Working Stockdog

[Jeanne Joy]

Hi,

We're trying to get the word out - if you ordered a copy of Storey’s Herding Dog Handbook by Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor and Ty Taylor from Amazon (or another bookseller) — get your money back. We went with a different publisher. The book has been retitled, Stockdog Savvy and is being published by Alpine Publishing. If you want to be on a list to receive information when it is available to order, please email alpinecsr@aol.com or you can check the education page on our website:

http://www.lasrocosa.com/index.html

All the best,
Jeanne Joy
_________________
Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor

It has been said, "Most of the footprints in the sands of time were made by working shoes." By the side of those footprints are paw prints.

http://stockdogsavvy.wordpress.com/

[Jeanne Joy]

Coming Soon...

Stockdog Savvy
by Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor and Ty Taylor

Stockdog Savvy by Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor and Ty Taylor is a practical and useful handbook for ranchers as well as the hobbyist. If you want to learn to train stockdogs for farm and ranch work in the real world or for competition, this is the book for you. Over 300 pages illustrated with diagrams and how-to photographs galore!

Stockdog Savvy also gives trainers, clinicians and judges an overview of many different herding dogs and types of livestock. It is the quintessential guide to owning, training, trialing, working or caring for your stockdog.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor is the third of four generations to enjoy a lifetime association with working stockdogs. For a number of years she worked as a contract herder. Her experience has taken her on assignment with the Department of Interior to work wild bison bulls with her Aussies and Border Collies as well as with the United States Department of Agriculture to gather livestock for various inspections. She trains dogs for practical work and has titled her Australian Shepherds in all areas of competition. Jeanne has also been in the top ten at the ASCA National Stockdog Finals. Success in training and competitions eventually led to invitations to exhibit her stock-savvy dogs at various livestock events, fairs, and rodeos including the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo in Denver, Colorado. Jeanne Joy also performed at the Livestock Expo in Tepatitlan, Guadalajara, by invitation from the Governor of Jalisco, Mexico. She has judged the European Championships at the Continental Sheepdog Trials in Germany as well as presented training seminars all across North America and Europe.

Jeanne is uniquely qualified to talk about stockdogs and has written for numerous publications such as Western Horseman, American Cowboy and The Cattleman, she has authored several books, including All About Aussies: The Australian Shepherd from A to Z, Stockdog Savvy, and Greasepaint Matadors: The Unsung Heroes of Rodeo. All About Aussies, now in its Fourth Edition was nominated for a Dog Writer’s Award, and now we have Stockdog Savvy. Additionally, Jeanne is featured in the stockdog training series, Herding I, II, III by Canine Training Systems.

Her co-author and husband, Ty Taylor, is a cowboy who has handled stockdogs from the ranch to the sales yard. He was first introduced to using working dogs while riding for a major cutting horse operation. Besides being a cowboy, Ty is a professional auctioneer, and also a country singer, songwriter, and producer who has performed on the Grand Ole Opry numerous times and on Austin City Limits while working for country legend Loretta Lynn and Doug Stone, respectively.

The Contents Include:

Foreword – by Ernie Hartnagle
Introduction
1 – HERDING DOGS
2 – WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A HERDING DOG
3 – PREPARING YOUR PUPPY
4 – LAYING THE FOUNDATION
5 – GETTING STARTED
6 – STARTING A DOG ON STOCK
7 – MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR DOG’S TALENT
8 – DEVELOPING A USEFUL DOG
9 – THE OUTRUN
10 – DRIVING SKILLS
11 – BALANCE AND PENNING
12 – FOCUS ON SORTING
13 – BOUNDARY TRAINING FOR TENDING DOGS
14 – BASIC STOCKMANSHIP
15 – WORKING LARGE FLOCKS AND HERDS
16 – THE RANCH DOG
17– TRAINING ANIMALS
18 – POULTRY
19 – SHEEP
20 – GOATS
21 – CATTLE
22 – KEEPING LIVESTOCK
23 – THE TRIAL DOG
24 – TRIAL PROGRAMS
25 – WHAT JUDGES LOOK FOR
26 – OTHER ELEMENTS OF WORKING STOCKDOGS
Appendix -– BREED PROFILES
Index

Available approximately mid-December 2009 - in time for Christmas
If you want to be notified when Stockdog Savvy is ready, please contact:


