Winning in the show ring starts long before show day—it begins in the barn with consistent training and preparation. Whether you’re working with show sheep or market goats, the time and effort you invest in training will pay off in the ring. Today I will walk you through training your animals to perform their best.

Building Trust and Establishing a Routine

Let’s begin with building trust. The foundation of any successful training program is a strong relationship between you and your animal.

• Building Trust: Spend time handling your animal daily to build familiarity and trust. Focus on calm training without getting frustrated. You want to be teaching your lamb and goat to stand on the halter and to allow you to touch and set their legs as well as all other show ring expectations.
• Routine Matters: Animals thrive on routine, but so do you. If you don’t set a time of day that you are working with your animal it might not happen. You want to be practicing every single day to get the best results.

Mastering Key Training Techniques

Along with basic handling, you want to focus on specific training skills.

• Teaching Proper Stance:
  For sheep and goats alike, you want to work on setting legs from the very begining.
  • For sheep: Learn how to set their legs by standing over them and placing their rear legs square. You can use the lift and set to move the front legs into place and get a faster set, but you will need to drill your set up system over and over until it can be done smooth, steady, and fast.
  • For goats: Teach them to adjust their rear legs while in the drive. For goats only, you can adjust the rear legs while continuing to stand in the front of them. You are using a type of lift and set as well, but the actual technique is much different than sheep.
• Walking and Leading:
  • For sheep: Train them to walk calmly on a halter without pulling or stopping and then transition to walking without a halter. Your lamb will need to walk without a halter on show day.
  • For goats: Use a collar or your show halter as soon as possible to find which one works well for your goat. You will need to drill the walk with your goat until they are used to the routine and willing to walk whenever you ask.
  • Bracing for Market Animals: Bracing is critical for market animals both sheep and goats. You will need to teach sheep and goats to push back when you apply pressure to their chest, flexing and showing off their muscle. Regular practice will build their responsiveness and strength.

Key Takeaways

Training your sheep or goat is key to success on show day. It will take discipline, dedication, and the bond you build with your animal. By focusing on mastering your technique and consistently training you set yourself up for success in the ring. The hard work you put in now will pay off on show day.

This was just an overview of tons of details we could dive into. If you want more detail on training, check out my sheep or market goat book: Show Your Way To The Top, at amazon or mastershowmanship.com/shop

Do you have tips or questions about training show animals? Share your experiences in the comments, and let’s keep improving together!