On The Lamb

Robin does a fantastic job with ALL breed herding, not just Border Collies out at this real working ranch. A fun experience for both dog and human, Robin explains the sport of herding in a language anyone can understand. Robin has extensive knowledge of all animal behavior, not just canines. It’s obvious she enjoys her job and loves working with any breed of dog. Robin uses positive techniques to help owner and dog understand the sport.
After a lesson with Robin, my dogs are tired and happy.

This was a really fun experience for both the humans involved and the pup. I took my dad here (as a birthday gift) and our families border collie/​springer spaniel mix to see if his border collie instincts would translate to herding (they did).
Robin was fantastic and kind and the setting is pretty beautiful (lovely ranch tucked into the hills). After our lesson we were invited to see some newborn lambs and other animals on the property. Honestly our doggy was so excited and happy throughout and met several of the stock dogs all of whom were super friendly (tails were wagging all over the place). It was like taking a little kid to Disney land for the first time.
Plus as a bonus we got to see a cardigan corgi herding sheep which nearly killed us all with cuteness. Down the road right by where you exit the freeway there’s a café that was very dog friendly where we went to lunch afterwards. Overall it was a pretty great day.

I first went to Robin because I had been looking for a border collie. Rather than randomly picking a dog from the litter she helped pick one that had a personality that matches the home and person. She did amazing, I swear I have never had a connection with a dog like this one. We now have two from her and we love it. We also began herding at On The Lamb and have fallen in love with it. We work and compete as a family. If you are thinking about doing this at all, don’t hesitate, just sign up for a lesson or instinct test at
you’ll love it.

Before On the Lamb, my amazing dog and I took sheep herding lessons from four different people. As it turns out, each of those people originally learned from Robin. Now that I’ve gone straight to the source, I really feel like we’re getting somewhere. Prior instructors have done a decent job of telling me what to do, and sometimes why we were doing it, but not like this. Robin explains everything so clearly that I finally feel like I fully understand what my dog and I are supposed to be doing out there with the sheep. This is infinitely better than my other instructors, who would just tell me to move this way and that way and then take a break.
If you’re looking for manicured lawns and sheep that look like they’re ready for the big 4-​H show, keep looking. This is a delightfully rustic facility down a dirt road, through some farm fields. There may only be a port-​o-​potty, but you’ll be far from any vehicle traffic that could hurt your dog. It’s a quiet place to learn with minimal distraction, and Robin has everything you need to get ready for a sheep herding trial with your dog. Or she can train your dog for you.
Just for fun clients are also welcomed! Not everyone has to have aspirations of competing, and you can do an instinct test just to see if your mixed breed dog is interested. There is no pressure, and they are much more gentle with the dogs than many herding instructors.

My wife and I took Daisy — a rescue who looks like a Briard though Robin thinks she’s got a lot of Bearded Collie — to On the Lamb for an «instinct test,» and she showed herself to be a natural. It was great fun for us and a good workout for Daisy. Robin is knowledgable, no-​nonsens, and seems to love what she does. Sean took 28 photos — some caught Daisy in action and are priceless — and sent them to us for free. Good folks. Now it’s up to us to decide whether we want to train Daisy…

A very knowledgable and fun instructor. For myself who knew nothing about herding,
she broke all the skills down so it was easier to understand. With my two dogs who have very different personalities, Robin’s skills and techniques helped me understand and appreciate herding all together. It is a great sport and with Robins help I will be ready to compete.