Popular working dog school set to return

Mr Page, who is based at his Working Dog Centre in regional South Australia, ran booked-out working dog training schools in WA from 2015-2017 and is returning due to the continued level of enquiry.

He will run two Fundamentals Working Dog Training Schools over consecutive Fridays to Sundays, on August 23-25 and August 30-September 1, on a farm near Donnybrook.

A third Fundamentals Working Dog Training School will be held Saturday-Monday, September 7-9, on a farm near Hyden.

An Intermediate Working Dog Training School, only the third Mr Page has conducted in WA and only open to owners and dogs who have completed his Fundamentals school, will be held, near Donnybrook on Monday-Wednesday, September 16-18.

Duncan Anderson, who has completed the top level of Mr Page's training, owns Mr Page's dogs and helped run WA training schools, will host three of the schools on his sheep property near Donnybrook which has a round yard purpose-built for dog training.

The Hyden school will be at Colin and Jacinta Holmes' Coljac Border Leicester stud property, about 20 kilometres out of town.

"Colin and Jacinta did a Fundamentals school with me and have been working with me on what I call my distance learning," Mr Page said.

"Colin has built one of the best round yards I have ever seen in all my years of teaching

"They have worked through every stage of the Fundamentals by recording the training sessions on a GoPro camera and uploading the vision to Dropbox.

"I have a look at it and critique their progress.

"Their dogs knew nothing one year ago and they are now working big flocks in a paddock.

"I'm doing the same with other farmers in WA, in the Northern Territory, Queensland and in Tasmania."

Mr Page said people booking for schools would have to arrange accommodation, but they could phone Mr Anderson on 0428 193 109 or Ms Holmes on 0409 101 456 for advice on what was available locally.

The schools involve a mix of classroom theory and practical sessions working sheep in a round yard.

They run 8am-5pm each day and there is a night module on the second day.

"These evening sessions are really beneficial," Mr Page said.

"We record each student with their dog at each practical session and these are shown at the evening session so they can see how they've progressed.

"I can stop the film at any time and point out what they are doing right or what they were doing wrong at the time.

"When they're under pressure in the round yard working sheep, it's just a blur so it helps students to be able to see it on screen."

Mr Page teaches his own trademarked Ben Page's Natural Method of Working Dog Training, based on adapting dog pack hierarchy and the dog's natural instincts and movement to develop a mutual understanding and trusting partnership.

The most comprehensive course of its kind and the only one certified Australia-wide, Mr Page's Fundamentals Working Dog Training School exceeds AHCLSK324A care for and train working dogs standards and can be used for a Certificate III in agriculture module.

Students receive a complete set of course notes and comprehensive step-by-step staged instructions to enable them to continue training at home.

The Fundamentals school covers the origins of working dogs, how they think, choosing the right dog and how to care for it, through to basic commands to begin working with stock.

The Intermediate school takes working with stock to the next level and provides a foundation for owners to adopt low stress stock handling.

Students who graduate from the Intermediate level can go on to the Advanced level to compete in dog trials.

"If somebody is interested in the Fundamentals school and doesn't have their own dog yet, we can loan them a dog," Mr Page said.

"In fact, that's a very wise way to do it, because they will know what to look for in a working dog once they've completed the school."

For more information and bookings go to workingdogcentre.com