Have you ever wonder why should you get an Australian Cattle Dog? Given proper consideration beforehand, the purchase of this breed will bring many years of companionship and comfort as well as unconditional love and devotion.
But it takes a great commitment on the part of the owner to help the breed reach its full potential.
The Australian Cattle Dog was bred to work. At no time in its developmental history was any attempt made to make the breed a lapdog or boudoir companion.
The Cattle Dog must be given something to do or it will think up something to do on its own—and that “something” just might be dismantling your new sofa or taking up your wall-to-wall carpeting.
The Cattle Dog needs a lot of exercise. It is not an apartment dog that can be left alone in confined quarters day after day.
Deciding Who Is Boss
This is definitely a breed with a mind of its own. It will size up a situation and, if unaccustomed to looking to its owner for directions, will make decisions on its own and it will act. It has a hair-trigger response mechanism.
Owners who have been negligent in making their Cattle Dog understand who makes all the rules will find themselves left out of decision making entirely.
Remember the Cattle Dog’s heritage and its resultant need for a strong pack leader. If you do not provide that leadership, your dog will provide leadership for itself.
The Australian Cattle Dog lives to be with its owner and it can do that since it is a breed that is just about the right size to go anywhere—not too large and not too small, short of coat and long on endurance, tolerant of both heat and cold.
Australian Cattle Dogs love the water and can swim great distances without tiring. They love their home and do not have an urge to roam.
People find Australian Cattle Dogs attractive for various reasons. Though the breed can hardly be described as “pretty,” many find the breed’s simple, natural lines very handsome. Others are attracted to the Australian Cattle Dog’s legendary intelligence and ability to understand its owner.
While these are but a few of the valid assets of the Australian Cattle Dog, they are still not enough reason for anyone to rush out to buy an Australian Cattle Dog.
This is not a breed that can be put outdoors in a pen and attended to only when the owner has the time or notion to do so.
It is a breed that is capable of becoming a great companion and cherished friend, but only if the owner is ready to invest the necessary time and patience in the training that is required to help the breed achieve its full potential.
All puppies are cuddly and cute and may even spend a part of their day duplicating all those popular and appealing greeting card and calendar poses; however, it is important to realize that a puppy will spend only a very small part of its day in such a docile state.
The far greater part of the day and night the puppy will spend investigating, digging, chewing, eating, relieving itself, needing to go outdoors, and then immediately insisting that it be let in. All too often these needs are not realistically considered before adding a dog to one’s household.
The list of the real needs of a young puppy or an adult dog can be staggering to the uninitiated, and it takes a very concerned and dedicated owner to fulfill these needs, to say nothing of the time required for the many lessons an Australian Cattle Dog must be taught by its master before it understands what it may and may not do.
Friends often seek our advice when they are contemplating the purchase of their first dog. If we detect even the slightest uncertainty on their part, we always advise them to wait until they are absolutely sure they want to take on this great responsibility.
Owning a dog, particularly an Australian Cattle Dog, takes a great commitment and it is not something that should ever be done on a whim. The hasty purchase of a dog can result in sheer drudgery and frustration for the owner, and an unhappy situation for the dog itself.
Failure to understand the amount of time and consideration a well-cared for dog requires is one of the primary reasons for the number of unwanted canines that end their lives in an animal shelter.
Given proper consideration beforehand, the purchase of a dog can bring many years of companionship and comfort as well as unconditional love and devotion no other animal can match.
