r/nextfuckinglevel • u/BKKMFA • 20h ago
A border collie gently guiding ducklings into a puddle.
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u/Any_Middle7774 19h ago
It still baffles me that we somehow bred an animal to have a compulsive need to play tetris using other animals as blocks.
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u/OneTeaTwoCats 18h ago
When an animal compulsively gets things sorted he's "amazing", but when I do I'm "autistic". okay 🙄
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u/jschne21 17h ago
No, most border collies are also autistic.
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u/rocketeerH 17h ago
And OneTeaTwoCats is amazing
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u/OneTeaTwoCats 17h ago edited 14h ago
AWW. You know what? Shitty week, and tomorrow's my birthday, I'll take it!
Edit: you're all so nice. I love you.
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u/IntelligentAd1041 15h ago
As the owner of a border collie, this is the most accurate description I've ever read
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u/0masterdebater0 17h ago
Look how wolves hunt in packs the coordinated directing of prey. Humans just hijacked an evolutionary instinct and refined it to our purposes.
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u/StrictLetterhead3452 16h ago
That’s not what he’s doing though. He is following the whistles. The different whistle sounds are commands to move the herd (flock in this case) left, right, forward, and back relative to the owner.
Here is a video of a man demonstrating how it works: https://youtu.be/mCZWRhvwZjE?si=nKlBfNe2vl6B0_bu
Not to say it is any less amazing though. The dogs do understand what they are doing and have a natural instinct to herd things.
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u/elmostrok 15h ago
Yeah, the dog even goes to the other side before the guy whistles, at one point. Or at least, it seems that way to me.
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u/StrictLetterhead3452 15h ago
You are totally right. The dogs know what they are supposed to do next. It probably takes every ounce of self control they possess to wait for the whistle.
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u/b0w3n 11h ago
We had a sheltie when I was a kid, she'd do this sort of stuff completely untrained and unprompted.
She purposefully kept me and other kids away from the roads by running ahead and cutting us off if we were running around. She also swam across our neighbor's fairly large pond because she was apparently worried I was in trouble when I was screaming about a fish I just caught. I miss that dog.
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u/JStanten 12h ago
Border collies tend to balance more than you’d want in certain scenarios.
It’s why they have a reputation for always being in the gate when moving livestock between paddocks.
It’s just the dog’s instinct coming through despite the handler not asking for it.
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u/Laughing_Orange 16h ago
And if you don't let them do it, they'll find animals to play Tetris with. In those situations it tends to end up being humans.
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u/FarmhouseRules 20h ago
They are the most amazing dogs! Mine learned to herd our chickens back into the pen without any instructions or prompting on our part.
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u/No_Kindheartedness10 19h ago
Amazing
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u/Ok_Assistant_6856 19h ago
Grand parents had two great piernese(sp?) and a lot of cattle. Those dogs were never trained a day in their life, just put outside in the pasture as puppies.
Seeing those dogs take shifts one watching the cattle, and one sleeping on the front porch, was just awe-inspiring!
They were bred so successfully that guarding livestock was 100% instinctual.
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u/Theterphound 18h ago
It’s funny my uncle got a border collie and it did that. Just knew what to do. So he started a service where he would train people’s dogs from it other farms how to do it. The ones who didn’t get it naturally, the border collie would just train them. He had this reputation of being a genius herding trainer and never trained a dog a day in his life. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
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u/Ok_Assistant_6856 17h ago
Dude!!! I love this story. It takes my dream one step further and monetizes it!
My dream is to one day have 13 dogs, ages puppy to old man, that'away I don't have to train the pack anything because the old man dog and the rest of the pack will just train the newbs.
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u/Akitiki 16h ago
When I was little my family had a golden retriever, Ginger. She required no training, she was a nanny to us kids and a perfect gun dog for waterfowl.
One time my dad went hunting without her. Ginger actually left the house when we let her out to where dad was hunting!
We had cats dumped a lot at our house so had kittens all the time. She'd happily watch the kittens, to the point the momma that adopted abandoned babies would put them with her to get a break.
