Today’s Herding!!!

Today Drover, Montanna, Abilene, Amarillo, and BOO all did great! They were very helpful in moving our sheep (where the sheep did not want to go!)

I have been reading about Bud Williams and his method of handling stock, plus listening to a conversation on another list about Bud Williams. (go on line and look him up very interesting) I find it especially so so far…Anyway. He says “If you think you can’t you can’t!) to paraphrase. And stock like for you to approach them in a straight line (no curves)… I have been working on down stays and sit stays and just plain S T A Y! with my dogs.
I have moved my sheep to their grazing field with out a lane and out in the open areas of the farm. (Yes Mom’s back yard too!) smile..
So today I have folk coming here with their Aussie to see if it has any herding instinct (more on that another time) I needed my sheep in the arena area for this. Now who ever said sheep were dumb (me) did not have a clue what I was saying!  I knew from Sunday it would be difficult because they “Know” what it means to go down there to the pens!
I decided I could do this without a person to help me and only my dogs so…
I turned them out as usual with the dogs in a down stay to block the direction I did not want them to take. I left the dogs there all 5 of them. Then took my feed bucket and stick and headed down. I knew Drover would follow and he did ever so slowly and cautiously if he was too close the sheep pushed passed me, but he stayed back on my command and we walked the sheep to the sheep pens without incident!
The amazing thing besides we did this without fences is all my girls sat and waited till I called them from their stays back up at the barn (behind it actually)…
Sigh!  I am amazed at what a very minor bit of work and training has done here. We are becoming a team of 5 ! Plus me!
I have to say that I have not done anything special just worked with my dogs and not very regularly on stock. I have been learning much about stock though and that is a key I believe.

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I am not sure that everyone reading this understands our set up here.
We do not have conventional fencing for our animals. For the sheep I use Premiere electric net fencing that I move as the grass gets used up. I intense rotational graze our small 30 acre farm. I do not waste my grass and cause a parasite problem because I do not use the same area over and over. I put my sheep in the stall at night . Plus we do not have any perimeter fence at all. So when I move my sheep it is not from one fenced connected area to the next fenced area. There are no fences to help with the sheep moving!
This has taken me a while to adjust to. But I love it! And it works wonderfully for the sheep!

This evening our neighbor Todd that has goats, came down and it seems that his church is putting on a live Nativity scene Saturday Evening.Three of my Sheep are going to be in the program! I think this is exciting! Must take photos!!!!