(broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Participating in what the breed was originally bred for? This is where you want to be.
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Lauren
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Tell us about yourself: I am a wife, mother of 2 kids, 3 cats, 1 Standard Poodle (10 yrs) and Xena, a Dutch Shepherd Puppy.

(broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Lauren »

Well, i almost bought some sheep today. Xena's instructor wanted to see how she would do off lead. :yernuts: (i warned her)

At the last clinic the instructor also worked her off lead and she did pretty well! She caught one by the leg, but no damage and just held it and let go when told. With the larger group she also circled well, but when a youngster got scared and split from the group, she caught it by the leg too. All of the instructors are just crazy about my girl. They talk about her over dinner... they try to make it to the day she is going to be working, They mention her to their friends. She is SO KEEN! they all say. What incredible DRIVE! they all say.

So today... by luck of the draw we had really flighty sheep. Even the instructor was marveling at their stupidity. It IS really just luck of the draw. The Ausies go out and bring in 3-6 sheep to work. These 3 would not stay with us, but more importantly, they would not stay together! They just kept taking off in three directions! :duh: We all know how fast a Dutch shepherd is, right? Well sheep, even terrified sheep, are not as fast as that.... So she kept running them and grabbing one until we got to her and made her let go, then she would take off to another one... :o It was horrible to watch. She finally did "down" when I told her and no blood was drawn...

Whew. :eew: My friend who shares lessons also let her 16 month old GSD go, the nice thing was, she could not outrun the sheep. So she got a bit of fuzz now and again, but no leg. :player:

Anyhow I was counting up the costs in my head ($150.00/sheep) and was very frustrated with this HUGE step back. she has gotten so good at herding the chickens now. She now knows that we are putting them in the coop and does a great job manuvering them. Chickens defy all laws of herding, yet she can do it! Less is more, and she knows it! It dawned on her almost overnight that we had a goal and now they are not seen as just something to chase and catch.

We will try that with sheep next week. Have her pen them (NOT pin them!) and see if the lightbulb goes on for her. Wish us luck. My little wild child will be on lead for a while yet and I really don't want to buy any broken sheep!!!!
Lauren from Western NC
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Tell us about yourself: I adopted a Dutch Shepherd mix (without knowing what she was) from the SPCA here in Victoria BC and am now trying to learn everything I can about this breed. My husband and I work from home most of the time so I thought it was time to get a puppy! We have his 2 boys here half the time and we wanted a nice family dog.

Sugar looks like a miniature Dutch Shepherd with floppy ears, and has every ounce of DS traits in her little body!

I hope to learn from other DS owners and share doggy experiences.
Location: Victoria BC

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Sugars Mom »

Funny story, made me laugh. Glad you didn't have to actually shell out for any broken sheep. Poor sheep! Sounds like Xena is having alot of fun tho!

I've not seen herding chickens before; maybe you could post a short video of that?
Sue (and Sugar)

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felixone123
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Tell us about yourself: Rescued our first DS male on Dec 27, 2011. Approx 4 yrs. Rescued from NADSR. His name is Odin. Adopted a 2nd DS from NADSR June 27, 2012. Kai - 6 months.
Location: Fishkill, NY

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by felixone123 »

Great story, but I bet you were relieved when her lesson was over!! It is a funny story and I was seeing it as you were telling it :lol: do you think any sheep might die in their sleep tonight from fright?? :lol: :lol:

Would love to see video of Xena herding sheep and of course those chickens.
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Dutchringgirl
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Dutchringgirl »

Oh my, poor sheep. Glad Xena is having fun! :pint: :pint:
Lisa, Thalie CGC & Sadie, Cookie the Basset, CT
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Schlussdibusti
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Schlussdibusti »

I don't know but the herding lessons here seem to go totally different. No prong or choke collar allowed, just a thin cotton string with a snap bolt, absolutely no circling of the sheep, dog needs to stay behind the sheep and the newbies get only sheep which are well dog trained. Only later on the dogs are getting exposed to more difficult sheep.
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alspyce
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by alspyce »

Have you exhaled yet? Sounds like she's really having fun!
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by leih merigian »

Great story!

I'm with Eva tho...youngsters should be worked on more experienced sheep, IMO (and it's such an experienced one :roll: )

sounds like you guys are really having a blast with the herding...isn't it wonderful having a talented dog? :mrgreen:
leih merigian
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Central VA (near Charlottesville)
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Lauren
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Tell us about yourself: I am a wife, mother of 2 kids, 3 cats, 1 Standard Poodle (10 yrs) and Xena, a Dutch Shepherd Puppy.

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Lauren »

Well, i finally did start breathing again :D

And I am with you guys, we definitely needed calmer sheep and a calmer Dutchie. I was surprised as this was the first time we had flighty sheep but now that I know they are mixed in there, I am surprised that we haven't gotten them sooner.

