Blue Heeler jobs

Question
I have two 4-yr old blue heeler/Aussi mix dogs, rescued from the humane society when they were younger. I make sure they have a lot of exercise hiking and swimming and chuckit balls. But the male really wants to be responsible for something, so he makes up his own 'jobs'. (This past blizzard he sat outside at the corner of the house in the snow all day so that he could watch for anyone trying to make it up our slippery driveway.) I need to understand what 'job' means to a heeler when I don't have cows or sheep for him to herd. What other kind of 'job' will satisfy a herd dog?

Answer
Hi, Nan,

I like the way you're approaching the problem, but I don't think it's an issue of having or not having a job, necessarily, but of the dog having excess predatory energy without also having a satisfying outlet for it. (The herding instinct is actually part of the wolf's prey drive that's been amplified by humans who've bred for a particular set of predatory action patters/behaviors found in wild wolves.)
In wolves (and all four-legged predators), there's a sequence, an unbreakable chain:

The Search
The Eye Stalk
The Chase
The Grab Bite
The Kill Bite

Some experts also include Evisceration as the final act of predation (I don't).

Since wolves routinely hunt large prey, unlike most other predators (with the possible exception of lions) they have an additional link in the chain, which I call "culling." This is where, when they find a herd of deer or bison, they start a series of behaviors used to maneuver the animals into moving around or running, so that they can more readily spot the weakest member of the group. Culling, the Eye Stalk, and a modified version of The Chase are the genesis of the herding instinct in dogs. And most breeders of herding dogs try their best not to create dogs with a strong kill bite, which is the source of your heeler's inability to find a job or behavior that fully satisfies him.

Even though the Kill Bite is still there in herding dogs, albeit probably in a latent form, it and Evisceration (ripping the flesh away from the organs), are not as readily accessible. But in nature, they're the payoff; they complete the sequence! And without that payoff, most herding dogs are left feeling unfulfilled.

Here's what I'd recommend:

Make your dog work for his meals, using the pushing exercise: hand feed him, outdoors (I know, it's a bitch, but it's necessary). Fill one hand with food and put the other hand against your dog's chest. As he eats, slowly pull the food hand away so that he has to push into to your other hand in order to continue eating. Here's a fuller description: http://tinyurl.com/3balu6 Basically what this does is forces the dog to use a lot of energy (i.e. work) in order to eat. It also creates a stronger bond between dog and owner.
                  
Secondly I'd recommend playing tug-of-war (which mimics the fixed-action patterns of the Kill Bite and Evisceration) every day for as long as your dog will play it without getting bored. Always let him win and praise him for winning. http://www.tiny.cc/tug Again, this uses up a lot of energy (it's the payoff for the prey drive), and has the added benefit if improving the bond between you and your dog.

I'd also play fetch, and start re-training him to stay using a game I "invented" (based on an exercise in Kevin Behan's NATURAL DOG TRAINING), which stimulates and satisfies the dog's Eye Stalk behavior (which is the basis for the stay in the first place). Here's a link to that: http://www.tiny.cc/TrickorTreat

If you have any questions or problems with any of this, let me know.

LCK