TMT 2012 #4

1. How do you search for and choose a trainer? 

How do you define "trainer"? If a trainer is someone that you hire to train your animal for a specified time and then show it or assist you in showing it - I don't have one. If you define "trainer" as a professional that assists you in your training of your own animal - then I have several. I watch several open handlers and then grill them and ask them how I can improve. I go to their places and work with them. It works for me and my program.

2. The dog world is small and ...uh... talkative. How do handle situations where there is talking that is not beneficial. 

I walk away - that's life - people are always going to "talk" about things - and I choose to only participate in productive conversations that help me and others become better handlers.

3. Do you believe that a person's personal life should influence your choice of a trainer? 

If a person participates in an activity which affects their ability to assist me then I probably wouldn't ask them for assistance.

4.  When you have a breakthrough moment with your dog, do you feel that moment makes your connection with that dog stronger and the next step in training easier? 

You bet! Working Border Collies (any animal really) is about a relationship that grows each time you are together where both of you are learning to make each other the best you can be!

5. Do you stick with one trainer, or do you go to multiple sources for help? 

Answered in question #1.

Have a Great Week!!!!

TMT 2012 #3

Another wonderful session of TMT with Laura - and it is sure to be an exciting trip!!

1. What is one lesson you learned this week? 

It is okay to grow old!  Growing old! (especially if you have dogs!)


2. Who or what have might you been in an earlier life? What might you be in a next life? 

For the most part I've always been happy/content with who I am, and the time frame in which I live, so I've never really thought about it much. But I do think it would have been totally awesome to have been Margaret Thatcher! I would have made a great Prime Minister. Next life: Yo Yo Ma!

3. What unusual things do you like the smell of but don't usually admit?

I love the smell of dirt - farm land, garden, flower beds. I also like the smell of brussel sprouts - but that totally grosses out my family! Feed stores - love to go in the back where the feed is stored.

4.  What are your thoughts on continuing vs. retiring when a trial run is going badly? How do you decide? Where do you draw the line?  

Knowing your dog. Reading why the run is going badly - dog's fault, sheep's fault, handler's fault. Does the dog take a command and/or correction readily. The line for me is: when Tate is skybugging!!!!

5. Question and/or topics that I would like to discussed in this venue.

• Favorite season of the year and why
• One thing that you would totally redo (if you could) in regards to dog training
• One thing - not related to dogs - that you would like to do that you have not done
• One thing that you enjoyed doing in the past that you no longer participate in
• What is one thing about yourself that you know bugs other people - but you do it anyway
• 
  

TMT With Laura 2012 #2

  First of all I want to preface by saying I missed last week for a good reason. We made a round trip of about 200 miles to haul concrete water troughs for a job we are doing. We went on Thursday, but I thought, no big deal, I'll be home late afternoon and be able to get the first TMT with Laura done with no problem. But here's a couple of  pictures of how the trip went!  

Needless to say, TMT went out the window as it was dark thirty Thursday when we got home and then we spent all day Friday getting troughs unloaded, tires changed, troughs reloaded, hauled to the site, unloaded again. So by Friday evening, I just crashed and didn't do much of anything. 
But I'm ready to go for this week! Loved reading others responses last week.

1. Stopping your dog - What do you prefer? On their feet? On their belly? or some combination? 
Ideally I'd like a combination of both, but I've not achieved that in my noviceness. (I know that's not a word, but hey it works for me.) My first dog, Skeeter, was a natural down dog, when she stopped, she naturally laid down, so I trained my next dogs to lay down when I stopped them, and for the most part that works okay, but there are times that I want Tate to just Stop and Hold, so I'm working on a "stand" command, which is coming very slowly. I've watched some handlers, both live and on video, that use "Lie Down" to mean stop, but when I say "Lie Down" I want them to do so and stay there until I give them the next command. Now on an outrun, when I blow my "stop" whistle, I just want Tate to stop and turn in, not necessarily "lie down" - He does this very naturally, so we are good there.
2. At what point to you start teaching this? 
Another "noviceness" answer. When, I'm dry working pups, they must lie down when I tell them, but when I put them on stock, I won't make them lie down until they seem more confident and are listening and not just working because that's what they do. Totally depends on the situation. Like last night, Bess (who is nine months old) was doing chores with me. We went into the pen (60' x 80') where the milk cow and her calf were. Immediately, Bess went around and began to balance and fetch. She worked nice and wide and when she got to the back side, I asked her to lie down, which she did and then I poured the feed into the trough. Then, I went to Bess and we went out of the pen away from the cow. A great "teachable moment" for Bess, where she wasn't threatened or put in a stress situation, but was asked to obey, partner with me, and get a job done. The "Lie Down" command for me is "You better stop and take off the pressure", where as the "Stand" command would be "stop, but keep the "presence" on the stock". Ask me this question in a month, and I'll probably have a different answer!