Alpine Publications • 800-777-7257
http://www.alpinepub.com/stockdog_savvy.html
e-mail: alpinecsr@aol.com • fax 970-921-5081

or you can check the education page on our website:

http://www.lasrocosa.com/education.html
_________________
Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor

It has been said, "Most of the footprints in the sands of time were made by working shoes." By the side of those footprints are paw prints.

http://stockdogsavvy.wordpress.com/

[Jeanne Joy]

Just got the word Stockdog Savvy will be available on Friday December 18, 2009. For more information you can visit the publishing house:

http://www.alpinepub.com/stockdog_savvy.html

Regards,
Jeanne
_________________
Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor

It has been said, "Most of the footprints in the sands of time were made by working shoes." By the side of those footprints are paw prints.

http://stockdogsavvy.wordpress.com/

[Jeanne Joy]

Alpine's prepublication price for Stockdog Savvy is $22.95.
The offer is good through December 24, 2009.

Enter Coupon Code SDS12:

http://www.alpinepub.com/stockdog_savvy.html


All the best,
Jeanne
_________________
Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor

It has been said, "Most of the footprints in the sands of time were made by working shoes." By the side of those footprints are paw prints.

http://stockdogsavvy.wordpress.com/

[Jeanne Joy]

It is off the press and here are some of the book reviews:

Stockdog Savvy is a compendium of information about livestock dogs and their training and service to farmers, ranchers and hobby trainers as well. Having known Jeanne Joy and her dedication to working dogs and their activities readers will receive a rich reward for her talents in his book. A must read book for stock dog trainers. – E. B. Raley in Crawford Texas

~~~

Stockdog Savvy, Alpine Publications, Inc., 2010. Reviewed by Carole Presberg, Border Collie Museum:

I was pleasantly surprised to read Stockdog Savvy (co-authored by Jeanne Joy Hartnagle’s husband, Ty Taylor) and find that not only can Jeanne Joy Hartnagle do great things with stockdogs, but she can write as well. Jeanne Joy is an American stockdog handler and trainer, and an instructor who has worked with cattle ranchers, the US Dept. of Agriculture, and the US Dept. of the Interior, managing cattle in yards and on the open range. She has titled dogs in all areas of competition and is a national and international judge of Australian Shepherds.

Stockdog Savvy takes the reader from the characteristics of herding dogs all the way through to training an effective trialing dog. Jeanne Joy has an approach that would be successful for all herding breeds. The book is packed with black and white photographs illustrating the moves she is describing. I like the fact that Jeanne Joy uses photos of a variety of people, including children, not just of herself and her own family. I also enjoyed the profiles she has scattered throughout the book (for example, she has one of Bruce Fogt, a successful American sheepdog trialist and Border Collie trainer).

A big plus is Jeanne Joy’s use of positive methods for training without the excessive dependence on treats that some positive trainers use. She says upfront that clicker training is inappropriate for teaching herding. She contrasts the positive and negative aspects of many of the traits that herding exhibit (for example, noise sensitivity, assertiveness, timidity, etc.) and indicates how to handle dogs that have these traits. Throughout the book, there are tricks for problem solving.

Although at the back of Stockdog Savvy is an appendix giving the profiles of more than sixty herding breeds, the book does seem to lean toward the collie breeds, probably because Jeanne Joy knows them the best. Throughout, although much is said about the dogs themselves, it is evident that Jeanne Joy’s aim is to teach novices how to BE a stockdog handler. The book has a decidedly American West flavor, which is most obvious in the section on commands. If I have one criticism, it would be that too many commands are presented, some of them redundant; and even though I am myself an American, I found a few confusingly regional.

This book is a great resource for experienced handlers, and an excellent manual for the beginning handler, and will be a book that I recommend in the future when asked, as I often am as the owner of The Shepherd’s Dog online bookstore.

~~~

Stockdog Savvy, Alpine Publications, Inc., 2010 - Review by Donna Brinkworth for the Stockdog Journal, May/June 2010:

The book Stockdog Savvy (Alpine Press, 2010) by Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor and her husband, cowboy-singer Ty Taylor shows the writing savvy and the herding knowledge of this team. Like good stockdogs, Jeanne and Ty round up the best information available and corral it between the covers into 300 pages of information that will appeal to both seasoned trainers and novices.

