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Ideas to catch "wild" cows
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<blockquote data-quote="RDFF" data-source="post: 1720332" data-attributes="member: 39018"><p>I once had a Border Collie from one of the top breeders in the world. His grand-daddy was a reserve world champion in the sheepdog trials. Got him as an 8 week old pup. Couldn't keep him away from wanting to "work" the cattle even as a young pup.......... instinct. If I went in for breakfast, I had to tie him outside the house, or he'd head right back down to the cattle pens and start working. He was just absolutely crazy to be "working" animals (or cars.......... they're the breed of dog mostly likely to be run over by a car, because they ALWAYS want to head off anything that's moving basically). Border Collies are BRED and specifically SELECTED for their natural instinct to want to "head an animal off"... (in the breed, it's called "eye".......... they read those pressure points, and they're whole goal is to maintain control over that animal and keep it contained and "grouped up" with that "eye".......... they see their handler as the "alpha" in the "pack"... and they're the "subordinates"... to do the "alpha's" bidding). With the really good ones, it'll almost seem like they're on drugs, they're so insanely wired up, and that "eye" is so strong in 'em. They simply WON'T chase 'em, and they are selectively bred for their natural instinct to work on the opposite side of the "herd" from where the handler is. If you don't understand 'em, they'll drive you crazy. People who want a "heeler" to "drive" critters just can't work with them at all. They're also selectively bred to work "silent", so getting one to bark at a crazy cow, for example, is nigh onto impossible. They generally won't nip enough to draw blood either, but they'll snap their teeth real aggressively right under the cows dewclaws. That's so that they don't tear up the sheep. THAT drove me crazy, cause I had a hard time getting my "Buff" to be as aggressive as I wanted him to be.... but once he got rolled a few times as a youngster, he learned to become a little more aggressive with them.... Cows are a lot bigger, and can be a lot more aggressive than sheep obviously... and the dog needs to learn to stand up to 'em, or they'll win every time.</p><p></p><p>Anyway, he learned to work the cattle, and I could do just about anything with him................................ but my cousin, who was used to working cattle with our German Shepherds that would tear 'em up and hang on their tails and chase 'em all over the place uncontrollably........... just couldn't understand how that Border Collie instinct was supposed to work to your benefit. He never did learn it.......... and I preferred to NOT let him work with Buff, because he was always yelling at him, even though Buff was doing what he was bred to do............ my cousin just didn't understand the instinct, and then didn't use it to his advantage.</p><p></p><p>If a cow is running away from you, do you want a dog whose instinct is to CHASE the crap out of that animal, or one whose instinct is to circle around and HEAD off that animal, and bring it back up to you, and hold it there? Do you want to be working those cattle from the rear WITH the dog, or do you want to go up and hold the gate, and ask the dog to just quietly bring the cattle up and through it.............. THAT'S their naturally bred in instinct.......... I'll take one of those every day.</p><p></p><p>Much as I loved that Border Collie and miss him, today I don't have a cattle dog, and I don't want one. My cattle will about follow me anywhere..... because I'm rotationally grazing them, and they're used to me moving them every day. Most of the time, I just open the gate, and walk ahead of 'em, and they follow me right in.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="RDFF, post: 1720332, member: 39018"] I once had a Border Collie from one of the top breeders in the world. His grand-daddy was a reserve world champion in the sheepdog trials. Got him as an 8 week old pup. Couldn't keep him away from wanting to "work" the cattle even as a young pup.......... instinct. If I went in for breakfast, I had to tie him outside the house, or he'd head right back down to the cattle pens and start working. He was just absolutely crazy to be "working" animals (or cars.......... they're the breed of dog mostly likely to be run over by a car, because they ALWAYS want to head off anything that's moving basically). Border Collies are BRED and specifically SELECTED for their natural instinct to want to "head an animal off"... (in the breed, it's called "eye".......... they read those pressure points, and they're whole goal is to maintain control over that animal and keep it contained and "grouped up" with that "eye".......... they see their handler as the "alpha" in the "pack"... and they're the "subordinates"... to do the "alpha's" bidding). With the really good ones, it'll almost seem like they're on drugs, they're so insanely wired up, and that "eye" is so strong in 'em. They simply WON'T chase 'em, and they are selectively bred for their natural instinct to work on the opposite side of the "herd" from where the handler is. If you don't understand 'em, they'll drive you crazy. People who want a "heeler" to "drive" critters just can't work with them at all. They're also selectively bred to work "silent", so getting one to bark at a crazy cow, for example, is nigh onto impossible. They generally won't nip enough to draw blood either, but they'll snap their teeth real aggressively right under the cows dewclaws. That's so that they don't tear up the sheep. THAT drove me crazy, cause I had a hard time getting my "Buff" to be as aggressive as I wanted him to be.... but once he got rolled a few times as a youngster, he learned to become a little more aggressive with them.... Cows are a lot bigger, and can be a lot more aggressive than sheep obviously... and the dog needs to learn to stand up to 'em, or they'll win every time. Anyway, he learned to work the cattle, and I could do just about anything with him................................ but my cousin, who was used to working cattle with our German Shepherds that would tear 'em up and hang on their tails and chase 'em all over the place uncontrollably........... just couldn't understand how that Border Collie instinct was supposed to work to your benefit. He never did learn it.......... and I preferred to NOT let him work with Buff, because he was always yelling at him, even though Buff was doing what he was bred to do............ my cousin just didn't understand the instinct, and then didn't use it to his advantage. If a cow is running away from you, do you want a dog whose instinct is to CHASE the crap out of that animal, or one whose instinct is to circle around and HEAD off that animal, and bring it back up to you, and hold it there? Do you want to be working those cattle from the rear WITH the dog, or do you want to go up and hold the gate, and ask the dog to just quietly bring the cattle up and through it.............. THAT'S their naturally bred in instinct.......... I'll take one of those every day. Much as I loved that Border Collie and miss him, today I don't have a cattle dog, and I don't want one. My cattle will about follow me anywhere..... because I'm rotationally grazing them, and they're used to me moving them every day. Most of the time, I just open the gate, and walk ahead of 'em, and they follow me right in. [/QUOTE]
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