Yeah, she's to be

I took Lucy for a lesson with a well known trainer in Ct on the weekend. Lucy and I are in a big bad rut, and we needed to get out of it, or quit. I know deep down, that Lucy is quite a nice dog, so we went for it. Took almost 3 hours to get there. The forecast was for HOT- as in mid 90's. It wasn't bad there though. I watched the end of another lesson for a bit, and then I got my girl. Now, I could name this trainer, but, I haven't asked if she is blog shy, so I won't :) But, anyway, trainer and I chatted a bit, and she asked what we needed help with- where do I start? Anyway, we were going to work in the big field- so, to that end, we had to get the sheep out of the woods- they were tucked in under some trees in the woods. I sent Lucy away for them on a little flank. Hmmm, strange sheep, strange place, strange trainer. Made absolutely no difference to the lass. She went in nice and calm, and brought them out. Then, of course she pushed too hard (we need help on this). Then I sent her for a small outrun, wherein she sliced nicely, and spooked the sheep. Yeah, trainer could see where we need help :) So, we go back in the small paddock. I can't go into every single thing I was told, as I can't remember, but basically, we worked on small flanks, and we used a long line and a whip- just as a visual aid for her- no, I have never, and will never hit my dog with a whip! We worked on come by flanks. MY GOD did Lucy like working with the trainer! She was super keen, super focused, super everything. Then, I tried- it took me a bit before I was very good at what I needed to do- and let me tell you, the simple stuff isn't simple when you haven't done it before. But, when I finally was doing what she was doing- Lucy gave me the same attitude. When I would not do as the trainer suggested, Lucy would turn in, or get too close- all that. The times that it went smoothly, well, made me realize that NONE of our failings is Lucy's fault. It's my lack of experience and wisdom that have created this history between us. DANG she looked good. Calm, focused, biddable, you name it. The more I think about it, the happier I am- seriously. So, I see lots more lessons in our future. I obviously can't work her alone at this point, not when I see how the dog SHOULD work, and how the dog's attitude should be.

When we got home for our lesson, we were spent. Lucy spent the early evening sleeping on my leg, with her mouth agape, no doubt dreaming of the wonderful time she had with sheep and that nice lady.