Building Communication with your Herding Dog

Clinic with Lorna McMaster

When: 9am-5pm Sunday, August 31st and/or
Monday, September 1st.
$50/day or $80 for two. Bring lunch, umbrella and sunscreen. Bring dog or audit for half price. BEGINNERS WELCOME.

Contact: Nanney Kennedy at herdingdogs@getwool.com or call 207-542-2587

DESCRIPTION
Building Communication with your Herding Dog

Many issues with working border collies have to do with a breakdown in communication between the dog and the handler. By learning and practicing simple techniques of voice control, body language, visual thinking, and by using some simple aids, you can improve your dog’s ability to know what it is you want. This clinic is highly interactive, and encourages participants to push the apron of understanding of how dogs think and how their behavior is often directly linked to our own. This workshops is geared toward the novice or intermediate handler, and is appropriate for all levels of dog.

Lorna McMaster has been working in the field of animal behavior and education since 1982. Her past careers in the animal behavior field, (including wildlife rehabilitator, falconer, horse trainer and riding instructor, zoo keeper, public school teacher, education director and now, shepherd and breeder/trainer of performing border collies), put her in a unique position to understand the different communication styles between working dogs and their handlers. Lorna and her husband Brian have a working sheep farm in southern NH with a full time wool business (lornaswool.com), and operate a traveling show “The Sheepdogs of Colliecroft” which has been performed at schools, festivals and events all over New England.

Outline of Clinic:

1. visual thinking skills—learning to think like a wild canine.
2. Stock respect—building your dog’s respect for stock builds their respect for the human.
3. Training aids as protection devices for your stock-- stick and string (“magic wand”, padded training collars and long line,
4. Using your Voice - How vocal tones affect the ears of the dog. (touch upon whistles briefly)
5. Using your Hands to keep yourself organized and to direct your own energy.
6. Body Language- interpreting what your dog is seeing. Using counterintuitive movement as a training and communication aid. (ie Rose’s ”that’ll do”)
7. Using Pack Behavior as training aids.
8. Individual sessions (interactive with watching participants. People without dogs can therefore, participate.)