Dog Won't Let Sheep Through Gate

[Guest BelgBC]

I have a young dog (2 years old) who is doing well with fetching, flanks, small outruns (have done up to 100 yards when we have the room), and has done a bit of driving, so she's working reasonably well for me.

 

But I've run into a real problem any time I try to take sheep through a gate that they want to go through. As soon as she realizes I'm going to open the gate, she'll cut short from flanking around and try to stop the sheep from escaping through the gate. I'm stuck with not being able to run and correct her back out because I don't want a mess with sheep getting through the gate and possibly crashing it, and her going after them, but by the time I close and latch the gate it's too late because she's already stopped the sheep. If I have her bring them with the gate closed, and then just open it, she has them crowding them so close to the gate that it would just be messy to open it at that point. I want her to be able to hold them off, then let go and go collect them nicely and put them through. I need some suggestions for how to set this up to work on it. I have a couple places with easier gates (quicker to close) but the problem is that she's fine as soon as the gate is shut. She also is fine with gates that the sheep don't really want to go through.

 

I have no problem with my other two dogs with this, but neither of them as as much of a control freak as this one is.

[Guest ellen]

I'm sorry it has taken so long to reply. I sat down a week ago to compose a suggestion, but didn't quite feel it was right, and haven't had a chance to get back to it. Meanwhile you have probably solved the problem yourself.

The short answer is obedience.

'Control freaks' as you put it require a great deal of obedience in times of great temptation to take control. From what you describe it is quite a high pressure situation for a young dog too. If I really wanted to be able to do the chore you are asking her to do I would probably have her hold the sheep. I would open the gate then walk up to her, snap a long line on, step around to the opposite side, and flank the dog toward me. If she took the flank, but then cut it short I would give her a sharp 'lie down' (with the line as reinforcer) and ask her to complete the flank.

But again I suspect it may go back to basics. Will the dog drive sheep toward a 'draw' or try to flank around ahead? If she tries to flank it is the same problem. Can you flank her anywhere on the 'cirlcle' with nice round flanks? I am talking about 'off balance' flanks here. Can you lie her down when sheep are forcefully moving in the opposite direction? If the answer to any of these is 'no', then the problem is really a training problem away from the gate, but the gate has given you an opportunity to see where you need to work.

[Guest BelgBC]

She's gotten slightly better about it since I started having her put sheep through the gate into a 'pass through' pen, so the sheep go through and stop. Then once I have her stopped, I just go through and open the back of the pen and let the sheep out, so when she puts them through the first gate they aren't just taking off across the field for the barn. But I think that's a little bit just avoiding the real issue because there are times when I need to let them through a gate where they're going to go through and take off, and then the same problem comes up. I can get it done, but not without a bit of a fight between us each time.

 

 

She'll drive towards a draw okay as long as the sheep are walking or trotting, but if they start really moving, you're right, we have the same problem where she'll want to flank around, although she doesn't fight me as hard about that as she does at the gate - it just takes several verbal reminders to stop her from going around each time she tries it. She will stop when sheep are moving away towards a draw if I catch it before she's gone into a full blown flank - once she starts going around it takes me a couple of commands to get her stopped. Her flanks generally are nice and round, including off balance, except in situations where she's holding the sheep away from a strong draw (where the sheep will move the second she lets up the pressure) and I try to flank her away from her control point - then her body will try to flank but her head and eyes are stuck on the sheep and she flattens out and will drop back into a direct line towards the sheep after only a few steps. Once I get her unstuck, then she'll often try to flank all the way around the back and back around to the other side from where she started, so she can try to stop the sheep from that point.

 

I see your point about the obedience, and that gives me some ideas for working on the issue away from gates. I also like the suggestion about stopping her and then going around the back of the sheep myself with the line and just making her do it right. I was kind of tempted to do that but wasn't sure if that would be too much for a young dog to just make her do it.

[Guest ellen]

Two years is still a young dog, but not a puppy. It is time to reinforce obedience. If you look back at the International winners, many were under 3 years old. Good luck.