Herding Has Gone To The Dogs
A dog’s herding behavior is a modification of their early predatory behavior. The origins of herding dog breeds trace back to 7th or even 8th millennium BC and western Asia, the territories of modern Iran and Iraq.
Shepherding was arduous work and dogs were used to help protect the flocks early on. Later with the development of agriculture, the use of these dogs branched out to herd management, moving livestock and even domesticated birds to guard crops and other protected areas from grazing and moving herds. Different breeds of dogs use different techniques to work stock and thus can be used specifically for one type of stock versus generalized herding.
“Herding” is a general term for humans or dogs gathering, moving and sorting stock. Dogs are most often used to herd sheep or cattle but they have also been used to herd goats, reindeer and even domesticated birds. Herding is a practical, working dog farm chore.
Competitive herding is a dog sport in which herding dogs move animals around a field, fences, gates or enclosures as directed by their handlers.
aldo
Aldo’s first public performance…
Before this competition, Aldo was busy working Joy’s sheep or sometimes in a friend’s sheep school.
Aldo was born in November, 2008 to Tannhäuser dogs Lars vom Frankengold and Queen von der Friedersdorfer Flur. He went to his forever home with Joy who raised and trained him to work on her farm.
Joy trained Aldo using the same tools and techniques employed in competitive herding. The pole she is carrying is a herding staff and it is used to give directions to the dog and to block sheep. In September, 2010 Joy entered Aldo in his first herding competition. The goal of the competition was for the handler to walk ahead of the sheep while the dog gently keeps the sheep with you along three sides of a small pasture. Along the way, there are fences put up that the sheep must go thru. The handler is allowed to lead the sheep, but Joy decided to let Aldo take them himself. At the end of the “U” shaped path, the dog needs to calmly hold the sheep next to their handler. Aldo did that perfectly. Then handler and dog reverse course and guide the sheep to return along the same path. At the end, the handler is to open a gate and let the sheep out.
Often, the sheep are desperate to get out and would crush the handler into the gate if their dog did not keep them a small distance away while the gate is opened and the sheep gently escape. Aldo did this perfectly.
There are two things that got the judge’s attention in Joy and Aldo’s trial. Usually, at the start the handler walks to the sheep. Joy did not do this. Instead she had Aldo bring them using the commands “outrun”, “lift” and “fetch”. The other thing was that on the course, across the fence, some sheep were penned making a strong draw for Aldo. With every other dog that day the judge needed to help the handler move the sheep along. Joy asked the judge not to assist, to allow Aldo to handle the task without interference which he did admirably.
All told, Aldo truly did wonderfully at his first showing but at the end, the judge called Joy over asking to speak with her (she was truly wondering “what did I do wrong????”). The judge asked “why are you in this class?? [Aldo] belongs at least one more class up.” Joy explained this was Aldo’s first time out and she did not know how he would respond to spectators.
Obviously, he did just fine.
