5. A “cut” simply refers to a number of sheep. Supposing, for example, a shepherd herds five or six hundred sheep and goes for forty or fifty to take them to the market. The number so taken is called a “cut.”
6. “Flying off” means where the dog yields to the sheep instead of facing up to them. In “wearing” this is best seen. A dog which will not come in close to stubborn sheep, yields to them when pressed, is said to “fly off.”
7. A “soft-tempered” dog is one which shows little grit when pressed by wild or stubborn sheep. It won’t stand up to them and shows little fight, and generally evidence of a soft disposition. The contrary expression is “hard tempered,” which means a dog that will not yield to wild or stubborn sheep, but will face up to them, and as a last resort will even grip and show his teeth and other signs of temper and determination.
Believing that some instruction as to the methods employed in the training of the working collie will be helpful to those who desire to bring out the best gifts with which Nature has endowed this king of all utility dogs, we append a few suggestions from the curriculum of Mr. T. P. Brown, of Oxton, Berwickshire, Scotland, than whom no one is more qualified to speak on this important subject.
In the first place, it must be acknowledged that unless the master has himself studied the subject with the utmost care and keen perception, success in teaching a dog to work sheep will not fall to his lot. Many a good dog has been spoiled in the hands of an unthinking and unsympathetic would-be trainer, and, conversely, many a vicious, timid, or “wild” dog has been converted by the master hand into a brainy, intelligent servant.
With few exceptions, any collie can be taught to work sheep; therefore, as a general proposition, it is the man who makes or mars the dog’s natural bent.
To achieve the greatest measure of success the sooner one starts the elementary first lessons the better. The puppy should be taken in hand when three or four months old.
The very first step is to teach him to run up to you. Use a thin, low whistle with the lips, and pat and make a fuss of him when he comes up.
The second lesson is to get him to go down quickly. This is best done by a hiss. If he does not put his head down, press it gently down with your hand. This has generally to be repeated a good many times before he does it nicely. Some pups go down of their own accord when they see the sheep. This is no real drawback, but as a rule they require a little more training to go down when commanded, instead of waiting till they get to a place where they want to go down.
After the pup has learned to go down nicely, put him down and walk away, and see if he will lie still until you give him the whistle to come up, and don’t rest satisfied until he does so with alacrity.