[moprabbit]

I'm just in the process of halter training 2 of my ewes and consequently, lots of 'rewards' are needed! My girls are on the tubby side at the best of times and I just wondered which of my available rewards were the least fattening, or if anyone had any other 'less fattening treats' to suggest! I've got carrots, ewe nuts and rolls, a coarse mix or bits of cabbage leaves.
Thank you

[farmvet]

don't worry too much! just offer small amounts through the training session with the occasional generous reward to keep them guessing. The total amount will be minuscule compared to eating grass all day! You'll find great things can be achieved even with a standard soup tin full. Have you thought about clicker training?

[moprabbit]

Hi Farmvet! Thanks for your reply! What is clicker training?

[Foobar]

Do it the Horse Whisperer way and then you don't need any treats.  See here:  http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/forum/index.php?topic=26458.msg258991#msg258991


It can take as little as 5 minutes

[farmvet]

Clicker training is a way to reward desired behaviour so animals quickly learn exactly what your trying to get them to do & enjoy trying to please ( well ok, maybe some just like gambling & trying to work out how to get rewards). Clickers are about£2 from most pet shops or I just make a click noise to keep my hands free. Start by clicking & instantly offering a small treat. Repeat a few times until the sheep start to look for the feed when it hears the click. I usually repeat this for a few sessions to get a solid grounding, start varying the length between the click & reward from instant to a few seconds & the amount/type of reward. Gamblers wouldn't get addicted if they won everytime!    Now you can start teaching anything you like. eg being handled all over, lifting feet, getting headcollared, leading etc. To headcollar start by click & reward for letting you touch the face, then progress to rewarding for gentle restraint Then allowing headcollar over nose etc etc. You don't need to treat every time you click once they've really got the hang of it, plus you can gradually change to just rewarding the best behaviour. Its very quick to teach anything this way & in a couple of days you should have them catching & leading, lifting their feet, tying up etc just like ponies

[moprabbit]

Thanks Farmvet! Sounds interesting - I'll certainly give it a go with my other 2 ewes who I haven't started the halter raining with yet.

[Bramblecot]

RE clicker training and food reward.  I watched a man doing obedience work with a sheep he trained this way.  It did better heelwork than my dogs .  It just needs patience.

[shygirl]

just curious to know why you are halter training them. are you planning on milking or showing them?
 

[moprabbit]

Hi Shygirl!
My sheep are just pet sheep, but I move them about from field to field. They all normally follow me and a bucket, but I just thought it would be nice to have them halter trained when it comes to moving fields, foot trimming, general health checks etc and just for the fun and challenge of it! I've got 2 of them now trained. I'll see if I can do the other 2, but they are definitely more of a challenge!

[Foobar]

If you've done 2 and the other 2 are being more difficult, use one of the already halter trained ones to help you - have the good one on a short halter by your side and put the other one on a longer line - walk the good one and the other one should follow. Good way of getting it used to the halter and walking, without the threat of having to be so close to you.  Then once its happy with that get it on a shorter line etc

[moprabbit]

Thanks for the advice Foobar. I'll give it a go. I've certainly got one now that's absolutely fine, the other one is getting there. So I'll just keep on with these 2 until they're both fine and then start with the other two. Thank you

[Me]

Least fattening food? My grass.