Quote:
Originally Posted by Veracity
In my opinion, there is a lot to be said about how nature (genes) and nurture (upbringing) interact to shape canine behavior. My experiences have taught me to understand and respect every dog’s breed (nature). If I buy/adopt a border collie, just like its ancestors, it will be genetically programmed to herd. It’s very unlikely that I will ever be able to completely train that dog NOT to display herding tendencies. If I don’t live on a farm, and I am very kind and loving to the dog, and I never teach it or expose it to herding (nurture), under certain circumstances, herding tendencies will still surface and the dog will naturally chase, circle, and nip at a moving object (nature). It’s not that the dog “snapped.” It’s just doing what it was bred for. Everyone seems to accept herding behavior from the entire category of breeds called ”collies.” Yet many people deny that the category of breeds called pit bulls, who were bred to fight but raised in a loving home, have the propensity to attack, regardless of how friendly they appear.
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100% right.
If you own a herding dog, it's going to herd. As you say, that's what it was bred to do.
It you have a retriever, the odds are, it's going to "retrieve", no matter how it's raised.
The town that borders me in NH, has a local ordinance against owning a Pit Bull and my Insurance company wouldn't insure my home if I owned a Pit Bull. The statistics support such a ban and prohibition.