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Doesn't hold the pressure on the drive


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3 yr. old loose eyed BC, more of a follower than a driver (pusher) on stock. Natural big outrunner, nice feel on her fetch. Feels the pressure well on the fetch. This is my 3rd dog. I own the parents. Both are well bred and open dogs. Here's the problem:

She tends to follow behind the stock. Driving stock on a fence line in an arena she won't hold the pressure and keep the stock on the rail. I will give her a there and she starts holding them on the rail by being out just a little off the rail with herself in a position to keep their forward movement and them on the rail. BUT, she always slips back around behind them and loses the pressure point.

I'm sure she is tired of me nagging at her. She tries very hard to do right. She just doesn't seem to understand where she should be. I bring her dad out and ask the same of him and he makes it look like he could do this all day with nary a word from me.

If she has such nice balance and feel on the fetch why can't she figure this out when driving? If you tell me it's because of those dogged dorpers I work her on, I'm gonna shoot myself. Just kidding

Suzanne

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If people followed through on suicide over sheep, think of the rash of deaths there would be in our sport.

In this case I do not think it is your sheep, although, I remain a staunch advocate of the most responsive sheep possible to optimize training opportunities. Fresh sheep train dogs better than dog dead ones do.

It sounds like your timing needs sharpening. You say she slips around behind them and abandons the pressure point. You have allowed her to do that, rather than stopping her on the pressure where she ought to be. She may not like driving much, so she is not as easy as your other dogs. That means you have to concentrate, focus on the sheep, and make sure you have dog where you need dog, in order to hold the line. If she slips behind, you have failed to keep her where you need her. Once you succeed in keeping her where you need her, she should learn to hold the line properly. Practice, wrong or right, makes perfect. Sounds like you have practised wrong, making her good at it.

Try not to go so far that you fail every time. Drive in small increments so that you can be minutely successful and then expand on the success, driving further and further each day.

Let us know how it goes.

 

 

 

 

 

3 yr. old loose eyed BC, more of a follower than a driver (pusher) on stock. Natural big outrunner, nice feel on her fetch. Feels the pressure well on the fetch. This is my 3rd dog. I own the parents. Both are well bred and open dogs. Here's the problem:

She tends to follow behind the stock. Driving stock on a fence line in an arena she won't hold the pressure and keep the stock on the rail. I will give her a there and she starts holding them on the rail by being out just a little off the rail with herself in a position to keep their forward movement and them on the rail. BUT, she always slips back around behind them and loses the pressure point.

I'm sure she is tired of me nagging at her. She tries very hard to do right. She just doesn't seem to understand where she should be. I bring her dad out and ask the same of him and he makes it look like he could do this all day with nary a word from me.

If she has such nice balance and feel on the fetch why can't she figure this out when driving? If you tell me it's because of those dogged dorpers I work her on, I'm gonna shoot myself. Just kidding

Suzanne

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