Border Collie Puppy Passes ‘Herding Instinct’ Test with Flying Colors

Herding dogs are herding dogs because it's in their genes. Sure, you can teach just about any dog to "keep watch" of something, but it takes a special kind of dog to be able to really make it work. They start young!

On Sunday, August 18th, one Border Collie puppy was led in her first herding instinct test. While they're always a little bit scary, it's an important part of making sure your farm can continue to run like the well-oiled machine it should be. Luckily for her farm family, she did great:

At Raventree Ranch, it's vital that all of their dogs can do their jobs, since they have approximately one billion animals. Luckily, their team is crazy good!

Related: Border Collie Breaking 30MPH on a Run Has Jaws on the Floor

Raventree Ranch is home to 3 Anatolian Shepherd livestock guardian dogs, 4 Border Collies, 1 "recon" cat, and 1 Border Collie puppy, Ru. Ru was kind of a happy coincidence: one of their Border Collies went back to the breeder for official training and they saw Ru there, fell in love, and had to have her. They brought her home as fast as they could!

Sicne coming home, Ru has become the star of the farm and the apple of their grumpiest livestock guardian dog's eye. Ru and Judge have gone viral a few times:

1. When they first met.
2. When Judge "submitted" to her to help build her confidence.
3. When Judge let her "herd" him as best she could.

Those last two things seem to have worked wonders for her. At 15 weeks old, she has yet to do any actual herding, but it's time to start testing the waters - she needed a herding test. As you can see, she wasn't afraid to jump right in and speak her mind! Thank Judge for that!

What if a Border Collie Fails Herding Instinct Test?

When each Border Collie caretaker decides to give their pup a Herding Instinct Test (HIT) is completely up to them, though some who only keep them as pets never bother. Typically, HITs are completed when the dog is still a relatively young puppy: between 15 and 20 weeks.

A Herding Instinct Test is only meant to see if the dog has a natural herding instinct: there is no real score, and there is no focus on technique. If a Border Collie underperforms during their HIT, most trainers will focus more on drawing out those natural instincts and behaviors. They may be there, even if they need coaxing. If they fail completely, however, they may be taken out of the running.

Failing a Herding Instinct Test isn't the end of the world; there could be many things preventing them from being able to herd. They're still fun-loving, wonderful dogs (though Ru is obviously the total package)!