My family is looking into getting a border collie to herd cattle. However, we are very aware of the responsibility involved in doing so and are cautious about jumping in. The reason we are is because, when I go off to college, my dad will be the only one able to herd cows, and it is NOT a one-person job. So, here's my questions:
Would running a mile (or a little more) behind my dad's ATV, then doing some brief herding work, suffice? My qualms are, herding would brief on most days (just moving two small herds into different paddocks, and keeping wayward calves on the right side of the fence), and the days of hard herding work would be right before and after all the cows go out on pasture. Would this border collie need hard herding work to do every day to be happy, or would just a little do?
Would running a mile (or a little more) behind my dad's ATV, then doing some brief herding work, suffice? My qualms are, herding would brief on most days (just moving two small herds into different paddocks, and keeping wayward calves on the right side of the fence), and the days of hard herding work would be right before and after all the cows go out on pasture. Would this border collie need hard herding work to do every day to be happy, or would just a little do?