3. Do you have a favorite dog? I won't tell. 
The one I'm working at the moment!!! But truthfully, I'd have to say Bess is my favorite, because she is such a happy dog ALL THE TIME and she loves me!! Ask me this question tomorrow and I'll give a different answer!
4. What is the #1 thing a dog can do to push your buttons? 
Not listen/not obey something that they know to do. I call it "sky bugging" - they are looking for bugs in the sky and not listening to me!
5.  Brrr....it's winter. What is your favorite soup recipe?  Next to chili (Laura already did that and my recipe is real close to hers) it would have to be   Chicken Corn Soup
About 2 cups of any type of cooked chicken and or turkey (more if you want it meatier)Chicken broth or stock1 small onion choppedsome chopped celery (desired amount)1 can cream style corn1 can cream of chicken soup1 can cream of celery or cream of mushroom soup
Saute onions and celery in butter. Add remaining ingredients and add water so it is not too dry. Simmer, until bubbly. 
Rivets:1 cup flour1 egga little salt1/4 tsp baking powder
Mix rivet ingredients with fork. (Might have to add a little milk, so the rivets "make")  Then pinch "thumb" size dumplings and drop in simmering soup. Let simmer for about 10 more minutes. 

Yum Yum!!
Have a Great Day!!

Ann wants to know.....

Ann posed very good questions. I'm kinda slow getting to this, but found the questions very thought provoking!!! Had to think a day or two about each one - you know evaluate how I really thought about what kind of dog I like. So here goes!!!

- Do you like a dog that is really on the muscle?  I really like my dog to adapt to the stock he is working. If he needs to muscle up then he should, but generally no.

- Do you like a dog that needs a steady stream of whistles? No, for two reasons: 1) I really want my dog to feel the situation and work as natural as possible. With my Tate dog right now, when I set him on a drive line, he can usually hold the line with minimal correction - he naturally flanks back and forth when he drives so it works for him and 2) I'm just not that good with whistles yet.

- Are you a minimal or maximal whistler? minimal

- Do you like a natural dog that feels the sheep and just needs a little direction here and there? Yep, especially doing ranch work. I know that I will have to direct more on the trial field, but I want my dog to read sheep/stock not depend on me for everything.

- Do you like a dog that wants to partner up and be a really good team player? That would always be my goal. Even as I am starting my young dogs, I want them to know that I depend on them too - let them make a decision or two. 

- Do you like a dog that really know what s/he wants and that you really have to manage? Border line - I want a dog to know what his job is, but not fight me on getting it done. We've got a dog, Liesl, that is turned very much this way. She is a really strong, strong dog and has a tremendous amount of stock sense, plus is tough and can handle working on the ranch, but she wants to do the job all by herself. She and I have had many "nose to nose" discussions. Mike (my husband who sold his ranch dog a couple of years ago) has taken over her training, and they seem to be doing well. She is still at the "can't turn your back on her stage" , but she is getting the idea that she needs to be a team player. 

- Do you want push? I want my dog to be able to move sheep, even tough sheep in a manner that won't make them drop an "ounce" of weight i.e. with controlled speed. When working on the ranch, I want my dog to be able to go into the brush and get that stubborn nanny or ewe out and get her back in the herd and sometimes that takes a lot of push.

- Do you want a good listener? Absolutely necessary

- Do you want try? Absolutely necessary and I've been blessed with dogs that have a lot of try and heart!

- Do you want a dog that gets the job done, no matter the sheep, but it's a big job to get the dog listening? I don't mind giving a dog a chance, but if that dog is going to continue to not listen, then we need to part ways. I think sometimes there are personality quirks in people and dogs that keep them from connecting. And that's okay - that dog will probably work for someone else and that will make everybody happy!!

- Do you want it all? Of course!!! But I'm pretty realistic - you may not get it all in one dog, and each dog will be gifted and more talented in some areas. So, basically if the dog tries, listens, and wants to please, plus has a natural ability to handle stock with out me making his every move - then we can be a team. 

