06/21/2025
Something I want you to think about today:
Your dog did not ask to be born into our human world.
We designed dogs for centuries to do specific tasks. Herd these sheep, guard this property, haul these sleds, chase those critters and howl, kill those vermin.
And then, society changed. Rapidly. And we took away those jobs, took our dogs, and placed them in suburban households. We put them behind fences, and limited their freedom. This was good, because it kept our dogs safer. Less dogs got hit by cars or shot by farmers for terrorizing livestock. It prevented more accidental unwanted litters and aided in solving our pet overpopulation problem.
But we’ve been left with millions of dogs, bred for certain purposes with certain genetic propensities, who are left unfulfilled and frustrated. A dog’s perfect world would have no fences, no leashes. They would be able to keep distance from scary things if needed, and approach things they’re curious about at their own pace. They could sniff and investigate, zig and zag through the world at large, unencumbered by a human behind them shouting marching orders at them and yanking on their collars.
Unfortunately we cannot give our dogs this world. It’s not safe, and it’s not practical. But we can listen to our dogs, see what they need, and give them pieces of this ideal reality.
Do you have a retriever? Let them fetch, let them swim, when they’re puppies and they keep picking every little thing up laugh and revel in the wonder that is genetics, how cool that these puppies are doing this without any training at all? Teach them to “bring it” and “give it” instead of getting mad and yelling at them for the 100th time for doing what we’ve designed them to do!
Do you have a scent hound? Stop expecting a perfect show ring heel out in nature. Scent hounds are smart, and if you have the right motivators they’re happy to work with you! But when you get mad at your beagle for sniffing? How unfair, and how counter productive! Buy a long line, drive to a field, and go for a long line walk with your dog! Watch how they chase the odor, zig zagging back and forth with their noses going a thousand miles a minute.
Do you have a herding breed? ENGAGE THEIR BRAIN! Train with them, every day (literally, every day). If you can find a treiball class, take it! Harness their instincts. Hike off leash with them if you can. You have a breed that was designed to work for entire days without tiring, all while paying an amazing amount of attention to both their handler and their flock. You cannot expect them to be happy with a 20 minute walk around the block.
We owe it to our dogs to do these things. Many of the behaviors we deem “problem behaviors” are really things we have literally spent centuries intentionally breeding into our dogs! Understanding that is just the first step to providing an ever better life for your dog, one where you can meet their needs much more fully. We owe it to our dogs to try and fully understand them.
