Every dog was initially bred for a specific purpose, as time passed, we have taken them away from those roles, without acknowledging that their innate drive to work and fulfil those tasks still remains.
Not acknowledging a dog's innate drive to work and complete tasks may lead to what we interpret as 'behavioural problems'. Understanding the traits of your dog's breed and allowing them to satisfy their natural behaviours can lead to a happier, healthier, and more balanced dog.
While I'm not recommending taking your Collie dog to a field with sheep or engaging in unsanctioned gun dog work with your pet Labrador, it's important to acknowledge that most of us have non-working dogs that were originally bred for work. These dogs have an innate desire to work, and if not fulfilled, this energy can manifest in undesirable behaviours towards objects or people. It's crucial to find ways to satisfy your dog's natural instincts for them to be content.
For example, does your Collie chase cars? Does your Retriever constantly bring you items socks, shoes? Does your German Shepherd struggle to settle in the house, are they alarmed and reactive to sounds and passersby?
Fortunately, there are actions you can take to assist them in channeling this energy through tasks, skills, and play behaviours, which can help reduce their urge to perform them in otherwise inappropriate ways or places.
Meet Charlie, an 11-month-old Saluki Collie cross rescue dog. While Charlie bears a striking resemblance to a Saluki, his mentality is ALL Collie.
Collies have a natural instinct to herd sheep, as this is their breeding purpose. In Charlie's situation, he has been unable to fulfil his inherent Collie instinct to herd in a supervised setting. Causing him to redirect his herding instincts towards chasing cars and people who are jogging.
As part of Charlie's training schedule I introduced a large plastic ball to test his herding instinct in the garden. He quickly embraced the ball, demonstrating his impressive herding abilities. (See video below)
It is important to understand the characteristics of the breed you own or intend to welcome into your home. Not all dogs will find pleasure in the usual recommended 'busy work' activities (lick mats, kongs, basic fetch, snuffle mats or interactive toys). Knowing your dog and knowing their breed allows you to adapt and tailor their activities to make sure they are mentally and physically stimulated. Some examples of activities that may be more engaging for your dog: scent work, fetch with impulse control, swimming, hiking, interactive games that include movement and elements of search or even specialised training (bite work/protection work). It all depends on the breed.
What's your dogs favourite activity?
Thank you Sophie for featuring our little Charlie :) after struggling to find ways to stimulate him - kongs, lick mats, snuffle mats etc just didn’t do the job! Your introduction of the ball as part of his training has been a game changer for us! Your recognition of the need to herd as part of his breed and this being a factor in some of the issues we were experiencing made all the difference. We are so grateful for your help so far and looking forward to working with you more to help settle Charlie into his new forever home :)