00:00 You let them stop talking, you're sort of behaving a bit better.
00:05 Whatever you do, don't call Neil MacDonald a dog whisperer.
00:08 Who's the next lucky victim?
00:10 Because Neil's message is always loud and clear.
00:14 It's the dog owners who need teaching.
00:17 And then I've watched Gerry leading that dog.
00:19 No, no, I didn't.
00:20 I saw the dog leading Gerry.
00:22 Holy moly.
00:24 At a workshop for stock handlers on a farm in the Great Southern.
00:27 Talk a lot because I know everyone can.
00:29 The master trainer teaches his students to read the body language of their dogs and stock.
00:36 Beautiful.
00:37 Let him tuck them in there.
00:38 You want him there.
00:39 A dozen farmers from around the state are learning how to slow down to reduce stress
00:44 on their animals and themselves.
00:46 Because most of our dogs are pushing and shoving too much.
00:49 So we get the dog to work, but we make it get off its mob.
00:53 Sit down.
00:54 Years ago, it wasn't cool to go to any sort of training course.
00:59 It was hard to get people to understand that they needed some extra instruction.
01:04 And to do a course in front of other people was a little bit daunting for them.
01:07 So that awkwardness is gone now and people are readily coming.
01:12 These producers are some of the increasing numbers of women in WA who are responsible
01:18 for farm animal management.
01:20 The men are very busy doing their cropping and other things.
01:23 And yeah, and the women are taking over the livestock enterprises.
01:27 Very good change of pace.
01:28 This is next level as far as keeping your sheep calm.
01:33 Calmer the better.
01:34 They work.
01:35 The sheep don't stress.
01:36 Yeah, that's great.
01:38 What we've got to do is get people to drop their revs.
01:42 And that just nearly always, a lot of people like a wound up toy, they're going too hard.
01:46 If we can get people just to back off their intensity, then stock and dogs respond accordingly.
01:52 A message in there for all of us.
01:54 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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