Hey, everyone
I am sorry that we have been out of the loop lately. Our card reader thingie (I know that technical language makes you photographers cringe) broke, so I have not good way of transferring pics to the computer at the moment. I went and bought a new one, only to have Shane inform me that it wouldn’t work.
Anyway, I took Pieka for a herding evaluation this weekend. She did great, according to the instructor, Debbie. Her exact words were “you have a lot of potential, there.” She got to work stock twice, I’m posting a video of her secon time on the stock.
Debbie was impressed by her ability to work “off” the stock, though you can tell that one direction is stronger than the other. When she gets too close to the stock, they scatter. Pieka figured out quickly how to change direction and even manages to stop and hold her place – Debbie thought that showed good thoughtfulness for her first time out.
At the end of the video, you cannot see me, but I am off to the side waving at Debbie to halt the session. Pieka is getting more vocal, the yips are getting higher in pitch, and I could tell that she was getting overstimulated. But not too shabby for the first time out!
The plan is to get her on stock at least once a month, then start with regular lessons. So, without further ado:
Good for Pieka! What a pretty, talented girl. It was interesting for me to watch this; I am completely clueless about herding. Can’t wait to see more!
Thank you for sharing the video. Isn’t it fun to watch the natural instinct of a herding dog turn on. Both Secret and Madison have been exposed to stock and they love it.
Thanks for this wonderful post! Looking forward to Pieka’s herding progress, so interesting. JH
This looks like so much fun! I have the land for sheep—just can’t get past the idea of having more mouths to feed!
I loved watching your video. Pieka looks like a very smart girl! Looks like she has tons of drive – but not so much that she doesn’t pay attention to the handler (granted she has a big stick)
Please share more videos as you get them. I would love to see her progression.
@Karen B, Pieka does have plenty of drive – but I’ve received quite a few comments that she’s very “balanced” in her drive and when she matures, she’ll be a very thoughtful girl. Seems like a lot of Alta-Tollhaus dogs are that way! Right now, we have moments of thoughtfulness scattered among teenager “if only I had a brain” moments. 😉 You know that song from Wizard of Oz? The Scarecrow? Sometimes I think it was written for teenage dogs!
I’ll keep you all updated as we progress. Our next visit is on July 4.
Loved the video of Pieka! Jamie you are right, our youngsters have great moments of thoughtfulness scattered with the teenage syndrome. Pieka will be great at herding—it is in her genes.