A Dog is a Dog, Right?
Since humans first invited wolves into their lives, humans selected only the most social of wolves to co-exist with us. Humans began to see if their wolves could help him work to sustain food sources. Over time, humans began selectively breeding wolves to create a domesticated version we now call dogs. Before the beginning of mechanization, dogs participated in helping humans with everyday tasks – hunting for food, herding the larger domesticated livestock, and keeping his land safe from predators and vermin.
Over the years, humans developed specialized breeds to do these specific tasks taken from the dog’s inherited instincts. Humans “hard wired” their dogs to carry only specific traits from the dog’s larger and predatory “prey drive.” Prey drive starts with hunger. Then the dog uses scent or vision to find food. He chases it, shakes it, kills it, eats it and guards it from others. Humans looked for specific parts of that larger “prey drive” and bred only the dogs that carried those specific traits to help him make living easer. Livestock Guardians protected flocks or herds of livestock. Hunting dogs helped man to find food so he could feed his family. Herding dogs kept his flocks intact and moved them to grazing areas. Terriers sought and killed vermin that would eat his grain. Some fiercely protected his family from invaders when he was hunting.
Today, with modern mechanization and technologies, the jobs of these incredible animals are being absorbed. Add to this the disconnection of humans with their environment and neighbors as well as loss of a sense of community, now humans have increased their need for companionship. Dogs became the natural selection of humans for companionship.
In doing so, humans have taken the dog sense of working purpose away. Secondly, now many dogs come from breed mixes that may not complement each other. Terriers mixed with guardians, as an example. Now dogs have become totally confused about their purpose. Humans see only a companion they want the dog to be instead of a dog that needs to work. Humans pick the puppy that is cute instead of the puppy that helps them work the fields.
When humans no longer know the purpose of the breeds he has selected, now great pressure is on this dog to no longer work but to only be a companion. While companionship is indeed a wonderful part of having a dog in a human’s life, it is not always fulfilling the natural purpose of the dog.
The purpose of this discussion is to illuminate the idea that not all dogs are the same. Many have a huge need to work. Some do not. We, as humans so often think that EVERY dog’s sense of purpose is to only nurture us and that dogs are happiest in a loving, comfortable home sleeping on the sofa. It’s like the child music prodigy that never gets to play a piano. While home may be loving and comfortable, he never fulfills his purpose in life.
When we treat all dogs as companions ONLY, we can rob them of the purpose they were bred to perform. The result is a dog that displays many behavior problems from frustration. The key is understanding your dog’s breed(s) and what that purpose is, and then directing your dog’s life in a way he can fulfill his that or a similar purpose.
