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Originally Posted by brunie's mom  Well, I know that he has high prey drive...there is not a deer, or critter that he does not want to chase.  If I throw a ball....he will run after it....but if he brings it back it's another story.  Or just throwing something up in the air for him to catch, he may catch it, or he may not.  |
Chili's the same with catching...if I "prepare" her for a catch, she's much better at it, but if I just toss something at her it's more likely to be caught with her paws or bounce off her than be caught in her mouth.
Since Baxter is willing to charge after "prey", maybe the return has more to do with pack drive than prey drive.
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Originally Posted by brunie's mom I was thinking of the breed as a whole though...since I board mostly Golden Retrievers and Labs...now those are breeds that will jump in the air to catch things and retrieve for hours if you let them. They don't seem to have the prey drive though (and that is what makes them such easy, and good family members). |
I'd think the difference is the balance between pack and prey drives, and nerve endings, LOL. The dogs that will do it for hours on end seem a bit mindless to me....I love Rottweilers because they think! I don't ask Chili to retrieve more than 4 or 5 times because I want it to remain fresh, and she would lose interest with too many repetitions of
anything. "I GET it already, now what's next?"
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Originally Posted by brunie's mom Chili's got the retrieve all figured out. Baxter thinks tracking is more fun. |
She does!
Does Baxter air scent as well? Chili will air scent when a dog has just passed by (but is out of sight) in the neighborhood, and tends to scent with her nose to the ground when no one else has been around for awhile. I wish there were more hours in the day (being independently wealthy would be nice
) because tracking would be fun, too!