I'm back...With a puppy!

[BorderlineCrazy(:]

Only a foster puppy, unfortunately. It'll still be a few months before a get a little puppy of my own.

Haven't been able to post on here recently, was busy with my moms wedding, preparations, all that good stuff.

I'm fostering her for my states BC Rescue. I can't post a picture from my phone, but you can see her here...

http://www.bcrescuenc.org/

 

Go to "dogs available", and click on "Hattie"s picture. Darling, right? I'd love to get her instinct tested but it's SO expensive, especially out here in Sacramento(and Redding every other weekend)

I'd be very surprised if this girl isn't adopted within a few weeks.

 

I do have a question...What exactly is a "hobby herder"?

I'm pretty sure it's someone like me...*guilty*...who just does it to keep their dog sane.

Although when I get my next dog, I'm hoping to get competative My current dog is progressing very well and very fast, but she just gets too soft after only 15 minutes.

 

Edit: oh, another question! Is it important to stay with a single trainer? Being that we are in Redding every other weekend, my dog misses half her herding lessons. I was wondering if it were possible that I could find a trainer up there to work her on those weekends...or would that be a bad idea?

 

Adri

[rushdoggie]

She is very cute!

[KeithB]

Cute girl

[Cynthia P]

It depends on your instructor. I encourage my students to take lessons elsewhere. I take lessons as well from other people. There is a trainer here that won't allow her students to go anywhere else unless approved. Most are not like that.

 

Good luck

 

Cynthia

[juliepoudrier]

We have a few trainers like that too. It always makes me wonder what they're afraid of. Perhaps that the student will find out that the instructor isn't all s/he's touted herself to be?

 

That said, trainer hopping can be detrimental to you and your dog, especially if the various trainers use widely different training techniques. It can add an element of confusion for you both, and that's generally not productive. But switching between two trainers, especially if they train similarly, shouldn't be a problem.

 

I encourage students to go to clinics, etc., because often a different trainer might see or approach a problem differently and with a better result.

 

Re: hobby herder, I think there are probably as many definitions as there are people to ask, but to me, it's someone who doesn't own sheep and perhaps only gets their dog out on weekends or once or twice a month. But even with that definition, there's a whole spectrum of approaches, from treating sheep as dog toys and "training" as fun time for the dog equivalent to going to the dog park to a real interest in livestock, how to handle them efficiently and in a low-stress manner using dogs (and everything in between). I raise sheep, but I consider this a hobby farm because I do not make my sole income from the sheep (I try to get them to pay for themselves though).

 

Anyway, I wouldn't worry so much about the definition. Why you choose to do it and how you approach it are the important things.

 

J.

[BorderlineCrazy(:]

Does anyone know of good trainers close to Redding, CA? I'm working with Nola right now...for some reason I can't remember her last name. But she's a ABHA herding judge outside of Sacramento.

[Debbie Meier]

I believe Geri Byrne's is only about 2 1/2 hours from you, I bet that she would also be able to give you the names of someone even closer to you that could help you if there is someone.

 

http://www.bcollies.com/

[BorderlineCrazy(:]

I'll definitely check them out. I found someone in Red Bluff, but now their name is escaping me..