Dal & Mad's Mom Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 I did well they were impressed that I wasnt a bit afraid of sheep and may be called up to work the pen at the trials. Dal never really turned on past interest. He chased them alot but, I had great difficulty moving him in any patterns. He wanted them to hold still or else. He may do better but, he needs to mature. On the other hand Penny my moms rescued bc who never did a thing but, raise litter after litter showed great promise + natural ability and was well liked by Walt Jagger. He expects to see her trialing next year.lol So bottom line due to the expense Dal may have to wait a while I will focus my learning in Penny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 Sheryl, It won't hurt Dally to wait since he's so young anyway. And if you make great progress for yourself while learning with Penny, then you'll be that much better prepared to start Dally when he's ready. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixie_Girl Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 Oh, yeah, what Julie said is so true! I can see that in me! There is such a difference in when Carol Anne is working Jackson and when I work him! Especially in training, timing is everything! So, learn as much as you can now! And Dally still has a few months before you need to worry about if he is or isn't. The difference between what Jackson did a month ago and what he did this week is like night and day! Hang in there and don't get discouraged! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Anne Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 This may sound like a really dumb question, but, it there a reason someone would be afraid of sheep??? other than they can be pretty big and run into you and knock you down.... I guess that could be intimidating to some. I swear I'm not trying to be a smart a-- I have never given a thought to being afraid of sheep (til now), LOL. Most of my dogs have been big, and I used to "hot walk", race horses (and I'm only 5' tall) so other than them & the BIG! mother moose who chased me in Alaska, I haven't had many encounters with large animals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dal & Mad's Mom Posted April 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 I was being forced to move them by hand off the fence and well this pair when they moved in they really moved in the large one touched me as we circled. It was also as big as a sm pony so when Dal was moving them about rodeo style lets just say there was alot of near misses.lol I think after working horses in my teens I was more worried about the dragging long line. I had visions of that knocking me down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 I had sheep knock me down, my own fault, but it happened and I tore my cruciate ligament. Sheep can be dangerous. Caroline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK dog doc Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 Rams can be a right pain in the arse, at least (and potentially dangerous); I have a friend who got attacked by their ram one spring when he escaped from his pen. The ewes were in estrus so he was extra rammy. My friend is an AK State Trooper; she's wrestled crooks and criminals to the ground countless times and is almost freakishly strong, but the ram was twice her weight and NOT interested in letting her up - despite being pepper sprayed. (Luckily her dogs intervened; small pack of Aussies, not stock-trained, but certainly distracting enough to the ram that between that and the pepper spray he backed off enough for her to get on her feet). In her defense, I have to point out that the ram knocked her down from behind, or else he'd have had a job; she's pretty tough and agile, and had several fence options to go over had she been facing him (this is in fact how she got him back in the pen - she went into it, let him come after her, then vaulted the fence and slammed the gate). Most of the sheep I've been around are pretty inoffensive, though, and would have been more likely to either run up to you to beg for food or lick the salt off your hands, or else run away, rather than go after you. Curious to hear what the stockmen think; I've had limited breed experience in sheep, but I've always thought some breeds were pissier than others. Luckily the tend not to be kicky, bitey creatures (well, not like horses, anyway, and they lack that kind of mass to back up their ill-will, should they have any.) Just out if curiosiy, Jo Anne, where did you hotwalk? I used to groom racehorses at Fairhill Training Center in MD (that would have been when I was in my 20's, though, and much more mightily built. The shoulders I used to have...! Scary.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pipedream Farm Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 I know of cases where sheep have run into a person (for various reasons) and the impact or resulting fall lead to broken bones or blown out knees. So Sheryl, will we be seeing you at Hop Bottom this year? Glad you had fun. I guess Renee missed you; she was up there for lessons with Bobby D (she stayed with Mary and visited with our friends: Walt, Cheryl, and Dick. