What is Herding?

by Joyce Norris, Norwood Border Collies

Herding is the controlled movement of livestock. The dog must control the livestock at a certain rate of speed as the dog moves the livestock to a particular location. The livestock must be moved through obstacles, into a pen, to the barn, or into a trailer.

Maddie at work

Herding is like no other sport. It is a true partnership. Handlers are working with two forces of nature. The handler is working with the dog's natural instinct and desire to control livestock, keeping them grouped together and the livestock's instinct which is to fear a predator and to form a flock or herd for self-preservation. Handler and dog must work together as a team.

Rocky at work

In order for a dog to be able to herd any kind of livestock there are Six Basics he needs to learn:

1. Instinct and Desire to work with you
2. Circular Flank Commands - These are Come By which means move clockwise and Away To Me which means move counterclockwise. The dog is to circle around the stock at a distance that does not cause the livestock to move or panic. Once the dog is in the right position he is then asked to do one of the following.
3. Stop (on his feet) or Lie Down
4. Walk Up - This is where the dog actually makes contact with the stock and sets them in motion.
5. Get Out or Back - If the dog is too close to the livestock he can make them anxious or nervous and needs to get out or back off to make them settle down.
6. That'll Do - Once the livestock has arrived at the given destination the dog is to be called off and leave the livestock.

There are several organizations  sanction herding tests and trials including the American Kennel Club (AKC), the American Herding Breeds Association (AHBA), the Australian Shepherd Club of America (ASCA), and the United States Border Collie Handlers Association (USBCHA). They offer test and trials herding sheep, goats, cattle, ducks, geese, and turkeys. There are several levels of competitions for each type of livestock depending on the experience of the dog and handler. AKC has test classes.

The Herding Test (HT) is for beginning dog and is scored on a pass/fail basis. The Pre-Trial or PT is a J-shaped course and is also scored on a pass/fail basis. Trials can be A Course (arena) or B Course (open field). Both A Course and B Course Trials have Started, Intermediate, and Advanced levels. There are also C Course trials involving large flocks or tending.

Any breed in the AKC herding group plus other breeds accepted into the herding program are eligible to enter test and trials at 9 months of age. Numerous titles can be earned in herding events, from Herding Instinct all the way up to Herding Championships and Master Titles.

If you own a dog in the herding group and you notice him wanting to herd your children or the neighbor's cats, think about getting him involved in a local herding club and let him do what he has been bred to do for generations, to control the movement of livestock.

Editor's Note: Dogs trained by Joyce have earned roughly 300 titles in agility, obedience, and herding.

Joyce Norris
Norwood Border Collies

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Joyce and Rocky

Our guest author is Joyce Norris. Joyce has bred Border Collies for over 30 years with a goal of producing dogs for performance events. Fifteen years ago she started herding with her dogs and they have achieved championships in cattle, sheep and ducks in trials sponsored by the American Kennel Club (AKC), the American Herding Breeds Association (AHBA), and the Australian Shepherd Club of America (ASCA). Her dog, Rocky, twice made AKC history by earning a perfect score (100) on Started B course Ducks and by being the first dog to earn the Master Herding title on Advanced B course ducks. Joyce is an approved herding judge for AKC and AHBA. She is also well known in the herding world for her expertise in raising, training, and leasing Call ducks for herding trials.

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This article appeared in the February 2013 issue of the Holistic Touch Therapy Newsletter.