Sheep herding unleashes city dogs’ natural instincts

Business Writeup: Sheep Herding For City Dogs

Popular television programs about working dogs has led to a significant increase in people taking on these breeds, often in less-than-ideal circumstances. The number of dog owners needing assistance managing these highly intelligent and energetic dogs is on the rise, according to Sheep Herding For City Dogs owner John Borg.

“We are now sadly being asked to take on a family pet working dog at least once a month as owners cannot manage their dog’s problem behaviours that have developed through boredom,” said John.

John’s approach helps owners to better communicate, understand and reduce issues with these working breeds so owners can have a happier family life. 

“Many working dogs like to chase the lawn mower, cars or try to round up running children, chickens, and dogs at your local dog park etc,” John said. “This is a working dog’s natural instinct. Essentially this is because the dogs are bored. Regular exercise only takes care of the physical needs, not mental needs. Whereas working with stock takes care of both physical and mental needs.” 

John said sheep herding was a fun activity owners could enjoy with their dog and other like-minded people and provided an outlet for city and suburban working dogs to do what they were bred to do. 

“Learning from my own pack of dogs and their body language inspires and drives me to help others better connect with their dogs,” he said. “Dogs’ behaviours are misunderstood much of the time. Problematic behaviours are usually created by owners not understanding the dog’s instinctive nature. It is dog owners that need help to reduce issues by better understanding their dog, rather than the dog needing help to fix its bad behaviour. 

“I am driven by a love for dogs and a desire to help others. Many people, particularly during COVID or after watching the recent working dog TV shows have taken on the responsibility, without realising the commitment and input they will need to make to fulfill the dog’s needs.

“Learning and understanding the behaviours of my own pack’s body language inspires me to help others have better relationships with their dogs. Owners generally try to communicate with their dog using human language, human instinct, and human emotion which does not work, as a dog’s language is body language. As a result of knowing how dogs communicate, I teach people how to communicate back with body language that dogs understand. 

• John offers: group sessions limited to 3 dogs per session; one-on-one sessions; or private demonstrations for small local community groups & tourist buses.  Go to www.sheepherdingforcitydogs.com for more.