Although I grew up around a string of kelpies and Australian cattle dogs lovingly owned by aunties, uncles and grandparents, I had never owned one.
My previous dog, who lived for 17 years, was a Maltese x pomeranian. I got him when I was eight years old.
As a pup he took his work as a harness dog quite seriously, pulling myself and my sister along on a scooter.
For the last decade or so, his greatest work was deciding between the couch or the bed.
Last year, after a few years of consideration and too small backyards, I decided to adopt a kelpie x Australian cattle dog.
Although my dog prefers to herd tennis balls and stuffed toys, her instincts and incredible intelligence has given me a newfound appreciation for all things working dogs.
With the Seymour Working Sheep Dog Trials approaching, I decided to get some tips from the best in the business, winner of the ABC’s Muster Dogs program, Frank Finger.
Frank has been training working dogs on his Clermont, Queensland property for more than 20 years.
Frank said that at nine weeks old, puppies intended for work were ready to start short bursts of training.
“The initial training is all about showing them what to do until their instincts come out,” Frank said.
When starting with pups, Frank encourages those training working dogs to think small.
Training a small pup should incorporate small livestock such as goats or even ducks, and training should be limited to short periods.
“You don’t want to overwhelm a small pup,” Frank said.
“Training time and size of livestock can increase over time as the dogs grow. Once the dog is nine months of age, we increase the cattle size and the number of them in the yard.”
Frank said one often overlooked aspect of training working dogs was that a dog’s line of sight extended no higher than a trainer’s knee when in close proximity.
“Remembering the dogs’ eye level when training them is important,” he said.
“This is why we use a plastic garden rake to act as an extension of our arm and ensure we’re in their line of sight. The rake is also used as an indicator to get the dogs to stay next to the trainer and not move in front.”
“Once the dogs are older, the rake can be replaced by calling their name if they get ahead of you. From there, it’s best to develop a good call with them that doesn’t include too many commands. Keep it short and simple.”
