I drove past a house today with a boarder-collie yapping away.I am inclined to think it is form of animal abuse to keep a working dog as a pet when they are really keen to go out to work. What does anyone else think?
dogs ARE pets....up to an owner and what they want a pet for. That is not animal abuse. Are pitts suppose to be fighting dogs? Is that their work? NOT. Now that's abuse!
Well, it is true that there have been problems when people bring home dogs without paying attention to the behavior and characteristics of the breed. For instance, some people ran out and got Dalmations for their kids when the live-action version of "101 Dalmations" hit theaters several years back. But Dalmations are high-energy dogs originally bred to run alongside and protect horse-drawn carriages. People got fed up with the animals' high energy and quite a few ended up in shelters. Border collies have the instinct to herd and will even "herd" people around a living room. However, if your dog is bored there are things to do aside from giving him away or starting a sheep farm. Many people with Border collies enroll them in agility classes. The dogs get the one-on-one interaction they crave, and an appropriate outlet for their energy. Other people train their Border collies to herd Canada geese, and provide their services to golf courses and similar areas that do not want geese on their property. This is helpful to both species, as the geese are made to move on rather than killing them, and the collies get to exercise in a constructive way.
People have steadily been breeding out any use that could be derived from dogs such as working or hunting. Collies as work dogs are nearly non-existent now, so many people with a horse or two think they own a ranch, buy a collie and do nothing with it. The same can be said for many types of hunting dogs, especially the beagle.
Almost all dogs were bred for some kind of work* that was their purpose in the grand scheme of things and why they came to coexist with humans. Those characteristics are still evident. I've seen a normally mild mannered spaniel go nuts tearing round trying to find our rabbits#. Guess the instinct never dies. As long as the dogs needs are met, and they are content, then family life can be very good for them. *Except possibly those stupid little yappy things... lap dogs. #The rabbits were well out of harms way. Would have been cruel not to, and I'm good to my babies.
The Cocker Spaniel originated with the purpose of hunting duck. Not only do people misbreed dogs, but when they do common misconceptions creep into the minds of the people who own them. I'm sorry but this is a HUGE pet peeve of mine, all the dogs I grew up with were working dogs. On a side note, all dogs in North America originated from wolves. Dogs in Europe originated from about 4-5 different types. My point being that we co-existed with them before we domesticated them.
I have a terrier mix, and a lab, both of which were bred to work and do specific tasks. The terrier mix is just a pet dog, not an actual working dog, but it is in her nature to NEED to work, she is not happy unless I keep her busy with "work", which for her is just training tasks around the house, and I also let her chase balls and dig holes in the backyard. Terriers were bred to chase down rats and other pests, so they have an innate and irrepressible desire to chase, dig, and destroy. If she didn't get to do all this, she would be very unhappy and not well behaved at all. However, she loves to sit at the window that faces the street and howl/bark her head off all day long. People would think I neglected her, but that is not the case. She has her needs met, it is simply becuase she is a terrier with a bit of hound mixed in that causes her to be overprotective of our property and bark at everything that moves or howl. This is something that is also innate in her and very difficult to train or condition her not to do so, and she NEEDS to be able to do it on a regular basis, so while I try to cut back on how often she does it, I would not prevent her from doing it at all. My point is that things aren't always as they appear. To someonen that doesn't know us, they could very easily see her stand at the window several times an hour and bark her head off, and assume that she is not being taken care of the way she should be, and I would wonder the same myself. But I know that it isn't always the case. The lab IS an actual working dog, complete with certification and title. She is my Hearing Dog, an assistance dog. She is trained to retrieve, as she is a retriever. She retrieves ME and takes me to the sounds she is trained to take me to. However, while most labs would very much enjoy and need this kind of work, and tend to misbehave if not kept busy, Daisy is rather lazy and doesn't have a very good work ethic, so if I wanted to, I could just let her do absolutely nothing at all all day long and she'd be perfectly happy. She doesn't mind working either, though, as long as she gets a treat for a reward. So it's not always that if a dog is a certain breed, they have to be working, there are some "oddballs" like mine that aren't characteristic of their breed and may actually be happy being "lazy" and not doing anything. In that same respect, there may be oddballs in a "lazy" breed that need to work. My point is it's not so much about the breed of the dog as it is the dog itself, and you can't make judgements that a dog is neglected or abused based on what you see, as far as barking away or running up and down a fence line, or other things dogs do when they seem to be bored or in need of attention, because some dogs do these things because that's what they do, and you can't assume that, for example, if a dalmation is tied to a porch and is just laying there, that it is being neglected or abused because dalmations are an active breed. It may actually be a lazy dog that is perfectly happy to lay there, even though it's a dalmation. Unfortunately it is very frustrating, when you do encounter these situations, because just as much as you can't make any of these assumptions, the sad truth is that more often than not, people really don't take care of their dogs as they should. The responsible thing to do would be to get to know the dog and the family to find out exactly where they stand, rather than risk a family losing their dog when they were perfectly taken care of. I know I would be heartbroken if someone accused me of neglecting my terrier on the basis that she barks at the window all day, because this is simply not true whatsoever, I put so much work into her, and if she got taken away from me because of this, I would just die... I love her so much.
uh.....I'm sane....sheep farmers (aside from those few which are organic) resort to machines which are much more dependable and more cost effective than the dog. The collie is ruined....like so many other breeds..........
That is not the case around here. Both Kelpies and Boarder Collies are still extensily used on sheep farms.
Well we're just not as special as you Aussies. I want you to know that that is one of the first smilies I have ever used.
it could have been an old retired border collie I am soon getting a retired greyhound that is definitely not abusing it otherwise if they couldnt get it another home it would be put down and maybe the border collie was a working dog still dont make your mind up on such a huge thing as all woring dogs that are turned into pets most of them are just as happy and its not cruel as long as they get the comfort and exercise
Dogs are pets. Yea, you should have the right to own any kind. However, have knowledge and common sense- dont bring a dog into your home without knowledge about that individual dogs needs- consider its breed. I have a texas heeler, a working dog. Herding dog. Extremely energetic. If I dont play with him appropriately, he and dogs like him become neurotic. nervous, impulsive, irritable and violent. KNOWLEDGE.
There are plenty of working and working bred dogs in the USA too. Border Collies, GSDs, Aussies, Kelpie, McNabs, Coonhounds, Beagles, Pointers, Setters, Retrievers - I could go on but don't have to. People have not been steadily breeding dogs away from their priginal temperaments. Some breeds/lines have been breed away from their original purpose but others are still widely used for work. Even breeds which are not commonly seen in true working settings any longer, often retain the basic instinct for what they were bred to do. I had a rough collie who had pretty good natural herding talent (was tested on sheep by knowledgeable trainers several times). My childhood dog was an Iriosh Setter who was "birdy". My GSDs all had some degree of guarding and territorial behavior. My current Golden mix foster puppy is a very natural soft mouthed retriever. I have known countless Jack Russells who have retained very strong hunting drive. A dog is not just a dog - the jobs dog breeds were created to do tend impact the basic temperament. Breeds with strong drive to "work" such as Border Collies or Kelpies are not happy being "just pets". They need training and activity. Even if it isn't a herding job such breeds need regular mental exercise.
