First off, I only take Border Collies in to train. The other herding breeds think differently and I find I get along with the collies the best. I like for the dog to be a year old or at least very close to that age. Physically they are probably ready long before that but mentally they are still very immature and can't take any kind of pressure that goes along with training. Your dog should be current on all vaccinations and worming and please check it for fleas and ticks. To get the most for your training money, when the dog comes to me it should tie and lead. It should know it's name, have a "Lie Down" and know "That'll Do" to come to you. I charge $350 per month. That includes room and board and training 5 days a week for a month. If I should miss a training day for any reason, I will make it up on the weekends. If I'm not able to make it up, the fee would be pro-rated. I'll ask you to leave the first month's fee when you drop off your dog. If I decide during the first month that the dog is not talented enough to justify the cost of training, I'll recommend that you come and get it. I'll continue to try to teach your dog something until you arrive and at that point will reimburse you a pro-rated amount of your $350 that we've not used.
I've learned over the years, working many, many dogs, that when a dog is introduced to stock, he reacts based on his own instincts. It make take several sessions for those instincts to show up. Those instincts may be to herd, chase, bite, or do nothing. As I'll discuss in more detail, some of these instincts are more desireable than others. If your dog is exhibiting any of the less desireable instincts, I may recommend that you not leave it here for a full month of training. It's more cost effective to start over with a dog that has the right instincts than to try to make a herding dog out of a dog with no herding instincts.
Let's further discuss these different instincts. To me, all collies fall into one of several categories, the first of which is the herders. The herders have a natural gathering instinct and are easier to train. These dogs can be taught an outrun and do a better job of keeping stock together. Many, but not all, of these dogs lack a heel bite on cattle and therefore would lack a little 'push' on cattle that are dragging. But, they'll keep them in a bunch and headed in the right direction.
The Border Collie has added a new type of working dog(not officially, just in my opinion)over the last 20 years that differs from the original dogs brought in from overseas. The dogs brought in from overseas had natural gathering instincts, big outruns and stock sense. They tried to finese stock in the right direction by staying in the flight zone and allowing the stock to move away from their pressure out of respect and not fear. They used force as a last resort or in very tight places. As these dogs were used for cattle more and more, some decided they needed more bite in their dogs and therefore proceeded to select for bite. Sometimes, many times, this was done at the expense of brains and good gathering instinct. These dogs without natural outruns and good stock sense have infiltrated pedigrees all over the United States. It's very seldom that I see a natural outrunning, put 'em in a pile and keep 'em in a pile, kind of a dog. Most want to use their mouth first and see what happens after that. Sometimes you have to use extreme measures to get them to stop thinking about biting and try to get them to think about herding. If you do use those extreme measures, some will just quit working, period, because they don't have any herding instinct in them. I call these 'alligators'. 'Alligators' will usually bite a cow or grab a sheep or goat anywhere anytime. This is not what most people want. I don't like using extreme measures so if you bring me an 'alligator', I will call you and ask you to come get it and take it to someone else.
Another category of border collies that I see a lot of are what I call 'chasers'. The chasers usually have very little if any natural herding instinct. These dogs want to bite the heels of livestock with no regard to which way the stock is headed and this chases the stock away from the dog. Hence the name,'chasers'. These dogs are very difficult to train to gather long distances. It's just not in their DNA. They can be taught a short outrun and to 'balance', which is working opposite the handler. The problem is getting them on the other side when you have to send them out after the stock. They will usually end up running through the livestock and maybe chasing some away. When taking a herding dog to a group of 10 head of livestock, the dog sees 1 group of 10. When taking a chaser to the same group, it sees 10 groups of 1. If you can get to the stock and remind the dog of your presence, you might get them to balance and to start bringing the stock to you. They are usually better suited for pen work or arena work. That way if they don't go around to the back side of the stock, at least the fence will keep the stock from getting away. They can be used in the pasture if you're able to ride right up to the stock before you send the dog around. It sometimes takes a long time to train a dog like this to make an outrun if it is possible for them to learn it. They'll usually learn it faster if it is an important part of some of the work they have to do. Then it becomes part of their routine and necessry for them to 'kick out' and go around. Teaching balance and left and right can be done in a month or two. Then you can take them home and let them learn some type of an outrun through their work.
When you bring in your dog for training, I'll be trying to make friends with your dog, evaluate it's desire to work, it's willingness to let me train it, and what it's natural instincts are. If it's more of a chaser than a natural herder, I can get it balancing and going left and right and then send it home to do limited work. If the dog is a natural herder and can be taught an outrun, then it should be able to learn all phases of stock work, gathering, driving, and shedding and it'll be up to you when we quit. The dog has to be willing to let me train it. If it's not willing, I can't train it. At least not by my methods. That's why in my article referred to later, 'Raise Your Puppy So Someone Can Train It', I stress how important it is not to let your puppy work stock on it's own or to use it to work stock before it comes to the trainer. If this happens, the puppy is thinking that it doesn't need to listen to you or me. It already figured everything out on it's own. If a dog has that type of attitude, you would need to take it to someone who trains with an electric collar.
