Goose Control with Border Collies or other herding breeds can have its down times. We have periods of the year when our Border Collies have little work to do. We are very busy in the Spring with goose control, and Summer can be quieter for goose control visits and of course here in New York State, there is Winter. If we have rid our clients of their geese, or most of them, by repeated visits using the herd chase method our dogs can have little work to do until geese come back, if they do, or we pick up new clients.
Border Collies and other herding breeds were developed from dogs which had been around farms and villages, into specialists, breeds that do one thing well, like herding or guarding. Herding breeds had their intelligence and socialization breed to work with their handlers, the farmers, shepherds. Also, stamina was developed as well as all around athleticism so the dogs could and can work the long farm days. These dogs made it possible and still make it practical to work farm animals on grass-based farms, nonconfinement farms.
The attributes Border Collies have as a breed make them ideal goose control dogs, as long as training for handler and dog has been in place. But what to do with energetic highly motivated dogs when there is little work to be done? First, it is essential to know that what we call “working breeds” want to have a sense of purpose. Racing breeds love to run, hunting breeds love to hunt, farm breeds, herding and guarding to do their “work”. The satisfaction of “work” gives the dogs a sense of belonging and well being, as in “this is what I do to survive” that goes hand and hand with the dog’s social life. Many people love working breeds even if they don’t have “work” which their breed was made for, because the nature of these breeds allows us to help find our way in the world, maybe even clue into our “purpose” or understanding of what it takes to survive and be happy.
There are many things you can do with the Border Collies’ energy if you don’t have work for them or are temporarily short of work. We have always maintained a small farm, a homestead and even though it’s not a lot of work for our Border Collies it gives them something they find deeply satisfying to do every day, herd sheep and poultry. Walks in our woods and neighbors pastures bring great pleasure and bonding experiences for us and our dogs. We have not tried agility or frisbee sports or other sports, but some find that great fun. We have tried sniffer training as some Border Collies do have more developed nose orientation than others.
Last month in Massachusetts I was on a goose control client visit with the team of Skye and Blade. There were not any geese that morning on the edge of a lake, so I kept looking for them on far shores from my clients property. Skye and Blade had helped me with that, and so they decided there were none around and started sniffing around for wildlife in the brush and tall grass. Soon Blade brought me a stick to play with, and Skye joined in. Just after we started playing, geese flew noisily into the shallow water near our client’s beech! There must have been 100 of them. Blade and Skye eminently drooped the play and ran to the lake’s edge to get a good look at the geese and then turned toward me for coordination, my guidance into what would come next. They knew their job was to send geese away and were very much looking forward to it. With their ears up, eyes entirely focused and bodies up with the pleasure of it all, we set to “work.”