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kajarrel Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 This may sound like a really dumb question, but, it there a reason someone would be afraid of sheep???You can be seriously hurt by a ram if you're not careful - especially when it happens out of the blue and you've let your guard down. A couple of my guys weigh about 250 - 300 lbs and my Ramboillet has a full set of horns. I've ended up with a head print on my hip on a couple of occasions. Once, the Ramboillet decided he couldn't fit through my sorting chute and turned on my husband, me and the dogs in the wood panel lined holding pen. It never dawned on me that he was the last one in line . . . We all ended up jumping out of there to avoid getting killed (we actually threw the dogs out that time). I've also been butted by ewes from time to time. One time I cornered an escapee in the barn and she decided it was "me or her." She ran right at me, throwing me backward and I hit my head on a cinderblock getting a nasty gash. Try telling that to ER personnel who can't imagine a "mean" sheep . . . Getting mobbed by 80+ ewes at feeding time, when you're too lazy to get a dog, is also a little risky - kind of like where you see kids at concerts passing one another above the crowd. Kim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiegirl Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 We have a family friend who was hit by their Suffolk ram, and broke several vertebrae in her neck. She is lucky to be alive. One cannot take your eyes off a ram for a second. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvw Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 I once went to help a farmer sort and load some Suffolks to go to market and to the fair. They were not dog broke and most likely dog harassed. These evil things were not going to go around you or above you. They wanted to go through you. And they were BIG!! I ran like hell. The farmer thought it was funny. Luckily my dog had more courage. Jennifer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Anne Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 Ak dog doc.... I hot walked at Bowie Race Track, when they were still racing there. I also went with the trainer if one of my horses was racing, now and then to walk after the race in Laurel and Pimlico. I too was only in my 20's, and a lot more fit, small but fit enough to handle those BIG babies. Apparently I had enough of an attitude to convince them to behave when walking with me! (most of the time), they seriously towered over me!!! LOL.... My Brother started his grooming career at Bowie, and ended up moving to Eloree, SC and then back to Bowie when he "retired". He now lives in Fairbanks. Another sheep question...when you are at trials or learning are rams in? have they ever hurt the dogs? Kim... I guess I am with the "ER personnel", when it comes to thinking sheep can be dangerous! hmmmm! what do you expect of a green-horn like me??!! Seems like Phoenix is not the only one that has a LOT, to learn.. But, I am most definately up for the task....YES! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dal & Mad's Mom Posted April 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 So Sheryl, will we be seeing you at Hop Bottom this year Yes, I took off the weekend to see Fri and Sat. Annie was the one in charge of the sheep pens who was recruiting me. She said that school doesn't seem to be out there in time. Sorry I missed meeting Renee too. I told her you guys encouraged me to come for the lesson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 Joe Anne, Generally rams are *not* included in trial flocks. But some folks do run their rams with their ewes all the time (esp. with seasonal breeders), so you could encounter a ram in training. That said, instructors generally aren't going to do that to a newbie. But it's not just rams that can hurt you. If the sheep are panicked (for example by a young, overly enthusiastic dog) they might plow into you and knock you down or crush you against a fence, step on you or something like that. Sheep, excepting some rams, aren't inherently mean or dangerous, but when they start to panic they do tend to "lose their heads," which could mean injuries for the person working them. Other situations with non-panicked sheep can also cause injuries. For example I was trimming hooves the other day and the sheep whose hooves I was trimming suddenly swung his head and caught me on the cheek with his hard noggin'. Ouch! J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 Joe Anne, When first starting herding lessons the sheep used are well dog broke. Many have learned that you see the dog, you run to the person - at full speed. It would be kind of intimidating to a person who is new to livestock and or herding. I had a yearling ewe that knocked my cousin over and broke his collarbone. My sheep are kept at my grandparents, and my grandma had taken Luke out to give them a few ears of corn. The little ewe walked right up to him and butted him down. Grandma felt awful about it - she always kept away from the rams, and never thought a friendly little ewe would do that. Since then I don't like to have any kids around my sheep except my siblings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Anne Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 Actually now that ya'll are mentioning this, when Phoenix was in the corral Sunday for his "intro", the trainer had me come in just for a few minutes. She had the long line on Phoenix, and at one point when he went after the sheep they did run toward me, the trainer had Phoenix, and she was quick thinking (lucky for me) and dropped the line because I most definately would have been knocked down, when the sheep circled one way and Phoenix the other cutting them off, with me in the middle! Boy, that would have been a good intro to sheep herding for me!! LOL! Oh well, guess I will eventually experience the lesson of "hard knocks"! HA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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