In December, I demonstrated what “Holding the Line” on a drive looks like using an experienced dog and a young dog just learning the idea. LINK HERE

Bryn’s experience and natural ability holds the sheep in line with ease and she has solid control over the lead sheep.

Annie's approach is more fluid due to her looser eye. This difference presents an interesting training opportunity: teaching Annie to use her eye more effectively to engage with pressure points from the sheep and enhancing her ability to control the flock's movement.

Annie's style offers its own advantages, and with focused training, she is beginning to understand how to assert her position effectively. For more insights on how balance plays a crucial role in activities such as penning and shedding, refer to our earlier blog post here.

Annie is just two and will hopefully be my Nursery dog in field trials next spring.

As winter has been slow to come in the Robson Valley, I’ve been able to continue training in the fields and wanted to share a short clip of how Annie has been progressing. She has worked about 10 times since the last videos.

She has been making notable progress as we focus on the essential skill of "holding the line." This technique, a core aspect of our approach to balanced driving, emphasizes the dog's ability to maintain influence over the lead sheep, ensuring the flock moves smoothly and steadily.

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