What a day! Caden goes herding, and new puppies at Kleinenwiese!
Today I decided Caden was ready to go on sheep. The last time he was in with sheep was a year ago at a Bob Vest Clinic when he was 6 months old. At the time he was an over-excited puppy. Now he is an over-excited adult but at least he has some good training thanks to my Schutzhund friends. His "Platz" (lie down, using the German command) was very useful! As you can see, he is very attracted to sheep but was able to be calm and focused with them.
I was on the sidelines while Louanne handled him alone first. Louanne owns Phantom Ridge Border Collies - High River Alberta - see the links in my sidebar menu to the blog and website. What a beautiful facility. I knew she had the experience to direct him properly so felt quite confident.In the beginning he did a little running, but overall he kept a nice trotting pace. He always had his head angled to watch the sheep. Being a young GSD male, he came looking for his mommy, so I ended up joining in - thanks to Judi Snowden (also a working GSD breeder - Shadowbar GSDs) for taking the pictures!
In the above photo, Caden's head is turned IN to the sheep which is what they like to see when a tending dog is working the border. Some dogs are taught to run a border but don't look at the sheep. A dog that is attracted to sheep and knows its job knows it has to watch the sheep at all times to be in control. I am not an expert on tending but have been getting an education from Caden's breeder Sandy Wilson and the breeder of Caden's dam, a lady named Ellen Nickelsberg. Between Ellen and Sandy, I am learning so much - even though they are in PA and NY!!
Louanne commented that Caden had nice wide and round flanks and kept a nice distance from the sheep, including when he was fetching, as in this photo where we are walking backwards. Look again at his head inclined towards the sheep! There was one time when he did get up from a down - Louanne and I were talking and the sheep drifted away behind us - and Caden got up on his own to cover! I have seen my Border Collies do this, and Scott Glen has told me you never want to take this ability to make decisions away from them, as this is a thinking dog that will save your bacon by being allowed to do what is right and not become mechanical.
In the above photo, Caden's head is turned IN to the sheep which is what they like to see when a tending dog is working the border. Some dogs are taught to run a border but don't look at the sheep. A dog that is attracted to sheep and knows its job knows it has to watch the sheep at all times to be in control. I am not an expert on tending but have been getting an education from Caden's breeder Sandy Wilson and the breeder of Caden's dam, a lady named Ellen Nickelsberg. Between Ellen and Sandy, I am learning so much - even though they are in PA and NY!!Louanne commented that Caden had nice wide and round flanks and kept a nice distance from the sheep, including when he was fetching, as in this photo where we are walking backwards. Look again at his head inclined towards the sheep! There was one time when he did get up from a down - Louanne and I were talking and the sheep drifted away behind us - and Caden got up on his own to cover! I have seen my Border Collies do this, and Scott Glen has told me you never want to take this ability to make decisions away from them, as this is a thinking dog that will save your bacon by being allowed to do what is right and not become mechanical.Overall I was so happy with Caden. He was so calm and focused and never once showed any intent to hurt sheep. It was so obvious to me that this is deep in his genes from so many generations of sheep herding dogs back in Germany, from his grandsire Nicky to the dogs behind Nicky bred by Manfred Heyne, one of the top HGH GSD trainers and handlers in his day. I feel quite blessed to have such a nice dog! Thanks Louanne for the help!
PS Caden's breeder just called me today to say Arla has had her puppies! Be sure to check the puppy blog - www.kleinenwiese.com/Blog for the latest post - The Puppies are Here!
What a day!!
Category Article Caden, German Shepherd, Kleinenwiese German Shepherds, Tending
