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Start training a young puppy on sheep (2 of 2)

Further training for puppy Ezra on sheep, out in the open field.

Subtitles: French*, Spanish* or English, click CC on viewer (*translation errors).

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Picture of a young puppy being trained to work sheep

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VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

Puppy Ezra’s confidence grows as he learns to control sheep in the open field.
Watch Ezra’s second lesson, in real time.
Pretty impressive! Let’s look at the action in detail.
Ezra’s not too young to be corrected!
Using body position to change the dog’s direction.
Correct the dog for splitting the sheep, then encourage him on.
Following him round gently waving the stick to keep the dog out.
Using body position to change the dog’s direction (too many sheep)
The dog’s confidence grows every time a sheep turns away from it.
Waving the dog out to stop it splitting the sheep up.
Ezra keeps the sheep together without any help.
Too many sheep!
Time to stop the session..?
Kay keeps the sheep together.
Controlling the dog with the training stick and body position.
Attempting to stop the dog by blocking it.

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Further training for puppy Ezra on sheep

In part 2, we take young Ezra to the sheep again, but this time, give him a little more guidance and lots of encouragement. We also see signs of Ezra’s confidence growing and learn that nine sheep is too many for this early stage of a dog’s training.

WATCH NEXT…
Starting A Strong Dog | (top ⇧)

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Andy
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Comments

4 responses to “Start training a young puppy on sheep (2 of 2)”

  1. Scott Michael Brennan avatar
    Scott Michael Brennan

    Will sheep naturally come towards you, the human shepherd, for protection? does this depend upon the shape of the pen? Does one need to establish a bond with the sheep?

    Reply
    1. Andy avatar
      Andy

      Sheep don’t come naturally to humans, they will run away from both man and dog if they can. If the sheep are contained in a small area for training a dog though, they are less afraid of the human than they are of the dog. They soon learn that if they stay close to the man, he or she will keep the dog away from them.
      This is why it’s easier to train a dog with sheep which are experienced with dogs. They remain calm, and the dog can go round them more easily.
      If the sheep are calm, the dog will be calmer, too.
      It’s worth watching the video “Get off the fence” to learn how to keep sheep off the fence and in the middle of the training area.

      Reply
  2. Ray Cooper avatar
    Ray Cooper

    I understand the usefullness of using the stick. One of my dogs is quite wary of it to the point where he won’t switch on if I carry it. What can I do?

    Reply
    1. Andy avatar
      Andy

      The stick as we use it, is simply a training aid. If it’s preventing the dog from working, it could be that you’re using it too enthusiastically (or aggressively). The best way to test this is to let the stick hang down vertically from your hand, close to your body (in front of you). If the dog is still frightened of the stick when you do this, then ditch it and use your hands instead.
      Once the dog gets more keen to work, you could gently try the stick again – maybe a shorter one…
      Watch The training stick tutorial.

      Reply

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