Beekissed
Herd Master
I agree with Southern...obedience training and that bond will be all you really need. Everything else stems from that. Labs are VERY eager to please, loyal, obedient and smart dogs...my favorite breed of all time. Easy to train, a lifetime of good memories.
My Lab/Border Collie mix dog had not an ounce of problem when I introduced sheep, even with the herding genes thrown in, because he had already received obedience training and already worked well with chickens.
One day, when the sheep had been here for many months, I saw him chasing the sheep around the garden fence and started to run to the window, with much anger in my mouth already....then saw the next second's action. The dog stopped, crouched down, the sheep had stopped and faced him. Then the chase was on once again...except they were chasing him BACK around the garden this time!
This game happened every evening of their lives together, while my LGD breed dog watched on with much disdain. She clearly thought these games were beneath a dog's dignity to engage in. Seemed like every evening they all felt their oats and had to have their game of tag in order to settle in for the night...it never got old to watch.
They were good friends all the while I had the sheep.
I wish you well with your pup and sheep and I expect good things, especially if you undertake your obedience training first and all the while you are introducing it to the sheep. It's a great opportunity to use the sheep as a distraction during your training so you can correct him/her on it in a real life situation. Got to keep their focus on you, not on the distractions that abound.
My Lab/Border Collie mix dog had not an ounce of problem when I introduced sheep, even with the herding genes thrown in, because he had already received obedience training and already worked well with chickens.
One day, when the sheep had been here for many months, I saw him chasing the sheep around the garden fence and started to run to the window, with much anger in my mouth already....then saw the next second's action. The dog stopped, crouched down, the sheep had stopped and faced him. Then the chase was on once again...except they were chasing him BACK around the garden this time!
This game happened every evening of their lives together, while my LGD breed dog watched on with much disdain. She clearly thought these games were beneath a dog's dignity to engage in. Seemed like every evening they all felt their oats and had to have their game of tag in order to settle in for the night...it never got old to watch.
They were good friends all the while I had the sheep.
I wish you well with your pup and sheep and I expect good things, especially if you undertake your obedience training first and all the while you are introducing it to the sheep. It's a great opportunity to use the sheep as a distraction during your training so you can correct him/her on it in a real life situation. Got to keep their focus on you, not on the distractions that abound.