Eva, I wish that I could take some lessons where you go! It sounds and looks GREAT! :wtg:
Lauren from Western NC
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by vneerland »

Yikes. I would be heating up the pit grill for some Shoarma (roast sheep) :shock:
It shows that the instructor might not have a lot of DS experience though. :lol: Eva's instructors line herding stye fits them, but DS's are no border collies ;)
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Marjolein
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Marjolein »

Whaha, great story! Hope she will do better with some calmer sheep... Glad there was no leg missing on any of the sheep afterwards...did anyone check? :lol:

On herding in Holland, here's a nice pic,I LOVE this one, taken by our member Ron van Dijk:

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yes, that is wool in her mouth :D
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felixone123
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Location: Fishkill, NY

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by felixone123 »

yes, that is wool in her mouth

:lol: :lol: :lol:
Barbara, Odin & Kai
Sugars Mom
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Posts: 1734
Joined: Thu Mar 03, 2011 12:16 am
Tell us about yourself: I adopted a Dutch Shepherd mix (without knowing what she was) from the SPCA here in Victoria BC and am now trying to learn everything I can about this breed. My husband and I work from home most of the time so I thought it was time to get a puppy! We have his 2 boys here half the time and we wanted a nice family dog.

Sugar looks like a miniature Dutch Shepherd with floppy ears, and has every ounce of DS traits in her little body!

I hope to learn from other DS owners and share doggy experiences.
Location: Victoria BC

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Sugars Mom »

Love that pic!
Sue (and Sugar)

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Lauren
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Tell us about yourself: I am a wife, mother of 2 kids, 3 cats, 1 Standard Poodle (10 yrs) and Xena, a Dutch Shepherd Puppy.

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Lauren »

Oh, Yes! Erin checked them over after we left and declared them sound. I love that photo too!

Her face says it all! :twisted: Xena has gotten a bit of fuzz herself. We are going to try again tomorrow! I can't wait! :mrgreen:
Lauren from Western NC
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vneerland
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by vneerland »

The 'woolly' pic is priceless!
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Choochi
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Choochi »

OMG I LOVE that pic! and the expression on that dog's face, just priceless :)

Lauren, when I took my corso for a herding test he was very grabby at first and the instructor calmed me down and told me it was ok, he was just frustrated because the sheep were not responding they way he wanted them to. I couldn't talk the next day :) He would go for the back of the neck and try to pin them, but with a bit of time he got the hang of it although reverted to pinning if they got especially naughty.

I have to get around to taking my little striped beasties for this. It was such an awesome experience.
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Lauren
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Tell us about yourself: I am a wife, mother of 2 kids, 3 cats, 1 Standard Poodle (10 yrs) and Xena, a Dutch Shepherd Puppy.

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Lauren »

Pinning them down... Yep that could take your breath away :shock:

She did SO much better today. Although while still on lead she got frustrated with me and jumped up and nipped my stomach. :x When i fussed at her for it, she gave me lip. Then we had a little I'm the boss talk and she listened better.

Two "happy accidents" happened today. At first, she was still trying to bite the sheep, but she put a hole through her own toung :? instead. So after the first go of us hitting on or near her with a noisy but painless kids plastic bat whenever she bit the sheep, She came back out trying to bark them into doing her will. Thank goodness that didn't work, because I love a quiet worker. Then She tried snapping in front of the face of the lead sheep (he was not behaving). When one cut away she was able to bring it right back!

Finally she figured out that she could use her body to block and move them WITHOUT teeth! :wtg: And that we were happy about that!

The second happy accident is that she kept circling and pushing too close, so the sheep were bumping into the shepherd. At one point they knocked the instructor down. :eek: Instead of attacking, Xena looked horrified and backed off. :oops: I think she knew right away what had happened. The teacher also immediately had her lie down and stay. After that she did much better at staying behind (although not far enough) and downing right away when told.

So all in all the only blood spilled was her own and she did SO much better! :dssmile:
Lauren from Western NC
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felixone123
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Tell us about yourself: Rescued our first DS male on Dec 27, 2011. Approx 4 yrs. Rescued from NADSR. His name is Odin. Adopted a 2nd DS from NADSR June 27, 2012. Kai - 6 months.
Location: Fishkill, NY

Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by felixone123 »

I love her energy and obviously she is intent on figuring out this herding thing!! I bet it won't be long now before she "gets" how to herd those fluffy animals. Go Xena!!
Barbara, Odin & Kai
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Marjolein
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Tell us about yourself: I'm a Dutchie myself ;-) but live in Germany with Johan and my two DS's Cobber-Dingo and Knivil (Dingo and Ivil to friends...)
Location: Warbeyen, Germany
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Re: (broken) Sheep for sale! ~a shaggy tale.

Post by Marjolein »

Lauren wrote: She did SO much better today. Although while still on lead she got frustrated with me and jumped up and nipped my stomach. :x When i fussed at her for it, she gave me lip. Then we had a little I'm the boss talk and she listened better.
:lol: :lol: that's a DS for sure, always argue... I love that :lol: :shock: I do... :lol: :lol: :lol: :mrgreen:
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