The authors both “walk the talk” with lives so immersed in the working dog culture that this stuff is second nature to them. Because they know their material this well, they are able to eliminate the jargon and speak to the reader in simple language that bridges the gap between the seasoned handler and enthusiastic beginner.

Previously, one would need to stack up at least five whole books on a table to cover the material covered in this one book – from the roots to the future of herding, a description of herding breeds, stockdog training methods, livestock care and management and a look at herding trials. The information is current, comprehensive and useful – just as herding dogs are useful to have on the farm or ranch.

The chapters covering livestock alone make this book a worthwhile addition to the herding library. Stockmanship is often the least accessible aspect of herding to the newly emerging ‘urban herder.’ Those who wish to understand livestock used for herding trials will find the information enlightening. Those who take the next step and acquire livestock need to know what to get, where to get it and how to keep it.

Finally, the breed profiles build on the work of Vergil Holland in his book Herding Dogs, describing the known herding breeds in detail. There are the usual suspects – Aussies, Border Collies, German Shepherds; rare and old breeds that are becoming known in North America, such as the Barbet and the Ovelheiro Gaucho; and then there are the breeds one rarely sees in trials or working on farms, such as the Poodle and the Airedale, along with a description of their working style.

It’s a lot of stuff packed into one book, rightfully touted as the most complete guide to date. And kudos to Jeanne Joy for making this book an experience in keeping with today’s integrated technologies. There is the book, the blog, the DVDs on herding training and links to the Las Rocosa’s educational website. The blog, found at: http://stockdogsavvy.wordpress.com/ is worth a visit to get a taste of everything the book offers.

This is a savvy approach to sharing the information with a vast audience, and it works both ways as Jeanne has worked tirelessly (hmmm, like one of her own working dogs…) to request information, input and feedback from people around the world to ensure the most current information is offered to herding enthusiasts.

People will delight in the photos of people we all recognize – some friends, some well-known trainers and competitors – along with photos and mentions of well-known, well-loved dogs. Jeanne and Ty succeed in making the big world of herding seem a little smaller by including the people who share their passion within these pages. In my own herding circles I have encouraged friends to contact Jeanne and know people who Jeanne has interviewed for this book. This alone makes the book feel intensely personal and even more enjoyable.

My experience is with Border Collies, German Shepherds and Rough Collies. This book appeals to both sides of my nature. I love that the image of Jeanne’s own Border Collie Reanna graces the pages of this book. It is a lovely personal touch. When Jeanne describes how Reanna taught her to step BACK to widen her outrun, I am drawn right in, with memories of my own dogs – my teachers.

We all gravitate to dogs that mirror our personalities and behaviors. Based on this, I have come up with an equation to describe the new herding book Stockdog Savvy:

Herding dogs need to herd…and Hartnagles need to write about herding dogs!

And we are the beneficiaries of this equation.

~~~

Stockdog Savvy, Alpine Publications, Inc., 2010 – Review by Elsie Rhodes for the Aussie Times, July/August 2010:

This book is packed full of helpful information from the first page to the last. A quick glance at the table of contents will give readers an overview of the quantity of information contained. As readers move from page to page they will soon be impressed with the quality of the information too. The range gives the beginner or experienced trainer ample opportunity to learn plus food for thought.

Training procedures, from puppyhood to the dog learning to drive and shed, are excellent; the methods and techniques described are tried and true. They will guide new stockdog owners as well as more experienced dog owners through a logical progression, one skill building on the next. The training techniques and methods will produce a dog that is a good working partner, and together dog and handler will be able to move and control livestock on the farm, ranch or in stockdog trials.

A feature, of this book that will prove extremely valuable to each trainer, is sections called “Problem Solving.” A method of approaching a particular training technique is explained, and then the many things that will or might happen are addressed under the heading “Problem Solving.” This feature makes Stockdog Savvy incredibly helpful to the trainer, for no dog follows training exactly like another. Dogs are individuals and training must be tailored to help them progress and grow in methods that work for them. Jeanne and Ty do an excellent job of presenting ways to vary a technique to cover many situations that may arise as the dog progresses.

Of equal importance, the authors move on to cover livestock. First, they point out that all livestock are living animals, not training tools and go on to point out they must be treated accordingly, which struck a positive note with me. There is a great section giving important insight into how livestock see and perceive things happening around them. This includes essential knowledge about flight zones and how they can differ under various conditions. This information is indispensable to the trainer in helping the dog learn to be in the correct position to move stock effectively. Jeanne and Ty go on to help readers understand the uniqueness of each type of livestock; sheep, goats, poultry, and cattle. And, within the livestock types, they point to the breed characteristics to give readers a better understanding of the nature of various breeds.

“The Appendix: Breed profiles” is absolutely fantastic. It covers the herding dogs you see all the time. More than that it covers dogs we often don’t see in the US. It is an education all in itself, and just this section makes the cost of the book worthwhile.

This is a must read for all herding enthusiasts’ and a must have for all herding enthusiasts’ libraries. It is the book I will recommend to all my students. Every reader regardless of their skill level will find something valuable in this book.

