Hugh & Nell had a good session in rural Leicestershire today with Nij Vyas & his  athletic  black  sheep.   Nell has had virtually  no exposure to sheep over the Winter so it was good to see that she was still very  keen. However, I think Hugh & Nell  will have to start from scratch as expecting a dog to remember its good manners after such a long  absence is a tall order.

We were both  very impressed by Nij's calm, patient approach to the lesson - it  definitely inspires confidencece.  He  explained  that training the handler is probably as or more important than training the dog as when the handler has it right the dog will relax & get it right too! 

Today was  the first time for many years that I had been present at a herding session  & despite the pouring rain & falling down a rabbit hole  & twisting various ankles & knees on the way to the pen  I  really enjoyed it.

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Looking forward very much to going back soon.