So, I wanted to do something new for training with Keiko today. She is a quick learner which is a good thing! But there are times when it's a bad thing. She has picked up the driving thing pretty well but she's also kind of figuring out where we usually go when we work on things in the arena so I decided I've gotta keep her on her toes more. So, I asked Russ if we could go ahead and try taking the calves out in the 10 acre pasture for a little romp and back. He said sure, with a smile. I should have known...LOL! As a precursor to the rest of the post, I must say THANK GOD we worked on the go by/way to (directions) commands last week and a little on the stay in the round pen before we called it quits.
Let me begin by saying one of the positive things that came out of today is that I am 100% certain that Keiko kinda gets the idea of driving now. :) When did I confirm this? When she lifted the calves out of the round pen and then drove them allll the way to the back of the pasture (past the tree line)...without me. LOL. So as I was shutting the pen, I'm thinking "crap". A minute or so later Keiko returned...alone and with no calves in sight. And so the search began! I headed back in the direction of where I'd last seen Keiko and the calves and sent her searching for them with a "go find 'em" command. While I'm certain she was not searching the entire time, I know that she was attempting to scent them out because I could see her body language change when she was "in scent" and then she led me to them. That was dandy, except that she proceeded to drive them further away from me! So we succeeded in losing the calves a second time. (Note: Keiko has some foundation in "finding it" as I often have her search for toys and treats in the house and out in the backyard when the grass needs cutting.)
I called Keiko back to me this time and put her on a leash, putting her back to work with a "get back to work" and a "go find 'em". This time I could see her more actively searching for the calves. One of the huge bonuses about today, and I must make a point of this, is that even though it was getting hot and Keiko was winded, I believe that little red dog enjoyed working today more than any other day. Even when she was the most winded and hot, she seemed like she was truly enjoying herself and this whole game had become real fun. So anyway, we made it out of the brush in the back of the pasture and saw the calves up ahead, walking down the fence line. I started to go wide to the left and once I was in an opportune place, I put Keiko in a sit-stay. I went a few paces towards the calves, then sent Keiko on an "away to me" "get around" so that she would lift the calves and fetch them to me. This went beautifully! We then proceeded at a nice pace towards the pen, where I was planning on putting the calves back up. Well, Keiko got distracted for a moment and seeing as these are fresh calves which are not fully dog broke, they took advantage and headed for the hills again! Keiko wouldn't get to head so I finally called her off, hoping they would settle before they disappeared behind the tree line. ...they didn't ;-; .
So off we went on a search. This search was probably the longest. I wasn't really sure which way the calves had gone and of course, they were quiet.. it seems that cattle won't "moo" when you're looking for them haha! I put Keiko on a leash and after a bit more time searching and jogging to try to cover ground faster, we happened upon them. This time I left Keiko on the leash and drove them around the back fence, then headed for the pen. We were out in the open again when I decided to try letting Keiko off the leash so that she could help me drive them back to the pen. Yeah.. bad move. At first she was a help.. then she stopped listening, pushed them too hard, and they headed for the hills again.. ugh!
This set the stage for our final search. This one took a bit more time as I went against my instinct and ended up way away from where the calves had actually gone. But I still gave Keiko the opportunity to "go find them" and let her take the lead (still on a leash though). We found the calves and I proceeded to drive them across the open pasture towards the pen they belonged in. Having Keiko on a leash was nice because it gave me a chance to work on a "steady", "stay", and "there" command. These are all things we haven't worked much on - partially because we didn't exactly need them when we worked the last group of calves. Those calves were a bit heavier though. I'm glad we've got a flightier group of calves this time - it keeps Keiko on her toes. She's also really regained confidence and will go in for a heel *if necessary*. So we got the calves back up to the pen and just as they were all in, I let Keiko off of her leash to finish penning them, then put her in a down-stay to hold them while I latched the panels back together.
While we spent roughly 45 minutes traipsing around the back pasture in the heat and humidity, I have to say that little red dog and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Even though she was hot and winded, Keiko seemed to really be enjoying herself. I don't think I've ever seen her look so happy while working. I also realized some things I need to work on, probably a bit in the round pen:
1. We will continue directionals just to make sure those are solid but she did them beautifully today.
2. I need to reinforce the "get out" (go wide) on cattle. She had this down on sheep but I haven't used it on cattle and after working with another dog once she really started cutting corners.
3. We'll back off of driving just a bit. She gets it.. now I need to change the game up some so that she doesn't forget that "get around" means I want her to get to head and bring the calves back to me.
4. General OB around the calves - down means down, stay means stay. Neither of those mean sit up and inch towards me. That'll do means we're done - not make another go around the calves.
All in all I'm very happy with the training opportunity presented to us today. :) We closed on something positive - we drove the calves up the middle of the arena and put them through one of the panels and then the y-chute. Then I had her re-pen but this time I had her lay down by the gate to keep the calves back off of it. I'm really happy with how her down-stay is coming along. I was also able to use the "there" and the "stay" a little more while she was helping me put the calves through the obstacles. I've never used those on cattle so it was nice to see her figure out what I wanted and comply. I can't wait 'til next week!
