Things changed rapidly after that, when suddenly one day she began barking at the agitator on the field, and clearly displayed her interest in participating. Cinder hasn't looked back. While working in protection, she is a strong and powerful small bitch who takes protection work seriously. Cinder throws herself into the sleeve and bites hard and full with great energy and intensity. She works most strongly in defense, and is just beginning to recognize prey behavior.
Cinder thrives on very strong threat.
She is showing herself to be a calm and methodical tracking dog as well. Cinder had first been exposed to sheep five weeks earlier, and had only been able to train on occasional weekends since then. Another herding enthusiast felt she had enough natural talent that she could pass her PT without significant exposure, so I skipped the HT altogether and signed her up for the PT after her second herding lesson. Cinder did not disappoint me. She did an excellent job completing the course, keeping her sheep under control and working steadily and smoothly.