In my opinion, if you're wanting a dog to gather sheep and/or goats, then you want a 'herder'. An 'alligator' just tears up your stock and so does a 'chaser'. You might get some gathered with a 'chaser' because of the tremendous flocking instinct of the sheep and goats. It won't be pretty but you probably won't have them scattered everywhere. Then if the dog will balance to you or walk with you, you can get them gathered and moved.
If you're wanting to work cattle, again I know you would prefer a herder. Because cattle don't have as strong of a 'flocking' instinct as sheep and goats, they are more likely to take off on their own. And, if they've got a dog behind them when they do, a 'chaser', you're probably going to have to fix fence or plan on coming back later for that one. You send a 'chaser' out after cattle and you'll have cattle scattered everywhere. That's like having 2 good riders quit on you. If you're working big country or working by yourself, the herding instinct of the dog will be the most important instinct you'll need. You can help push a lot easier than you can put 2 runaways back in the herd. So to me, just my opinion, the bite becomes secondary to the herding instinct. If a dog is prone to chase, we can try to get the dog to be very obedient up close. Then as long as you keep the dog close to you and under control, he's less likely to get his chance to chase something off.
If you're sending your dog to be trained so it can go home and work cattle, in some cases, I won't be able to make a full determination of the dog's suitablility for that job in just 2 weeks. I don't like fixing fence either so I've got to get the dog under enough control( training it on the goats ) before I can trust it on the calves. Here's what might happen. I'm working it on the goats, teaching it a small outrun, stop and fetch. Looking good. We go to the cattle. I spot some calves in the middle of the pasture. I get them to moving away and when they are about 20 or 30 yards away, I send your dog just like I did on the goats. Your dog( that was making a nice little outrun on the goats ) now only goes about halfway around and cuts in behind the cattle pushing them away. Why? The dog is afraid to go to the head of the cattle. I couldn't tell, on the goats, that the dog would be afraid to go to the head of cattle. So now, on cattle, the dog is a 'chaser'. I'll let you know and see what you want to do but it may take a month for me to know this.
When you do take your dog home to work cattle, keep this in mind. When you and your dog are both out there, both of you are a source of pressure to the cattle. In most cases, you are a greater source of pressure to the cattle unless you have a bag of cubes in your hands. Let's say your dog was here for 2 or 3 months and was working really good. Outrunning, fetching the calves, driving, etc...Now you want to fetch some cattle into the corral for sorting or something. You've had the dog around them so they're sort of dog broke, so you send the dog from the gate and you stand at the gate like you saw me do with my calves. The dog gets them close but now they're breaking back on the dog and it's working back and forth trying to get them to the gate. The cattle may be breaking back because you're putting pressure on them to not go in. "No, I'm not" you say. Yes you are, just by standing close. You're in the way the same way your brother-in-law was in the way the last time he tried to help you pen the cows. The only way you can get away with that, like I did, is if going through the gate is a 'draw' to the cattle. At my house, going through the gate meant the cattle got to go back to their bedding area. If you've got other cattle in the pen that they can see or hear, that's a draw. Or if inside the pen is where you feed, that's a draw. But if the pen's empty, then they have no 'want to' to go in the pen and with you close to the gate, you being the greater pressure, they are turning away from the greater pressure towards the lesser pressure, the dog. Now you're questioning the dog's ability to work cattle. Here's what you do. Send the dog from the gate. This gives the dog a reference point as to where you want the cattle brought to. This is using the 'Natural Balance' instinct in the dog. He brings them back to the point that you sent him from. Stand very still as long as the fetch is going good. When the cattle reach a point where they start to notice you, then walk away. You can eventually swing around and help the dog if you think it's necessary but at least get away from the gate. Far enough that the dog becomes the greatest pressure on the cattle. I don't mean to insult anyone's intelligence with this explanation. After all, you've been working cattle for years and now I'm trying to tell you how to pen cattle. But you have not used a dog before. Now, instead of just having to think about where you need to be you also have to think about where the dog needs to be or where the dog is. You may be thinking that the dog is taking your place so it doesn't matter where you are but remember you are still a source of pressure just by being there. Before you got the dog, you drove the cattle up. Where were you? Not by the gate. You were on the opposite side of the cattle from the gate, where the dog is now. You were the greatest pressure on the cattle. If someone came up while you were trying to pen and they weren't on your side with you, you probably asked them to get back out of the way. That's what you've got to do for your dog.
If you have a puppy you might want to send to me at some later date, then let me refer you to my article on raising puppies. If a puppy is not raised right, they can be very difficult or impossible to train. Just like sending your kid to 1st grade. They have to have some manners and respect for the teacher before any learning can take place. The same holds true for dogs. If you'll follow my guidelines then your dog will be ready for training when it's old enough and the only question remaining will be what are it's instincts. RAISE YOUR PUPPY SO SOMEONE CAN TRAIN IT
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