Purpose: To teach you the building blocks of raising your herding puppy or dog to be your willing partner before you introduce them to stock.
Course Infomation: This course will focus on providing you and your dog with the necessary tools for becoming working partners. Raising your pup or dog to develop a strong and mutually respectful relationship with you will become the foundation for all your future training. This course teaches you to teach your dog basic life skills, which are necessary before you actually start your dog on stock. Herding breed dogs with their handlers who are interested in a positive method for learning and teaching their dogs shepherding skills, for fun, for competition or for farm chores will find this course fits their needs. You will learn and practice skills designed to shape your dog’s natural herding abilities while you also learn how to read stock. Kathy’s methods focus on keeping the dog in a calm, focused, eager-to-learn state of mind – which helps the dog learn, and helps the handler to learn too! Dogs will be started on a long line and reinforced for calm, quiet behavior in the presence of the stock. A clicker will be used to mark the “good moves” and the dog will be allowed to move towards the stock and make natural moves to control the sheep’s movement around the pen. The line is dropped incrementally, as the dog and handler learn the foundation skills of stock handling – that process is determined by the progress of each individual team. Kathy’s methods, which are based upon clear communication, understanding and respect, are effective and positively reinforcing to dog and handler alike!
Pre-requisites: This course is for all herding breed dogs. Puppies and dogs of any age may participate in this course. (This series of herding courses is not for ‘herd-tending’ breeds that guard and protect livestock.)
What you can expect to learn from this course:
- The role of genetics in training a herding dog
- Establishing a working partnership with your dog
- How to effectively communicate with your dog in a positive way
- A brief, yet solid overview of the foundation life skills required for a shepherd’s partner and how to teach them
- What you will need next to start your dog on sheep or ducks
NOTE: This course is a pre-requisite for the next level Herding Dog course. You may skip this course if you and your dog are competent in the following areas:
• Handler has a basic understanding of how to raise a herding dog including housing, exercise, socialization.
• Handler understands how to teach basic life skills, such as recall, sit, down, stay using clear communication, body language, kindness and positive training, and Dog has a good foundation on all of these skills, relative to their age.
• Handler has a basic idea of the proper equipment, stock and pens needed to successfully start their dog on sheep or ducks, and a basic understanding of their herding breed dog’s working style.
CEU Status:
This course approved for 0 CBCC-KA and 4 CPDT-KA CEU’s from the CCPDT.
Instructor: Kathy Kawalec
Course Length: Four 60 minute sessions.
Note: You will have 6 months access to this course.
Course Fee –
For Credit OnDemand: $100.00
Audited OnDemand: $80.00
Student Information:
Access to this course will expire in 6 months. Therefore, you have 6 months to complete this course from the date of registration.
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You must also read and agree to the E-Training for Dogs, Inc. Standard Terms and Conditions prior to taking a course: Click HERE to read these. You will be asked when you register if you have read them and will not be allowed to take the course if you do not agree to the terms.
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