Breakthroughs

Today on my day off I took a trip to work dogs. Those who need to know who I went to already know, but since she doesn't participate in the world of blogs and I don't know her well, I'll just refer to her as "C". Anyway, we had one of the most productive days EVER! C knows Rae well, so that makes it especially helpful to take a lesson from someone who knows your dog's strengths and weaknesses. She helped me to see that Rae's eye is causing us a bit of trouble, so we worked on some eye-breaking exercises. One was to force her to take the "hard" flank, ie go around the sheep in the opposite way that she naturally wants to depending on the draw. We did this along the fence near the barn, and I shush'ed her to see which way she wanted to go. Then I'd stop her and make her go the other way. Another exercise we worked on from this set-up was getting her to be a little more square. Rae is naturally very square and I've not noticed this to be a problem except in tight spaces or high-pressure situations. C had me stand a couple steps in front of Rae off to one side so that when I flanked her, she had to go around me in order to be right. If she cut in front of me, I called her back and as soon as she turned her head out properly I flanked her again. Finally, I had her push the sheep around the field doing some more mechanical work - making sure that she stopped when told and flanked freely without getting hung up. I was very pleased with what we accomplished, and Rae had quite the workout in such a big field!

Those who know Ella's history will understand how big this next news is: The Merlefriend got a turn in the round pen. The short version of Ella is that she has always shown glimpses of nice work, but she seemed very frantic in the round pen and had trouble slowing down to think. She was very difficult for me to work, and no matter what the correction, I couldn't get this dog to give me an inch. She was going to do it her way, not mine. I had trouble getting her out of mindless circling in the round pen, but in the big field she just chased sheep and held them in the corner. I'd given her time off, then started again with her last winter when I started to see some progress. Then she had her shoulder surgery and subsequently was put up for 8 months. Today I decided to see what she could do.

I took her in and it was a disaster. She was being an idiot, chasing, biting, not thinking at all. I bet I looked like I'd never worked a dog before, as we just couldn't get it together at all. C asked to give her a go and I was happy to let her try. It took 2 whaps on the nose with her stick, some appropriately applied body pressure and voice correction, and The Merlefriend was working like a dream. The dog who couldn't stop circling and get behind her sheep orbited a grand total of ONE time. She was thinking more than I ever imagined was possible for her. She had lovely feel for her sheep, took her downs reasonably well, and walked up without diving in and busting them up. By the end of her session she was taking sheep off the fence without gripping or zooming...un-freaking-believable. I wish others were there to witness it, or that I had video. She wasn't just "good for Ella", she looked like a legitimite working dog with considerable natural talent. I still can't get over it!

I'm guilty of bending the rules with Ella, especially when it comes to sheep, because she's got a lot of "white noise" going on in her life, as Sue accurately describes it. I think that today we had a lot of things working in our favor: Ella had no history at all with C and she learned from the get-go that listening to her was her only option. She'd been put up for so long and I think it allowed her to mature a lot. In many aspects of her life, she's been a slowly maturing dog, and recently I've seen a big difference in her and our relationship. C worked her like she was any other border collie starting out, not working her like she was Ella, if that makes sense. Since Ella has shown me what she's capable of, I now have to hold her to higher expectations. No more excuses, no more "that's just Ella, she can't help herself." She can be a good dog, I just have to help her.

There is some sad news from home. The beloved flock-leader Lambie is no longer with us. He was a bottle baby who was raised in a household of Aussies, and earned his keep by being one of the primary lesson sheep for beginner dogs in the round pen. Lambie knew his name and knew his role in the flock. Over his lifetime he got to go on some field trips such as for demos and working dogs in new places. He was there for my vet school graduation party at The Ranch. I feel sure that Ella snuck in a few cheap shots at one time or another, so I'm sorry, Lambie. Run free, buddy.

Here is Lambie, the spotted wether up front, enthusiastically eating the grain used to entice the sheep to participate in a Christmas card photo shoot

And there's Lambie lagging behind. You could always find him at the back while driving, often trying to stop for a nibble of grass, or just poking along due to sore, arthritic feet. But when bringing the sheep in, he was ALWAYS at the front leading the way.

Now that Lambie is gone, we expect that Apache will step up to take charge of the flock. Scary, scary thought.