My son and I had a conversation on the way about what we felt Jax would do once he saw the Sheep. We both agreed, it was either going to be nothing at all or very intense. We both thought nothing at all would happen. Jax is just too mild mannered….we thought.
This is my first Instinct test and other than what I found on youtube, I had never seen one or knew what to expect. We all drove about an hour from the city to find some sheep and finally pulled up to her front door. She was an interesting character for sure, funny, personable with 200 acres and lots o’ Sheeps. I filled out some paperwork, we started the Herding Instinct test soon after. She made the comment that Jax was too clean to be a farm dog, but we would see and she started the tests.
Test 1: She called this the Alpha test. She told me to walk out in the field and let Jax off the leash. I could say nothing but had to walk and turn back when she told me to do so. She said what she was looking if I had become the Alpha dog in the pack. She was looking for Jax to run in front out me, to scout out prey and then potentially bring it back to the Alpha dog (me) so the Alpha dog could eat first. She said herding instinct is all about pack hierarchy and Jax passed as you will see.
Test 2. Introduction to Sheep: Did Jax show any interest in Sheep at all? This test was about gauging his reaction and interest in Sheep placed in a pen. I’m not sure Jax knew what to think about them at first, but that "instinct" kicked in and you see his high level of interest in that phase as well.
Test 3: Jax off leash: Did he show any signs of running after the sheep or was he afraid of them? She told me to take him in on the long line and walk next to the fence. Once she gave the command, I should drop the leash and walk towards the sheep. Jax took off and chased them like a maniac until finally I gained control of him again. Jax passed.
What is clear from this video, is that Jax has the instinct BIG time. What is also clear is I cannot control him on Sheep. You’ll see me trying in vain to step on that long line to stop him. Finally, I caught up to it, but I wasn’t really up to the task.
Anyway, Jax had fun for sure, we all had fun watching, but frankly it wasn’t much fun for the sheep. There were some serious crashes we didn’t catch on the video where Jax had run them into the fence with a huge crash. Also, the video does not do the intensity justice when you are out there in the mayhem.
It was AWESOME Fun-Fun and his reaction was totally unexpected. This is a fun thing to do with your dog for sure.
This btw, was the most focused I’ve ever seen Jax. The normally CGC well mannered, laid back, slow moving, never get excited about much of anything Jax, really came alive.
Will I take classes with Jax on herding? Probably not, but it was sure fun to watch.
YouTube - Herding Intinct Test
This is my first Instinct test and other than what I found on youtube, I had never seen one or knew what to expect. We all drove about an hour from the city to find some sheep and finally pulled up to her front door. She was an interesting character for sure, funny, personable with 200 acres and lots o’ Sheeps. I filled out some paperwork, we started the Herding Instinct test soon after. She made the comment that Jax was too clean to be a farm dog, but we would see and she started the tests.
Test 1: She called this the Alpha test. She told me to walk out in the field and let Jax off the leash. I could say nothing but had to walk and turn back when she told me to do so. She said what she was looking if I had become the Alpha dog in the pack. She was looking for Jax to run in front out me, to scout out prey and then potentially bring it back to the Alpha dog (me) so the Alpha dog could eat first. She said herding instinct is all about pack hierarchy and Jax passed as you will see.
Test 2. Introduction to Sheep: Did Jax show any interest in Sheep at all? This test was about gauging his reaction and interest in Sheep placed in a pen. I’m not sure Jax knew what to think about them at first, but that "instinct" kicked in and you see his high level of interest in that phase as well.
Test 3: Jax off leash: Did he show any signs of running after the sheep or was he afraid of them? She told me to take him in on the long line and walk next to the fence. Once she gave the command, I should drop the leash and walk towards the sheep. Jax took off and chased them like a maniac until finally I gained control of him again. Jax passed.
What is clear from this video, is that Jax has the instinct BIG time. What is also clear is I cannot control him on Sheep. You’ll see me trying in vain to step on that long line to stop him. Finally, I caught up to it, but I wasn’t really up to the task.
Anyway, Jax had fun for sure, we all had fun watching, but frankly it wasn’t much fun for the sheep. There were some serious crashes we didn’t catch on the video where Jax had run them into the fence with a huge crash. Also, the video does not do the intensity justice when you are out there in the mayhem.
It was AWESOME Fun-Fun and his reaction was totally unexpected. This is a fun thing to do with your dog for sure.
This btw, was the most focused I’ve ever seen Jax. The normally CGC well mannered, laid back, slow moving, never get excited about much of anything Jax, really came alive.
Will I take classes with Jax on herding? Probably not, but it was sure fun to watch.
YouTube - Herding Intinct Test