Sheepdog training

For who ?
Beginning and advanced handlers that own an obedient dog with an interest in sheep.

When to begin training ?
During training the dog is what it’s all about. The dog will indicate if he is interested in sheep. It is important that the dog cab focus on the sheep during the training and that he likes to work the sheep so badly that he ignores everything else around him (except listening to his boss, off course). Some dogs are ready to start sheepdog training at the age of 8 months, other dogs at the age of 18 moths and some dogs will never be ready.

Is it possible to train if you don’t own sheep yourself ?
Yes, but it will take longer for the handler and the dog to learn to herd sheep. When you only can train once a week then you should not have all to high expectations and at first you should see the weekly training as a form of recreation. When you want to compete in sheepdog trials, one training a week will mostly turn out to be insufficient.

The first training
During the first training the dog mostly will be handled by me (off course with permission from the owner). Being a beginning handler you just don’t know what to do yet. The dog often does know what to do. During this first training we watch the dog to see how he reacts to the sheep. Is the dog interested ? Does the dog listen well ? According to the dogs behaviour we instruct the owner on how to handle the dog.

What do you learn during training ?

• twelve hour clock position
• Lie down on command
• Come bye
• Away
• let the dog make an outrun
• drive sheep away from you
• shedding sheep
• to pen sheep


* It is important that the dog always keeps the right distance from the sheep. It is also required that the dog is obedient and that he lies down on command.
* How long it will take you to learn all of the above depends on how fast you learn, as a handler, and what your dog is capable of.
* During training, always set yourself a target but don’t expect too much to fast.

Is it fun ?
Yes, but training is also very intensive, after classes you will often be physically and mentally tired. Your dog will also be tired at first. There are always several students at the trainings and you can also learn a lot by watching them train. The most important thing in handling is, that you and your dog have fun doing it !

How long a lesson takes
One handling lesson lasts 15 minutes. During the lesson you will be coached constantly.

What to keep in mind when you come to the training ?
Always keep your dog on a leash. When your dog would run loose it could be very disturbing for other students. We also recommend to wear the right clothing or to bring it with you.

Can I train with your sheep without lessons ?
No, we only give lessons with our sheep. We love our sheep and we don’t want anything to happen with them.

What is the location and when are the classes ?
The training location is at our home at the Hoofdweg 221, at the village of Bovensmilde. Classes are every Saturday, beginning at 10 AM. Also every Tuesday and Thursday evening. (Days and times can change when we compete at handling competitions ourselves).

Contact
When you are interested you can call us by phone or mail us. You will find our phone numbers and mail address at the contact page of this site.