Peggy is a sheepdog from Norfolk and she spent most of her life herding animals on a farm. She was a great sheepdog because she was intelligent and listened to the signals from her shepherd.
However, one day Pegg suddenly went deaf. Peggy’s former owners ended up surrendering her to the Mid-Norfolk and North Suffolk branch of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
The shelter was full, so the staff had to find a foster family for Peggy ASAP. Fortunately, an animal welfare manager named Chloe Shorten volunteered. Chloe had two other sheepdogs and her husband is a shepherd. Chloe’s family was perfect for Peggy and they ended up adopting her permanently.
Peggy overcomes her disability
At first, Peggy didn’t trust her new owners. Fortunately, Chloe and her husband were patient and they let Peggy decompress and adjust to her new surroundings. Soon, Peggy started to bond with Chloe as they went around and explored fun places like the beach. Peggy was soon happy and active again.
Chloe and her husband also got Peggy to work again. A sheepdog like Peggy needed to work or else they grow bored and despondent. Chloe ended up teaching Peggy hand signals so she can herd sheep again.
Peggy’s new life
Chloe used repetitive and positive reinforcement to train Peggy to look at physical hand gestures. Peggy is a very clever dog, so she now knows how to read Chloe and her husband’s body language and hand signals. Peggy also wears a GPS collar so she won’t get lost while working.
Even though she’s now 10 years old, Peggy still enjoys herding animals. She also continues to impress Chloe and her husband with how clever and skilled she is. Peggy is old but she still loves learning all sorts of tricks.
Credit: @rspcanor