~~~

Stockdog Savvy - Review by Jeff Jaquish, for the ACD Spotlight – August 2010:
by Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor and Ty Taylor

Published by Alpine Publications: http://www.alpinepub.com/stockdog_savvy.html

ISBN-13:978-1-57779-106-S

ISBN-10:1-57779-106-1

290 pages

Some of you may recognize the name “Hartnagle.” The Hartnagle family has contributed generations of stockdog education to the public centering on not just stockdogs but more specifically Australian Shepherds. Others may recognize the name Ty Taylor as the country singer who has performed on Austin City Limits, The Grand Ole Opry and with Loretta Lynn. The husband and wife teamed together to produce this book.

My first impression of this book is to acknowledge the great quantity of photographs. Some of the best herding dog photographers in the US contributed ample images that the authors utilized to the best effect. Naturally, I think the Australian Cattle Dog images are the best. Well actually most of the ACD pictures are my images as my contribution to the book. That is my only connection to the book other than owning a copy. Now I have the disclaimer out of the way.

The author’s writing style is to-the-point making it easy to comprehend for the newbie or experienced handler. There is no excessive verbiage or an attempt to wow you with their years of knowledge and experience. When I read the book I had the feeling of attending a herding clinic – straight forward information put forward in a personal way.

The book itself gives the reader a realistic view of what the herding dog is all about, why it does what it does and how to make the best of the person/dog relationship as it pertains to livestock. It all starts at chapter one where the authors explain herding dog characteristics and instincts.

There are 26 chapters in all. You’ll see everything from what to look for in a herding dog, preparing your puppy and making the most from your dog’s talent.

The authors break down the components of herding into separate chapters and discuss how to train that element.

For example, Chapter 9: The Outrun explains what the outrun and lift is with concise accurate descriptions and several diagrams. At the end of the chapter is a series of “Problem Solving” scenarios. For example, The Outrun Chapter has eight scenarios you may encounter and they suggest how to train through the problem. Some of the Problem Solving scenarios are “Dog overruns the top of the outrun”, “Cutting in on the outrun” and “Dog lacks excitement.”

Not only do the authors cover dogs but they also discuss livestock. You’ll read about “flight zone”, “defensive behavior in livestock” and “methods of moving stock” to name just a few. There are individual chapters covering “Poultry”, “Sheep”, “Goats” and “Cattle.” You’ll also notice the explanation of the trial programs from ASCA, AHBA, CKC and USBCHA.

How about a chapter on “What Judges Look For”? It’s there. There is ample information about dog diet and performance, water, stamina, foot care, shelter, containment, injuries and basic first-aid kits. Whew!

All in all, this book is THE one to have. We have on our shelves many books about herding but none of them are as comprehensive as this offering. Who needs to read it? Anyone who has a herding dog should read this book to understand more about what makes up a herding dog and why it does what it does. Those who are thinking about pursuing herding as an activity should first have this book to understand what is involved BEFORE you commit the time and money for lessons. Anyone who currently is involved in herding or ranching will find many portions of the book valuable.

Perhaps one of my favorite sections of the book is the Appendix: Breed Profiles. There is a synopsis on most of the herding dogs of the world. From Border Collies, Australian Shepherds and Australian Cattle Dogs to Savoy Shepherds, Texas Blue Lacies and Bergamascos!

The book is available from the author here:

http://www.lasrocosa.com/education.html

The cost is $31.00 which includes shipping to Continental USA.

Happy reading!

Here is what other readers are saying about Stockdog Savvy:

http://stockdogsavvy.wordpress.com/book-reviews
_________________
Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor

It has been said, "Most of the footprints in the sands of time were made by working shoes." By the side of those footprints are paw prints.

http://stockdogsavvy.wordpress.com/