A little story about Tate. The week before our State Finals (Nov 18 and 19) Tate and I gathered the sheep in our pasture - about 640 acres and it looks like this:

Brush covered with a mile of 300 foot escarpment bisecting the pasture i.e. you have to got up and down the mountain to get from the house to the pasture. I was riding Sugie our four year old mare and Tate and I struck the sheep at the back side - about a mile from the house. Sent Tate around and he had a nice outrun stopped on top and the sheep started toward me, but something spooked them and they shot past me. Sent Tate around and then I went into the brush. The sheep split and I stopped the big bunch and made count - one short and no Tate. I knew Tate would try to bring her back, but if she brushed up, he would stay with her. So took the flock back to where we picked them up, calling Tate. He didn't come, so I decided to take the flock on home calling Tate the whole time. When I got to the house, got Mike and our son to drive up in the pickup and I rode back up on top and we looked for Tate until it was almost chore time. We had looked about 2 and 1/2 hours. I knew that the ewe had brushed up and Tate would stay with her until I came or until he gave up. But long story short I had to leave him in the pasture. Just the night before our son had seen the biggest dog coyote he had ever seen on our place, so I was a little nervous about Tate being out all night. We did up chores, ate supper and way after dark, Mike had gone to the pens to turn the horses out in the trap for the night and he heard Tate bark (Tate is not a barker). So we got in the pickup and drove toward where Mike had heard Tate. I called and listened and then Tate barked again, so we went closer. Then when I called him he came to me. We didn't find the ewe until the next morning (about 100 yards where we picked up Tate the night before), but Tate didn't quit and he brought her home. It took him about four hours, but he brought her almost a mile all by himself. She had a few bite marks on her nose where he nipped her to turn her, but after a couple of days and a shot of penicillin, she was fine and we turned her back in with the flock.

So, though Tate has faults (what dog doesn't) he's got heart, try, partners up, listens, and will do anything I ask him. Plus, he knows his job and never quits! On the trial field, I'd like him to slow down a little on his fetch and flank a little wider around the post, but I think we will work all those things out!

Merry Christmas !!!

TMT with Laura!!!

Another fun installment of TMT with Laura over at Crooks and Crazies !! How fun!

1. What are your plans for the holiday season?

Enjoy time with the family. One of our favorite family things to do is attend the Anson Christmas Cowboys Ball. It's a blast and we girls all find new outfits just for the ball. We dance and visit with old and new friends and have a great time. I actually think all the kids - Mikkie & Tyler, Mandie & Bobby, Rygh & Lyn and Mollie & possibly Tyger, will all be there this year, plus Mike's cousin Jay and Sharon.  Then we will gather as a family on the 24th and exchange gifts and eat a feast - turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, corn casserole, green beans (not casserole), wild rice and mushrooms, cranberry orange relish, cornbread dressing, hot rolls, cherry pie, pecan pie, pumpkin pie, apple pie and chocolate pie. (yep, I spoil my family and make every one's favorite pie!) We usually play games, watch football or movies and just enjoy being together. I'm very blessed!

2.  Do you decorate? If so what have you done so far? 

I love Christmas decorations - especially lights and candles. I also like to cut cedar boughs and disperse in various places, but it was so dry this year that the cedar are very dry. We've had some rain this past week, so it should freshen them up some. We will cut a tree a few days before Christmas and decorate it then, but I do have everything else up. If you would like to see pictures go to my house blog and you can see a sampling of my decor.

3.  a. Favorite recent dog photo.
 
 Would have to be Tate when we had our win.

 The cone was our set out, and Tate lifted well and then took his left flank quickly and efficiently and put the sheep on line for the fetch! I was proud.

Or my second choice would be Pete at State Finals watching the Open Double Lift Finals. He was very interested!!

He had just met Nellie and still he was more interested in the field than her!!

b. Photo that shows your mood right now, (or one word).

4. There's a discussion on BC Boards about "don't train for the novice classes, just train for open and it will all fall in place". What's your thoughts on this?


In my mind I'm working my dogs to make it to the Meeker Sheepdog Classic. Do I think it will happen in one day, one week, one month or even one year? No way, but my goal is to bring each dog along at the rate to achieve that goal. I also want each of my dogs, whether they trial or not, to be able to do the work on the ranch that needs to be done. All in all, they need to be obedient, willing and and able to adapt to every situation that occurs on the ranch or on the trial field. I'm trialing in the lower classes because I'm new at this and need the practice and exposure, as does my dog that I am trialing right now. But, I talk to every Open Handler I can and ask their advice and get their critique on my runs - and they always help me. I try to go to one of their practice fields once  month and practice with them. I need the small stepping stones of lower classes, but someday (my goal is within 5 years) I'm going to go to the post at the Meeker Classic and make a run!

5. What are your five cannot-do-without-them dog items?
 

1. Collars

2. Drag lines

3. Kennels

4. Hay filled dog houses for winter

5. Their companionship and devotion to me and their job.

Merry Christmas Ya'll  

Pete Update

Pete watching the double lift open finals at the Texas State Sheep Dog Finals

Pete's grandaddy, Spot, was this years state champion! Pete and I will be there someday!

Blessed Holiday Season Ya'll