Idaho Stockdogging: December 2008

"Well, we are drawing closer to the trial. They are calling for cooler temps
and a 30% chance of snow so.....dress warm. Look for your running orders on
Thursday. Anyone wanting to add will be allowed to do so at the trial, time
allowed. We are planning on a handlers meeting at 8:15 and the first dog on
the field no later that 8:45. We will start with open, pro-novice, nursery
and then novice...as long as there is no fog. If there is fog then we will
start with novice. Don Couch is going to be BBQ'ing a goat for lunch-Sat.
Only-we are asking everyone to bring a little something to share. We will
provide the plates, utensils, napkins. So far we have beans, rolls, pasta
salad and some dessert coming-anything would be appreciated. Sunday, you are
on your own for lunch. We are providing coffee, hot cocoa and donuts in the
morning both days. If you have questions or concerns-please let me know
ASAP. Look for more information on set-out, running orders etc. on Thursday."

Sheep Camp!
Clinicians: Don Helsley & Patrick Shannahan
November 6-9, 2008

Write-up by: Laura Esterman and Jodi Darling
Photos by: Eric Larsen, Jeanie Helsley and Jodi Darling

Sheep Camp was a complete success! The clinic was broken into two groups of approximately 10 people – Group A and Group B. All dogs were working at a pro-novice level or above. The weather was clear but chilly on Thursday, very nice on Friday, and a bit colder on Saturday and Sunday. Thankfully, it didn't rain much all weekend. Gourmet lunches were provided by Big City Coffee in the Linen District in downtown Boise. A very nice wine and cheese gathering where handlers from both camps got to meet and mingle for the first time. Saturday evening was a wonderful handler's dinner, complete with salad, lasagna, garlic bread, and pies for dessert.

Group A worked with Patrick Shannahan on Thursday and Friday on some katahdin / dorper cross sheep, and then worked with Don Helsley on Saturday and Sunday on some range ewes. Group B had the opposite schedule.

DAY ONE
Camp Shannahan	Camp Helsley
Group A each worked their dogs in the morning while Patrick evaluated everyone and got to know the dogs. The afternoon was geared more toward specific problems, especially with outruns, and how to solve them. The issues varied, e.g., coming in flat at the top, outrunning too wide, stopping short, blasting in to the lift, etc. Everyone decided that a lifesize cutout of Patrick would be helpful in training their dogs. Patrick recommended just a cutout of his head on a popsicle stick.	Group B began with Don Helsley at his ranch. He had a big group of barely dogged range ewes for us to work. The first thing we did was learn to cut off groups of five sheep at a time in the barn without our dogs. As a non-owner of sheep who doesn't have a ton of stock-handling experience, this was really fun and educational for me, and not too difficult. One at a time, we brought the sheep out to the field and held them for the next dog up, as Don worked with each of us individually to get a feel for the level at which our dogs were working. He had a few helpful words of advice for each of us, and in the afternoon we practiced what we'd learned with our own groups of sheep under his watchful eye.
DAY TWO
Camp Shannahan	Camp Helsley
Group A was taken out to the desert near Succor Creek, Oregon. During the initial gathering, the participants donned their new Patrick Popsicles! (See photo.) Each person got to work with Patrick twice, and practice on a separate set of sheep on the opposite hill. One sheep decided it didn't want to participate, so it went for a lovely jaunt up over and through the hills. Patrick and Riggs hiked after it, and it was very interesting to watch Riggs work the single all the way back to the trailer. A short hike to the top of one of the surrounding hills provided an excellent view of the training sessions, as well as amplified the sound. All the dogs worked well, and all the handlers went left there with some great information!	Group B had a great morning worming and vaccinating the sheep. Everyone had an opportunity to sort sheep, move them through the chutes with their dogs, administer the worming solution or vaccination, and hold the sheep steady for their injections. This was the first time many of us did any such practical work with our dogs, and it really highlighted their strengths and showed us what we had to work on. We then spent more time working with Don individually on these areas—my dog and I worked on lengthening his outrun and reducing his tendency to slice. Others spent time widening their dogs out, reigning them in, or even just helping them keep their heads together with the wild sheep. In the afternoon, we worked on penning and shedding the range ewes. Here again, most of us hadn't had much of an opportunity to practice with range ewes before, so this was a great learning experience!
DAY THREE
Camp Shannahan	Camp Helsley
Group B spent day 3 in the desert with Patrick Shannahan. Each participant worked on their dog's issues in the hilly terrain among the tumbleweeds. Setting the sheep up on the hill enabled dogs to widen out more naturally during their outruns; meanwhile, driving the sheep across the big hill not only encouraged the dogs to stretch the distances they were able to push the sheep, but also vividly showed handlers how straight the dogs' lines really were. It was a confidence-building day for most of the dogs, and, with the expert guidance of Patrick, participants were able to take advantage of the terrain to gain a unique perspective of their dogs' work.	Group A went to Helsley Ranch Saturday morning. Everyone was required to set sheep for someone else. The sheep were kept in the barn, and when it was your turn to set, you left your dog beside the barn, went in by yourself, and used your body pressure to kick a set of 5 ewes out. Then you and your dog would drive them out into the field and set them for the handler that was working with Don. The morning was spent working the dogs so Don could get acquainted with handlers and dogs and get a feel for what would be best to focus on. The sheep presented a new challenge for the dogs which brought out a different set of issues than the ones experienced the previous two days. The afternoon was spent focusing on individual issues – everything from outruns, to driving, to lack of covering, hesitation, etc.
DAY FOUR
Camp Shannahan	Camp Helsley
Group B spent the final day of sheep camp at Patrick Shannahan's place. Here, we continued to work on our dogs' individual issues with Patrick, and in the afternoon we worked on shedding—taking a huge bunch of sheep and just picking a point and having the dog make the hole and then walk through. All of the dogs loved this exercise, and it was a terrific way to end the clinic. All of the dogs showed much improvement over the course of the four days, and the handlers certainly had a lot of good information to think about on the drive home!	Group A returned to Helsley Ranch for some penning and shedding lessons. Being that this was the last day of a long weekend, we shuffled the order so that those with the longest drive could leave first. The rotation for cutting out and setting sheep continued and everyone did a great job! There were many successful pens and lots of shed sheep by the time all was said and done! Wonderful weekend!

(The photos are by courtesy of several of the handlers at the clinic. Please do not copy or redistribute without written consent of the photographer.)

Photos by Jodi Darling