A dog trainer has revealed the three breeds he finds most challenging to work with, and surprisingly, an XL Bully isn't among them.
Will Atherton, who has years of experience training thousands of dogs with various behavioural issues, including aggression and biting, admits there are certain breeds he prefers not to work with. And describes working with some as 'absolutely lunacy'.
In a recent YouTube video, the Derbyshire-based canine behaviourist shared: "I have worked with the vast majority of breed[s]. I'm going to let you in on a little secret in the dog training and canine behaviour field.
"All dog trainers and all canine behaviourists - even though we all love all dogs - I promise you there are certain breeds we all love to work with, and there are certain breeds we all don't like to work with. I'm going to be super honest in today's video and talk about three breeds that I don't really like working with and why."
1. Border Collie
The expert said that the Border Collie, a popular British farm dog, often possesses traits that can make training particularly challenging. Despite acknowledging the many wonderful Border Collies, he elaborated: "I know this upsets a lot of people because there are some superb Border Collies out there and I have worked with some superb Border Collies.
"I live out in the beautiful Derbyshire countryside, there are sheep farms absolutely everywhere and I've had the privilege of seeing some of the best trained Collies do what they were bred to do.
"However, for me, I think the fact they are so perfect for their herding capabilities, their energy levels are so high, their intelligence is so high it means they very rarely make good pet breeds."
In his experience as a trainer, Will stated that Border Collies often go 'terribly wrong' more than 'all other breeds', reports the Mirror. He continued: "For me, I think it has to do with the fact as Collies they love to chase, bite and nip. It is what they were bred for and it's what they're exceptional at.
"And the vast majority of Collies that I'm working with have serious bite histories, have serious herding behaviours and often paired with excessive levels of fear, that often make them incredibly unpredictable. And it's unpredictable dogs that are often the most dangerous dogs."
2. Siberian Husky
Next, Will addressed the Siberian Husky, another breed that might raise eyebrows. Despite their striking appearance, he described these dogs as 'aloof' and prone to acting like 'drama queens'.
"Siberian Huskies are incredibly difficult to manage," he explained. "I use the analogy that I think Siberian Huskies are often more cat-like than they are dogs, they go against all the things that I love about dogs.
"They very rarely seek intense levels of kind of physical interaction. The Huskies again I've worked with, that I've seen go wrong time and time again aren't really bothered about taking food from people, they're not really bothered about pleasing people which makes training them in any kind of fun way incredibly difficult."
As a result of these challenges, Will claimed the 'novelty of how they look starts to wear off', and many pet owners realise their dramatic antics are 'just no fun for anybody'.
3. Caucasian Shepherd
These dogs may look like giant teddies, but don't be fooled. The seasoned trainer finds this breed absolutely terrifying and he isn't ashamed to admit it. He confessed: "There is one dog breed I've worked with I have looked at and gone 'if you want to kill me, I don't think I could stop you', and that was a Caucasian Shepherd. And as I work with extreme behaviours, whenever I see a Caucasian Shepherd it is usually because it's trying to kill things."
If you own a farm and you're looking to protect your stock from predators, Caucasian Shepherds are perfect for this. In any other circumstance, Will claimed it's 'absolutely lunacy' to keep one as a pet.
He remarked: "I think it's absolutely lunacy to consider bringing one of those dogs into your home because of the sheer risk they may pose. And when you've seen pictures like I have of what Caucasian Shepherds have done to people when it goes wrong, I promise you, you would agree with me too."
