Herding

Nala got to try herding today for the first time! First, she went through some rake desensitization (just exposure to the rake which is used as an extension of the hand in herding), then she met one of the sheep. She sniffed and sniffed some more....trying to figure out what kind of dog it was, and she was fine until it moved. When the sheep moved she was a little unsure about the encounter but still seemed okay. Later, she got to actually try herding three sheep and she did a fabulous job! I was so proud of her! Her second time around (this was the time I actually dropped the lead and she was on her own) she got a bit spooked. One of the sheep made a slight lunge at her and of course, she got out of the way with lightning speed so she was a bit scared after that. We decided to let her just freely move around and praise her every time she got close to the sheep to help build her confidence. She got into it a couple of times and starting running in circles, but mostly she wanted to just play with the sheep or "big dogs". She even did her cute play bow a couple of times but they weren't too interested. Overall, she did a fabulous job and I think she is excited to try it again...I know I am. Currently, she is cuddled up on her bed sound asleep as she is worn out from all of the excitement and hard work! She is probably dreaming of sheep. :)