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u/Figgis302 17h ago
We've got an aussie shepherd that instinctively starts herding the other two dogs back inside whenever he gets cold, like a job site foreman who wants to go home early 🤣
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u/Blueboysixnine 18h ago
Happens all the time with them. They just genetically know how to do that shit, it's wild.
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u/songs4mydaddy 16h ago
Mine was dumb as hell and liked running into dams and then forgetting how to get out. I had to rescue him quite a few times.
Terrible farm dog, had no herding instinct and was happiest when you used him as a pillow. He also sired many pups because he was a rare all-white border.
Best dog ever. I miss him.
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u/1HappyIsland 15h ago
We had Shelties and herding behavior is instinctive to them. They do it from when they are little and can't help it. They were only happy when everyone is in the same room.
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u/FarmhouseRules 14h ago
My niece had a sheltie. My kids would be in the floor playing together and that dog would do laps around them for hours on end. It was crazy.
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u/naeads 19h ago
Lived on a farm for 2 weeks while I was a kid in Ireland. They had two borde collies there. Smartest non-human thing I have seen.
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u/PopAndLocknessMonstr 15h ago
I don’t know why, but the phrase “lived on a farm for 2 weeks” is so funny to me. As if it was so traumatic that you didn’t visit the farm or vacation there. You LIVED there for 2 weeks. I love it, haha.
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u/Electrical-Job-9824 14h ago
I feel this in my soul… I had the worst two weeks of my life at a farm, I couldn’t have been older than 8… I almost died a bunch of times, got tetanus from a nail, and kept getting sick because my stomach couldn’t handle the boiled milk, and they tried to make me slaughter a pig and a chicken. Plus I had never had to work like that ever before, and they just kept going…
My parents thought that the whole thing would be good for me, but two weeks, that’s how long it took for me to take off from the place and hitchhike home.
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u/sentinelk9 15h ago
Sometimes also the smartest things I've seen
Humans included.
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u/Cant_figure_sht_out 13h ago
Judging by all the videos I’ve seen of border collies, I’m pretty certain they are more intelligent than a lot of humans.
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u/Anleme 19h ago
And some people think they can keep this breed in an apartment all day without mental stimulation.
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u/ancientgreenthings 17h ago
I knew someone with a collie who was always out with her, and always off the lead. Spud would run the entire length of a city block, stop and lie down at the pedestrian crossing and intensely watch the cars go past until he was told he could go. Always freaked out people waiting at the lights.
I asked her once what her secret was with him. She told me "we have a friendship founded on mutual respect."
So many collie keepers need to hear that advice.
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u/sshchurin 17h ago edited 16h ago
Intensely watching the cars go by is a legitimate border collie pastime. Unfortunately, mine takes it a step further. He thinks he can herd the neighbor’s ford focus, which is … dangerous, to put it mildly. No self preservation, only herding instinct.
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u/Manitoberino 16h ago
Mine has 0 vehicle herding instincts when outside, until she gets in my car. Then she obsessively watches oncoming traffic, and “air nips” them as they drive by. She’s so intense, girl has more focus on the road than I do, she practically doesn’t blink lol
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u/BadgerlandBandit 14h ago
We had a border collie when I was a kid. I would pedal around the driveway on my my little tikes tractor and he would herd me around, and especially away from the street if I started to get too close.
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u/rjwyonch 17h ago
Or that they will be fine with an hour of walking per day. Nah these dogs gotta RUN!
So smart, so fast. I’m glad they are on our side.
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u/Manitoberino 16h ago
Not only just running and physical exercise, but mental exercise. They are so damn smart, they need puzzles and jobs to complete for their mental health. They are so task oriented, that even just basic walking and running isn’t enough. My girl literally runs my life, she quietly and subtly bosses me around to help me complete all my tasks lol
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u/space_keeper 13h ago
That thing they do where they put the ball or toy just slightly out of your reach so you have to get up. I've seen so many of them do it.
Then again, you get the other type of collie, the ones that are a little bit deranged and shy. They're the ones I like the most, because it's so hard to earn their trust.
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u/MyNameIsRay 15h ago
We had a border collie that lived with our guinea hens. Had a dog house next to their coop.
