Stock dogs...
Saturday I drove out Smoky Lake to attend a clinic on training stock dogs. I was sort of excited for this event, because I am a major dog fanatic, and had never seen anything like it. The drive there was beautiful; the road was good and the autumn colours were magnificent.
When I first arrived, master trainer Elwin Kopp was helping people in the first session, which was titled "Establishing Dominance with your dog." It didn't take me long to figure out that Kopp is akin to a dog whisperer. He doesn't yell "NO", he disciplines with a "Hey..." which sounds like a low growl made in the back of a dog's throat. He uses his body and eye contact to engage and communicate with the animals. It was absolutely amazing. There were about 10 people in the session and the dogs included border collies, two kelpies, and a few heelers. Gorgeous dogs.
Kopp is world renowned. He travels all over North America and has trained with sheep dog trainers in Britain. His handling methods will work with all sorts of dogs. I wanted to turn my current and future dogs over to him immediately.
After lunch, we took the dogs out into the yard and let them go after the sheep. This was very, very exciting. The dogs were supposed to perform a series of maneuvers, including circling, changing direction and releasing. Watching some of the dogs work was incredible. I especially liked seeing the dogs who had never seen sheep before, because you could see their natural instincts kick in. I'd highly recommend watching stock dogs if you ever get the chance. It was an extremely fun and rewarding day.
When I first arrived, master trainer Elwin Kopp was helping people in the first session, which was titled "Establishing Dominance with your dog." It didn't take me long to figure out that Kopp is akin to a dog whisperer. He doesn't yell "NO", he disciplines with a "Hey..." which sounds like a low growl made in the back of a dog's throat. He uses his body and eye contact to engage and communicate with the animals. It was absolutely amazing. There were about 10 people in the session and the dogs included border collies, two kelpies, and a few heelers. Gorgeous dogs.
Kopp is world renowned. He travels all over North America and has trained with sheep dog trainers in Britain. His handling methods will work with all sorts of dogs. I wanted to turn my current and future dogs over to him immediately.
After lunch, we took the dogs out into the yard and let them go after the sheep. This was very, very exciting. The dogs were supposed to perform a series of maneuvers, including circling, changing direction and releasing. Watching some of the dogs work was incredible. I especially liked seeing the dogs who had never seen sheep before, because you could see their natural instincts kick in. I'd highly recommend watching stock dogs if you ever get the chance. It was an extremely fun and rewarding day.