know that cue is a raised stick and you’ve proofed them on it, as you drop into a fetch and feel the dog pushing a bit you can simply raise your stick to get him to slow down.

This will be the next step in my re-training of Quinn.  As we progress from the alleyway we’ll start playing The Circle Game to solidify our foundation.

Foundation: By definition a basis upon which something stands or is supported.  An underlying base or support.  A body or ground upon which something is built up or overlaid.

By definition, a pretty import piece of any endeavor.

There are very good reasons to have a firm foundation.  Without one, whatever is built on that spot figuratively or literally, will be precarious at best.  Which begs the question why, in dog training, so many people (myself included) skimp on the foundation work?  Or skip it altogether?

The importance of a truly solid foundation was just one of the take-aways from the clinic with Steve Shope this past weekend.  I would highly recommend anyone who can get to one of Steve’s clinics, do it.  Even if you’re just able to audit, it would be worth your while.

I went into the clinic with one goal: get the answer to what had short-circuited between Quinn and I.  I wasn’t expecting a miracle.  But I did need some guidance as to how to get back to where we worked as a team and he wasn’t always pushing on me.  This has been an on-going problem and I thought we were making strides in the right direction until the first time in the pen with him Saturday morning.  It wasn’t horrendous but it took Steve only a matter of minutes to figure out what I couldn’t see for myself and had no one else to tell me.  Quinn has absolutely no idea that he should be giving to my pressure.  Where I thought he was finally giving because he was turning away and working wider was only avoidance.

We had apparently skipped a critical foundation step.

Truth be told, when I started Quinn the only foundation I had on him was a down and a recall.

His down has become something of a slow motion maneuver which was only one of several indicators that Quinn (dubbed “the player”) has gradually trained me.  He would give me just so much and I would accept it.  I have been accepting it.  Sort of like this.  I’d ask for a down and he’d stop.  I’d repeat my command and he’d start to crouch.  I’d step toward him and threaten and he’d crouch a little lower.  One more threat and he’d finally, grudgingly lie down.  And give to me?  To my pressure?  Yeah, not so much.

We weren’t the only team in the clinic with that issue so we set up a narrow alleyway using my weave poles and some duck arena panels and Steve started teaching us how to show our dogs what we wanted when we asked them to “get back”.  What we expected when we showed them some pressure.  This is one of the foundation pieces Steve believes in teaching his dogs before they ever get on stock. 

Here’s a picture of the alleyway we set up.  It is roughly 3’x20’ with the back end blocked so the dog can’t just run out.  The object is to stand at the mouth of the alley, show your dog the cue, and have him turn and go to the back of the alley.  Then have him lie down.  Obviously it happens gradually and Steve made a point of making sure everyone understood this wasn’t something to work on for more than a few minutes a day.  You can do the same thing in a hallway in the house although this alley works well because I can have sheep in the picture by putting them in the pen at the mouth of the alley and making the dog get back away from the prize.

This is a picture of the eventual goal, or at least my eventual goal. 

To get your dog to give to your pressure and get back down the length of this alleyway.  Then up the stakes one more time, put sheep behind me and get him to get back off my pressure and away from the stock.

This exercise, this foundation piece, is only one of a handful that Steve discussed with us.  All building up to more control when starting to work stock.  It’s the first foundation piece I’m going to work on with Quinn.  He already began getting it on Sunday.  I didn’t take him back into the arena Sunday.  I had Steve coach me on the alleyway exercise to ensure I had the concept down pat.  Quinn won’t be going back on stock until his down, and his get back are firm.  There is just no sense to it.  To work him without those foundation pieces is just building on sand and I’ve done enough of that.

I plan to video the progression and will post clips as I get them.

Oh, and SBSDC, start planning a trip to New Mexico!

When you do a search on the internet for quotes regarding plans and planning, you come up with quite a few.  Not just the well known ones (like the one referenced in the title of this entry) but one’s like Mike Tyson’s quote, “Everyone has a plan – until they get punched in the face.”  Or this from Ben Bayol (whoever he is), “Most plans are just inaccurate predictions.”  Plans are, depending who you talk to, either necessary, ridiculous, or fruitless.  All I know for sure is they oftentimes do go astray.

As I write this, Steve is stuck in Dallas/Fort Worth and won’t be able to get a flight into Milwaukee until tomorrow morning.  So even though my order for great weather was filled here in Wisconsin, apparently the same is not so for the Southwest.  Tornadoes, hail, bad, nasty weather in general.

Our best laid plan has gone astray.  But not to worry.  We’ll just start a little later in the day and folks will get a chance to sleep in.  That’s the plan now.  But do I dare even call it a plan?  Am I cursing it by the very labeling of it?  <shrug>  Who knows.  I guess we’ll just play it by ear and hope for the best.  That’s about all we can do at this point.

So my plans to work Quinn this week are so far not panning out.  The weather has not been cooperative.  I did take him to bring in the lambs yesterday.  Kept him on lead and made him lie down several times as we approached their flight zone.  He was showing me he would have liked to have given chase and that’s not something I allow with lambs.  Bad enough when he acts like that with adults.

Anyhow, in lieu of anything else I thought I’d share this picture of a bird nest I found on our new walking trail.  I’m not sure what birds gathered up the hair off my sheep and made themselves this lovely masterpiece of an abode but it’s nice to know it’s put to good use.