We took the dogs to the beach today because it was 85 at 9 am and waited until 6 to visit the Woods today. The entire area broke heat wave records (it’s always pretty hot around this time of year, and then hot in September), and our area doesn’t really have A/C because it’s not usual to get that high. Toasty! But that doesn’t stop good cow dogs!
Once again, Dustin ended the lesson by telling me that Rippa was way better than the last time she was there (two weeks ago) and I’ve only worked her once on sheep since then. Really interesting how she is learning is a really clear progression. Usually I’d expect one step forward, two back, at least once in a while, but she seems to “get it” pretty well now.
I feel like it’s time for me to “get it” on cattle, though. Granted, I’m battling Death Allergies right now and it took two Allegra and two Dayquil to get me upright after three days, but as I write this, I feel like I’m drunk. So, I felt better when I was out there, but I wouldn’t say I’m handling at my finest.
We started, as usual, with the goats, and Rippa did pretty well. My new homework is:
a – learn that when I throw the dog into an outrun and want her to change directions, I need to stop her brain (or, as Dustin put it, throw her into neutral) with a down or a there before I switch her. I’m sure I probably learned that a while back because it makes sense, but I certainly unlearned it.
b – it’s definitely time to start over flanking her and preparing her for driving. She’s AMPED on the goats still (far more interesting than sheep), but I’ll work on it harder on sheep.
They had me handle their dog, Cat, who is pretty much finished and I got a feel for how to drive, but man, it’s a thing. I have that clinic with Kathy Warren coming up and I really want to be ready to start that with her because I haven’t gotten there with the Fury so it’s not in my bag of tricks body-English-wise (intellectually, yes, but that means jack most of the time).
They also had the huz handle their dogs – he’s pretty good at it. He’s been paying attention to the commands so I’m very impressed at what he does have going on. I suspect he has no interest, but they want him to get involved, too, so I think he humors them.
We then went over to cattle and I think my main thing is to help Rippa learn to read them. She gets really excited in the beginning and stops thinking, but once she is thinking, it’s all good. I lose a lot of the control I have on her with smaller stock, but for now, like I said, better to let her learn to read her cattle. Again, some good things today. I can’t get her to heel the cattle, but she tends to want to wait them out to make them move and I’m up for her not being too rowdy if she doesn’t have to be. She’s a heading fool, though – but she does take my command to stay back so that’s getting better. It’s fun watching her think. It fries her little brain, though, and the works aren’t very long before she gets tired and starts looking for Yishai. This annoys me a little because Fury never quit, but I do know that once her brain stops frying, she’ll be good.
Interesting thing, when I tell her she’s good, she quits. I don’t know how it happened, but it’s her release word (I definitely didn’t train that – the huz noticed it and says she’s like that for lots of things so he never tells her she’s good). So, now I have to break myself of praising in that way. Oops.
So, that’s that. I’ll have video to show you (it’s not wonderful, but hey) soon, but I’m too “drunk” to focus on editing it to something useful right now. I think I’m going to lay down . . .
Sheep and ducks tomorrow.
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