It's very important to have basic commands like down, drop it, sit, stay, no and even how to walk properly on a leash without pulling you everywhere. All of these may sound unimportant, but it establishes a working language between you and the dog. He needs to always be looking to you for what to expect in uncertain situations and be used to taking commands easily and without hesitation.
Working with livestock is a nerve wracking job for a dog, particularly a young one. There is always flapping, squawking, running, baa-ing(if you have sheep/goats), fighting, and fleeing going on and a dog has to know what to do in those situations, even when you aren't there.
If you can work with him on what to do when these common things happen he will be better able to control himself when it occurs when he is on his own. Good dogs are intelligent enough to remember conditioning and to remain calm if they have learned to do so during these times with you....say the chickens are running and squawking while you are both there and he starts to go alert to the chickens and tenses like he will start to chase along~this is something you can teach him to stop and keep his focus on the source of the disturbance instead of the chickens themselves. If the source IS the chickens, then this would be something you can ignore...and he will learn to also as he works with you. It the source is a predator, your very stance and alertness will convey to him that this is more important than the noise and movement of the chickens and must be investigated and stopped....by you and by him as he goes along with you.
That close work with the chickens/livestock will yield you better results than to expect a barely trained dog to just be a "natural" and to know what to do when all he wants to do is join in the fun of chasing fluffy things and pinning them to the ground. He needs to know what you expect at all times and in any given situation....this type of bonding takes time and work if he is a slower learner~ and not much time if he learns quickly.
The final test is to leave them alone but observe them from a hidden location..but only after you have seen him respond well to all your training. By that time you should know your dog so well that you know exactly what he plans to do by his body language and you can pop out the door and intervene if he looks like he is about to break training while you are out of his sight. This also gives him the feeling/knowledge that you are always watching....heck, my 5 yr. old dog
still looks at the house before he does something sneaky, like digging in the yard!
