ABC’s Muster Dogs winner Frank Finger is an experienced working dog trainer.
Frank Finger, winner of the ABC’s Muster Dogs program, has been training working dogs for more than 20 years on his Clermont, Queensland property.
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His passion for training working dogs is shared through his training schools which attract owners, breeders and the next generation of trainers.
With more than 270,000 stock-herding dogs across rural Australia, the importance of working dogs to Australian farmers and property owners cannot be underestimated.
This importance is also reflected in the strong sale prices of fully-trained working dogs, with some setting eye-watering auction records.
Farmers are well aware that a well-trained dog provides benefits to a farm well beyond its sale price.
Preferring to train dogs from puppy-hood, Frank is a big believer in starting small in all facets of a dog’s training.
Below, Frank shares his top tips on training working dogs and working them towards their natural instincts.
When it comes to training dogs, Frank is a big believer in starting with small steps.
Nurture to nature
From birth, Frank said it was essential to nurture working dog pups through their early weeks and look after them with nourishing food and ensure they’re de-wormed.
“At six weeks pups are weaned and at nine weeks I start short bursts of training,” Frank said.
“The initial training is all about showing them what to do until their instincts come out.”
Forming a bond
As small and cute as they are, Frank said it was important to bond with them, but not too much until they are working.
“If too much bonding occurs before they’re working, they can become accustomed to it and come to expect it too much later on,” he said.
“There should be care, but I make sure I don’t become too close to them.”
Think small
When starting with pups, Frank encouraged those training working dogs to think small.
Training a small pup should incorporate small livestock such as goats or even ducks, while training should be limited to short periods.
“You don’t want to overwhelm a small pup,” Frank said.
“Training time and size of livestock can increase over time as the dogs grow. Once the dog is nine months of age we increase the cattle size and the number of them in the yard.”
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