Every word resonates.

And this is a tragedy (not using the word loosely):

We had 'the' conversation, and he was a perfectly nice kid, but completely clueless, he told me proudly, he was going to breed this pup, because lots of his friends wanted one.

I will never EVER understand why the average pet owner would WANT a high drive dog...yet I meet a lot of people who talk about how they can't wait to get a border collie or {nsert super drivey breed here).

I almost always include the "they make terrible pets" speech when asked about Gambit. There aren't malinois in shelters (pitbulls only....lots of them) in this area, so that speech will not sabotage a homeless shelter mal getting a home (plus they'd be down as shepherd mixes anyway). Anyone who laughs and tells me I'm exaggerating when I tell them what he's like to live with gets a 30 second demonstration of "Gamblederping" where he will proceed to sit and vibrate into a loud humming whining noise in anticipation of getting his tug, and is then told to image what that would be like in a puppy with no impulse control who doesn't want a tug you can give them but your pants legs instead....I've had ONE person still show interest after that...and that was someone who had previously handled border collies.

I would like to note however that Gambit is actually a WONDERFUL housedog and I'd like to think I have pretty high standards for housedog behavior, I couldn't imagine NOT having a highdrive dog or two in the house now XD but I can't say the relentless pacing (or staring and tapping if you put him in a downstay) if you didn't get him out for 2 hours and the sleep-to-defense-in-under-1.2-seconds-at-a-pin-drop mode is for most people XD


I will never understand people wanting to breed dogs they can't control...I mean, I can at least understand an uninformed person breeding that great dog that trained itself and is just the best pet they can ask for....the logic there is to produce more of those special "heart" dog types....but even in the most basic uninformed pet dog person logic if you can't control your dog why do you want MORE of it?

I mean, Ryuk and Gamble are great dogs who work well in their different areas, are wonderful to train with GREAT solid temperaments. Both of them have a history of less than great handling and neither has any real issues or temperment problems. Ryuk doesn't have the health but it certainly looks like Gam does....yet I don't really have any desire to breed either of them (and god knows I've had a lot of offers....)...why would the average person with the out of control under socialized nearly feral fear biter want more of their dog?

Edited by Connie Sutherland (02/10/2013 09:51 AM)
Edit reason: fixed bracket problem

 Quote: Jamie Craig

I will never EVER understand why the average pet owner would WANT a high drive dog...yet I meet a lot of people who talk about how they can't wait to get a border collie or (insert super drivey breed here).

I almost always include the "they make terrible pets" speech when asked about Gambit. There aren't malinois in shelters (pitbulls only....lots of them) in this area, so that speech will not sabotage a homeless shelter mal getting a home (plus they'd be down as shepherd mixes anyway). Anyone who laughs and tells me I'm exaggerating when I tell them what he's like to live with gets a 30 second demonstration of "Gamblederping" where he will proceed to sit and vibrate into a loud humming whining noise in anticipation of getting his tug, and is then told to image what that would be like in a puppy with no impulse control who doesn't want a tug you can give them but your pants legs instead....I've had ONE person still show interest after that...and that was someone who had previously handled border collies.

I would like to note however that Gambit is actually a WONDERFUL housedog and I'd like to think I have pretty high standards for housedog behavior, I couldn't imagine NOT having a highdrive dog or two in the house now XD but I can't say the relentless pacing (or staring and tapping if you put him in a downstay) if you didn't get him out for 2 hours and the sleep-to-defense-in-under-1.2-seconds-at-a-pin-drop mode is for most people XD


I will never understand people wanting to breed dogs they can't control...I mean, I can at least understand an uninformed person breeding that great dog that trained itself and is just the best pet they can ask for....the logic there is to produce more of those special "heart" dog types....but even in the most basic uninformed pet dog person logic if you can't control your dog why do you want MORE of it?

I mean, Ryuk and Gamble are great dogs who work well in their different areas, are wonderful to train with GREAT solid temperaments. Both of them have a history of less than great handling and neither has any real issues or temperment problems. Ryuk doesn't have the health but it certainly looks like Gam does....yet I don't really have any desire to breed either of them (and god knows I've had a lot of offers....)...why would the average person with the out of control under socialized nearly feral fear biter want more of their dog?

....)...why would the average person with the out of control under socialized nearly feral fear biter want more of their dog?

My observations on this is money - pure and simple, and this is not just the province of the idiot down the pub with his imbecilic friend, an awful lot of 'respectable' and respected breeders of big name kennels are, - and I am quoting here, "making some money out of them"

Makes me sick.

My boss speculates that I must have some kind of brain-damage to voluntarily have an ACD and a Malinois in the same house and neither of my dogs is anything near high drive. They're really just decent little performance dogs but they would drive someone to drink heavily if you didn't insist on sanity in the house.

Even at 'medium' drive they're way too much for the pet people I interact with. Way way way too much. For whatever reason, people don't get it or are completely unrealistic about their handling skills and what it is they want to live with. I refuse to be any kind of breed ambassador for my dogs and usually go out of my way to explain their bad points. Granted the people who insist they want a high drive dog won't work with what they have first for various asinine reasons so it's really just like diving into the shallow end head first.

A client of my boss just got an ACD puppy from up north somewhere sight unseen. If I were in the market for a pup I'd just wait a few months to take this one since at 16 weeks, it's already a fiasco. Their previous dog? A Shih-tzu.

There are quite a few ACD owners here! Awesome

People often fawn over Carlin on walks, and inquire about him. I tell them hes only this good because we just finished our daily 5 mile hike.

People don't understand what "High drive" really means.

I'm in a class with Kenzi and the instructor refers to her as "very high drive". no, not really She's drivey and active, much more so than the average pet and she needs a job to do. But what she's exhibiting in the class is more her excitable nature more than her drive. Kipp is higher drive even though he appears calmer.

 Quote: Mara Jessup

People don't understand what "High drive" really means.

You're right. Many don't. I know I didn't for years, even though I did shelter work and trained companion (and other) dogs.

I do now, and I know that they do not belong in most (almost all) of the pet homes I know. Not for them, not for the family. No good outcome, all around.

I do the "You really don't want one of these" lectures all the time too. Logan is super good in public and people ask what he is and then think they want one. If they don't believe me I do a obedience and tug demo and they go "OMG!!!" Freaks them out to see a dog shake with its hair standing up just anticipating a toy. I also show them my scars from his miscalculations.

that's something I'd love to see a video of