It Was Sweet

Worked in the larger area with the sheep.  Concentrating on the outrun.  After a couple of stops and redirects Rave settled in and started giving me wider and deep outruns.  Wish I had an area big enough to really work on outruns.  But as the saying goes, if wishes were horses then beggars would ride.  So I have to try to make the outrun just as good as it can be in the space I have.  When I was driving the sheep back to put them in position for Rave to do another outrun she was correcting the line on her own.  That sure lifted the heart.  Sadly it was in the narrowest part of the field so was unable to keep it going for long. 

Then after lunch worked the ducks.  And that is where it was really sweet.  Ducks were really tough little buggers.  It was a group of 5 but really a group of 3 and 2.  With one of the 3 wanting to go its own way sometimes too.  I have a gate that over time the ground under it has gotten low so the ducks can fit under it.  So I put up these black plastic toughs that the sheep can be feed grain in in front of the gate to block off the escape.  And I laid a piece of lattice on the ground to make the panel.  Now these ducks have just been brought out of the winter rest and put to work yesterday so not to keen on being herded and terrified of the black monster, a.k.a feeding troughs.  Rave was handling them just right.  It was really ruff as if she held the one group the other group would split off and if she held the other side then the first group would double back.  Rave had them going down the fence first leaning one way, then leaning the other to hold them in a group.  I just stayed still and quiet letting her handle it.  Got right up to the little panel that was laying on the ground and the looming black wall, Rave leaned in just a bit to push them through and....one took flight!  Dang so close.  She was going by inches.  We then gathered them up again and I went down to help.  Me holding one side while waving the sick in the ducks face, Rave doing the other side to keep them in a group and slow inch by inch pushing them through the panel.  Rave remained patient and listening to me.  I think I got much more excited about it all than she did.  And finally the ducks popped through.  I allowed her to scoop them out instead of holding them for a cross drive as a reward for her hard work.  I was really quite amazed at the work she did.