PART TWO

I reflected this week about all the different virtues that go into a good stockdog. Things like rate, group, balance, outrun, push, biddability, finesse, patience, courage, correct grip, eye, work ethic, drive, endurance, agility, problem solving, stock savvy, responsibility, power . . . it's hard to think of another activity that requires such a complex balance of traits. Listing them makes one understand why it is that breeds developed for controlling livestock are so good at other tasks as well. It also could make one reflect upon genetics, because every single one of the above qualities is inherited.

In the world of real using stockdogs, no one questions the basic fact that only by breeding the most talented to the most talented, will you have any chance of producing talented pups, and even then, some will probably wash out. Look at the list in the preceding paragraph again: it's a long one.

Of course, each person's needs are going to be a bit different—a rancher running cattle in inaccessible country is going to value a courageous, enduring heading dog who will trail, while a farmer who has a small flock of sheep and a free-range egg business is probably going to rate kindliness, finesse, and biddability high. It is the balance of qualities which define the dog, and also, in a larger sense, define the breed.

Now, any geneticist will tell you that what is innate cannot be expressed—can't even be known—without the proper environment. That is, a child who could be the next Mozart, won't be, unless they have access to a piano and a teacher. Just so, any born stockdog genius needs livestock and some training for anyone to see what his otherwise invisible insides are made of.

One of the reasons Border Collies have become the ubiquitous working dog, ousting local herding breeds around the world, is because the breeders of Border Collies have always recognized the implications of inheritance, and have cleaved to a standard of performance over any other criteria. Other breeds, including the Aussie, have suffered from conflicting ideas about what to select for, including, of course and most damagingly, aesthetics. It is only fair to also point out that some working breeds which have not suffered from the show-dog syndrome have fallen from favor for other reasons, such as changes in livestock management—breeds that were once used to drive stock to market, for example.

Since my fences are almost up, I have been researching and pondering what to put in them, and find I am most drawn to “heritage” breeds of sheep; breeds which have now been almost completely supplanted by commercially more useful breeds. About forty percent of the sheep in the United States are one breed, the Suffolk, which has proven to be ideal for the high-input management systems that are most profitable on a large scale. But for the small farmer and in marginal situations, it can be a poor choice. The genetic diversity still available in sheep is being supported by those small farmers, who value other qualities than those the Suffolk can offer. I am not being sentimental when I am looking for saleable handspinning wool, parasite resistance, and the ability to thrive on poor forage.

One stockdog virtue that cannot be evaluated by anyone other than the individual owner, is suitability. The Aussie is suitable for some situations and not for others, just like any other working dog. Being a generalist by nature, the Aussie will rarely be quite as good at a specific task as a breed developed just for that purpose. But a jack of all trades is exactly what some farmers and ranchers want and need. As Bud Williams famously said, “If you think you have a good dog, you have a good dog.”