Bertha Playing Dead

[JZOreos]

Over Christmas break I have been trying to train Bertha to play dead. So far it takes both me and my brother to get her down. She was quite nervous at first but is starting to pick it up now.

Here is the video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqvas7HS9wI

Any advice or tips would be welcome!

 

[M-5]

My advice is to wait till July when the ground ain't so cold

 

[greybeard]

Hmmmm...the last thing I wanted to play dead, still is and it's been a few years now.
(I'm a dang good teacher)

 

[slick4591]

My advice is to wait till July when the ground ain't so cold

:nod:

 

[dun]

So what's the point?

 

[HDRider]

I was thinking a dog, not a cow.

 

[JZOreos]

My advice is to wait till July when the ground ain't so cold

Thanks M-5, I hadn't thought about that. I had specifically waited until winter to try this trick as I figured the ground would be softer. However I could see where the cold ground would be making it uncomfortable for her. Maybe I'll put some hay down or something so it is warmer yet still soft.

So what's the point?

Mostly for fun and the challenge of it. Bertha gets bored easily if we do the same things everyday so I try to keep her moving onto more advanced tricks and commands. It will also be useful for when my younger siblings ride. They'll be able to get on much easier.

 

[tamarack]

Very cool !!

 

[Nesikep]

I wish I had time to really get into training my cows.. I know some would just be naturals at it...

Tips? other than warmer weather.. perseverance!.. Perhaps if you can keep some treats in your pocket you can give them to her as soon as she does what you want, rather than having to run for the bucket, which will probably help her figure out what you want her to do.

Might want to look in to "Diet" treats too

 

[Drzr]

I was thinking a dog, not a cow.

X2

 

[Jalopy]

Hey anybody can do a dog! She looks like a pet a d he rides her so why not in as a pet. Good job you have done well and have a lot of patience

 

[JZOreos]

I wish I had time to really get into training my cows.. I know some would just be naturals at it...

Tips? other than warmer weather.. perseverance!.. Perhaps if you can keep some treats in your pocket you can give them to her as soon as she does what you want, rather than having to run for the bucket, which will probably help her figure out what you want her to do.

Might want to look in to "Diet" treats too

:lol: "Diet" treats are a very good idea! Prior to taking the video I was using pieces of corn cob that I fed her as soon as she hit the ground and you're right, they did work a lot better than the grain. However I ran out of those and she hates store apples so I've just been using grain until I can get some more corn.

If you ever want to get into training your cows, the book "OXEN" by Drew Conroy is very helpful. Although it isn't about riding cows, it covers the basic groundwork and after that you can build on it and teach them just about anything.

 

[Howdyjabo]

Advice from a dog training background.

You need to be feeding her as she goes over and while she is down. I am not sure is it doable to keep the feed in front of where you want her nose the whole time. Try letting her lick a glob of peanut butter? The basis for dog training is that feed comes from your hand so they follow your hand just about anywhere. Also look into target and clicker training- I don't know much about that but it seems like it would be useful to transition from a hand to a target for a cow.
Right now you are training her to put up with you guys so she can get up as fast as she can to get the treat.

 

[Nesikep]

Howdyjabo.. That's what I was getting at in a more roundabout way... Her getting the treat when she gets up may be counterproductive to your goals.

There's a facebook group "Cow Talk" and it has a few members that teach their cows tricks.. One is "Wilson", a water buffalo ox that is pretty impressive, and then there was another girl who taught her cow to kneel and spin.

For my purposes, I'm quite happy if I can just get them to lead well, stand still to be milked (even though they're beef cows), and most know what 'Be Nice' means (when they're being mean to another cow).

I'll keep an eye open for that book