online learning community
The Dog with Heritage
starting 19 Nov - 12 weeks
A practical online course to build your skills alongside your dog so you can both enjoy a fulfilling and active life.
£340.00
Add Sett26 to your basket to get the discount applied.
Designed for
Border Collies and Sheepdogs showing characteristics of strong heritage that struggle to cope in urban situations.
Folk who work with People with Collies and are seeking more understanding.
The Flock:
This course includes access to The Flock. If you are already a Flock26 Member you will get a £30 discount when enrolling for this course.
If you are unsure whether this course is for you and your dog, explore the Flock to access resources and read more about Sheepballs®.
This course suitable for:
Dogs over 5 months old of Border Collies and Working Sheepdogs. Feedback and coaching is available for one dog per person.
Lessons include a range of practical activities to learn with regular feedback on your progress. This is through videos you upload and progress reports.
If you are enthusiastic about learning, developing and building your relationship, connection and skills then you will be very welcome.
Format of the Course
✦ Practical Activities: selected to suit individual progress through the sheepdog instincts.
✦ Deep Learning: the course covers 12 weeks of tuition in four week blocks with 2-3 weeks between to consolidate the learning, practice the skills and reflect on what learning is happening.
19 Nov - 10 Dec; 7 Jan - 28 Jan; 18 Feb - 11 Mar
✦ Weekly Live Sessions: recorded held on Thursday at 8pm UK (2000 GMT/UTC), for discussions, focus on specific topics and your questions.
✦ Individual Feedback: upload up to 5 minutes of video per week.
✦ Course Material: available for one year after the course.
course FAQs
Reactivity is normal
Non-reactive is dead.
Collies that are slow to react, or simply not interested, are rarely part of the future. Dogs have been selected for their hyper-vigilance to movement and react with the appropriate reply: hey! that is too fast, too close, too wild; where “that” is likely to be traffic, skateboards, drones, children, hats, other dogs - that’s-not-a-dog? cats, squirrels, water.
There is a need to control this wildness that is poorly served by suppression but we can teach:
- work this instead of that, these sheep not those sheep.
- patience, wait until we reach the open space to roll up your sleeves to work the balls, the discs
- contain the frustration short term, those are not our sheep, “now” and “everything” is unrealistic and juvenile.
Even sports dogs are celebrated for their reactivity when moving at speed, unhesitatingly responsive and desire to be active.
What is their heritage?
The working dogs carry a selection of many characteristics that can form in variable packages in every dog. Siblings can differ significantly, working traits can skip generations. It is the blend of these traits that we seek and commonly need balancing as the dog learns their skills. They will have strengths and double doses of certain weaknesses.
There is no wrong behaviour
Simply behaviour happening at the wrong time or in the wrong place.
A need to work (herd)
This is the foundation, or heat beat, for living as a Collie. When work is absent the dog will grow a build up of frustration, be irritable and cope poorly with unmanageable situations. They are likely to self-entertain to experience fulfilment: fence running, chasing swallows, catching flies. Whilst all of these quirks are fine in moderation there is every likelihood they will become extreme and difficult to channel.
Games need a very specific style that avoids chase and enables control and responsiveness. From indoor Mouse games to Sheepballs® and Discs.
Sheepdogs DO NOT chase sheep.
Finding a Balance
Living with a collie is both a privilege and experience that brings tremendous pleasure when learning together and not in opposition. They are amazing dogs with generous passion to work with people and fulfil their role as the Other Half, whatever that job may be.
Many dogs have a working background heritage or a mixed package of sports and show dogs.
There is NO REASON why a dog whose entire parentage over many generations only knew life in a shed with irregular or seasonal events cannot enjoy a life with you, but we do need to make allowances and adjust routines to not let their Issues, or Reasons for Living, go beyond a healthy enjoyment.
Many a happy collie lives well in a front room enjoying full time company of people and some regular activities of the right sort.
Don’t look at me like that!
Dogs that work stock do not need a hard lessons delivered by angry sheep or irritated cattle. They inherit the recognition that this beast lowering the head is in preparation of giving you a full butt to the face and probably sending you airborne.
The similarity to inbound people “oh, is that a Border Collie?” is obvious. Collies will react sensitively and often without patience to an incoming face.
This reaction is celebrated as part of the heritage design to not back down when faced. This is a non-negotiable quality. They are courageous, tenacious, and have everlasting patience with young stock but will deliver lessons where needed.
No Collie wants to learn to fly.
Experience and empathy
Life with Collies for Kay began in 1973 and has travelled over 9 generations and 19 wonderful dogs with a sprinkling of second-hand guys.
Participation in dog sports from a beginner to Crufts championships forged a passion for training and skills for combining accuracy and joy. Sheep farming and shepherding for 12 years bought a new understanding of our collie heritage.
Kay has been teaching people teaching dogs for over 40 years in a great variety of activities. Online learning has developed into a first class learning format where daily individual feedback is blended with the richness of learning as a group. Great questions, varied lifestyles and adaptation through application brings together our passion for these amazing companions.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions: email kay
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