THE OLD ENGLISH SHEEP DOG. 521 



he will not be fully up to the mark for handling a lot of 

 cows heavy with calf. The same dog can and will do both 

 classes of work (or play), but you must not expect him to 

 go directly from one to the other and to be perfect at both. 



I would not be understood to mean depreciation of the 

 Collie as compared with the Bobtail; each has his own char- 

 acteristics and each his peculiar merits and demerits, and 

 the lovely and useful Collie can well spare his unhandsome 

 but invaluable compeer his due meed of praise. 



The rudiments of training Sheep Dogs are simple; the 

 fine points need a master's hand, and no instructions can 

 fully supply the knack, or really genius, required. First, 

 you should breed your worker. See to it that the parents 

 of your puppy were workers that is half the battle; then 

 make your puppy fond of you secure his entire confidence 

 and affection. Never speak a cross word to him; if he 

 needs reproof, administer it in kind and warning tones, for 

 such are far more effectual than the blustering, savage 

 howls some "breakers" think indispensable. Teach the 

 dog to lie down at the word, the initial step being to gently 

 press him to the ground with the hand, with the word 

 "down." Now move away from the dog, and if he rises, 

 return and repeat the lesson. After he will keep his posi- 

 tion when you have gone some distance from him, take him 

 out with sheep and make him lie down; then go around the 

 flock with a pan of salt, gathering the sheep until they are 

 between you and the dog; then call the latter. If he is the 

 "right kind," a few lessons will enable him to comprehend 

 what you desire him to do, and by waving either hand he 

 will soon understand which side of the flock you wish him 

 to pass by. 



This is the foundation of training, and, once acquired, 

 the rest of the dog's education is a comparatively simple 

 matter. Remember that it is "education" you want your 

 dog to have, not the ability to perform certain tricks at the 

 command of his master; for it is not what a Sheep Dog does 

 at command that gives him great value, it is what he knows 

 should be done without urging. 



