Some food for thought......

"The best way to break bad habits is to never get them in the first place."

Sounds easy enough, but difficult to do. How many times have I caught myself and said, I did that to the dog. I read this article in Horse and Rider and wanted to share some things from the article.

~~"This one is said relating to horses, but I think that it also applies to working/trialing dogs. "Don't Dummy Ride." Get into your horse's had and stay there every minute you ride him. If you zone out, you'll give him control and an opportunity to turn a positive ride into a negative one."

I see this one as we need to keep ourselves in the game, keep ourselves alert to everything that is going on with the dog and the sheep. If we don't keep ourselves in charge, the dog will take over for us. They need guidance.

~~"Video your rides. Watching yourself will help reinforce what you're feeling, or highlight any problem spots that need work. Both will speed your progress. Have a friend or family member video your progress every few weeks or so. Then watch those tapes before your next ride, so you can pinpoint habits that you need to break."

This is an excellent idea. Personally I have a camcorder and have rarely used it. I need to have myself videoed more often. That may mean buying a tripod so that I can just turn the camera on and go work my dog. I am sure that there are things that I am doing that I don't even realize I am doing.

~~"Reward, don't drill. If you ask your horse for something and get it, reward him by moving on to something else. Don't drill him on the maneuver or pick at him until you turn a willing attitude into an aggravated one (and a potential conflict). The point is not how long or how many times he does something, but rather that he's tried to do it for you."

I know that I have fallen into this trap. Drill and drill at something trying to get it so perfect that I sour my dog on that exercise. Once we get it somewhat close walk away and try it again the next time you go out and work your dog and ask for a little more each time. But not in the same session. In a sense, release the pressure.

~~"Practice the "two P's"--patience and progress. Impatience is a hard habit to break. But different horses progress at different rates. Be patient and avoid training by the clock or calendar.
Instead, gauge your horse's progress in increments: Is he even slightly better than he was yesterday (or last week, or last month)? If so, you're succeeding. If not, perhaps you need to try a different approach, or consult a reputable pro."

In training multiple dogs now, I have found that they are all different in how they handle things and how much pressure they can handle. Patience can be a hard thing, especially when you lose an experienced dog that you trial suddenly and you have no one to trial or you are in need of a chore dog. That tends to make us push a dog thru a little too quickly and then we need to back up and go over some things.

~~"Change things up. Every couple of rides, change the direction in which your first start your trot and lope, rather than falling in the habit of, say, always starting to the left. This will keep your horse guessing...which will help keep him focused on your for direction, rather than trying to take control. The more creative you can be about keeping rides from being routine, the more attentive your horse will be."

For me this means, get your dog out to other places to work sheep. They and myself, can fall into a routine/habit of always doing things the same way at home.

~~"Use your brain. Avoid trying to out-muscle your horse. You can't over power him, but you can darn sure out-think him."

You can't force your dog to do certain things a certain, but you sure can out think him/her and get them into a certain position or to do a certain. Use your thinking cap!!

~~"Be proactive, not reactive."

How many times have I been told this, especially when trialing dogs. Be proactive, don't wait for something to happen and then try to correct the dog. Don't be too late in giving a flank command on driving.

~~"Pick one thing. Have a plan when you ride. But keep it simple, so your horse had the best chance at success, by picking just one thing to work on. Too many requests at one time, especially with an inexperienced horse, is a bad riding habit itself, and one that can cultivate resentment in your horse."

I would call this, pick your battles. Don't try to train too many things at one time. Don't try to correct too many things in one session. The dog will start to think that they can't do anything right. That they can't win.