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The sheepish sheepdog
It reads almost like the plot line of a Woody Allen movie: There's a new workplace hazard for Ci, a Border Collie, who was born and bred to herd sheep. This would-be "top dog's" crippling fear of the woolly creatures sends him running whenever he is forced to face his fearsome flock.
Owner Jane Lippington says that even as a puppy, Ci has been afraid of sheep, often turning tale and running when left alone with the flock.
"I have tried to use Ci to herd the sheep lots of times, but they are just too scary for him. He is terrified of them," Lippington says to the Mirror. "If they run away from him he will act like a proper sheepdog. But the moment they turn and face him he runs away."
And now, the tables have turned on poor Ci. The sheep have bucked the traditional role of chasees, and have become the chasers, running towards the intimidated pup for fun.
"Sheep can be quite aggressive if they think they have the upper hand," explains Lippington. "They stamp their feet, gang up and act like an army."
Lippington and her husband Donald have given up using Ci to herd their 100-sheep flock. But they intend to keep Ci on their 200-acre Manor Farm at near Bath, England.
I sympathize with the dog. He looks like a great, biddable dog -- just maybe had some bad early experiences. I'm sure his attentive owners have tried everyting, inclucing working with just a few thoroughly dog-broke sheep along with an experienced older dog.
The whole thing seems to be a confidence game, and a dog without much confidence can be a sad, sometimes infuriating sight. I know becasue that pretty much describes my dog Moll. We get the job done moving over public roads a mile a day. But Moll does not dominate the sheep so much as 'negotiate' with them. It's a sight that would make a professional shepherd throuw up with disgust. But as I say, we get the job done...eventually.
Now here's the joke: Let a stranger stop on the road to watch us proceed, and suddenly lacadaisical, layed-back Moll becomes a "TV Sheep Dog" -- zipping around rounding up straglers and taking the whole flock over to the stranger as sort of a present.
Hard to figure. But dogs are like people. And all the same rules apply.
Regards,
Christopher Guida
Edmunds TWP Me.