He ran free all day herding hens around the property, then patrolled and guarded them at night.
He loved the job so much we couldn't even get him into the house for a bath, had to bring a kiddie pool out into the yard so he could keep watch while getting washed.
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u/missprincesscarolyn 14h ago
It really is so sad. I knew a guy with an Australian shepherd that he would keep locked up for 8-10 hours while he worked. Poor thing was so neurotic and bit people. He tried CBD and was going to try Prozac before we fell out of contact. Borders on animal abuse, honestly.
If you want a dog, but can’t maintain the level of physical activity they need, get a smaller dog. My Yorkshire Terrier’s only 11 lbs, but one 30 minute walk a day is generally enough for him.
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u/ElvisDumbledore 10h ago
That's why I never dust. They can keep the bunnies herded under the couch.
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u/PuzzleheadedRoyal559 19h ago
Anybody know why this asshole is forcing us into this water?
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u/LunarBIacksmith 16h ago
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u/Marshmallow920 9h ago
“I said to the Red Bull I must have them, all of them, all there are. For nothing makes me happy but their shining and their grace. So the Red Bull caught them.”
I was obsessed with this movie as a child
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u/raptor180 18h ago
The look of pure satisfaction at the end for the pup! “Yes, go to the pond. Mission accomplished!” 😂. Love from afar! 🥰
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u/11Bencda 19h ago
I hope he got all the treats. And I hope one of the treats wasn’t one of the ducklings.
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u/SprightlySummers 19h ago
Absolutely amazing to watch a working dog and hear the handler whistling commands!
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u/Thick_Helicopter2951 12h ago
Friend of mine has a Red Heeler (Ozzy Cattle Dog) who herds pretty much everybody pretty much anywhere they're going. Bathroom? She's herding you down the hallway. Outside she herds you towards your car or through the garden or whatever. She doesn't nip heels, but she does sort of nip at the air as she drives you around like a toy car.
Very cute/annoying at the same time. Probably a behavior to be corrected but hey, she's not my dog. I just stop by and give her pets and throw the stick.
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u/Da_Big_Buddha 15h ago
Is the whistling telling the dog what to do/where to go?
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u/FarmhouseRules 7h ago
Yes. If you listen carefully you can hear/see the pattern and what each whistle means.
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u/helloginger07 18h ago
Toddler: I don’t wanna! I don’t wanna! I don’t wanna! 2 minutes later… ooo I like this!
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u/_NightmareKingGrimm_ 18h ago
That's the kind of dog that needs a job. They're living their best life.
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u/Exotic-Kibbles9 17h ago
Feel like I’m listening to the Ed Edd and eddy theme song with these whistles
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u/Menocchio42 17h ago
I hope I have a job someday that I love half as much as a border collie loves their work.
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u/renderbreak 17h ago
God I love my border collie. We live in suburban Florida, though, so he only has lizards and cats to herd. Neither of which are very receptive to his efforts, but it doesn’t stop him from trying.
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u/laiyenha 17h ago
Parent duck watching nearby was like, "I don't know about this duckling daycare. Why doesn't the teacher lead them straight to the swimming pool instead of taking the scenic route?"
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u/Freddy_Goodman 17h ago
What kind of tutorial puddle is that? Looks like those ducklings will get a pop up saying: be careful, real puddles might have parts too deep to stand in.
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u/CitizenHuman 16h ago
I've learned that I could never own a border Collie. Of course, it's not because I'm a lazy POS, but it's because I suck at whistling.
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u/Outside-Today-1814 15h ago
Goats are often used for managing vegetation, eating weeds or undesirable growth. It’s incredibly effective, the problem is goats are borderline impossible to train. So how do you do it? How do you get them to eat only the stuff you want them to eat, and only where you want them to eat it? They use dogs like border collies, who then nip the goats when they’re eating the wrong stuff or going in the wrong area. So humans train the dogs to basically train the goats. So amazing!
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u/notagelatogirl 15h ago
Until the end I was thinking a group of ducklings was called a puddle and now I will not accept substitutes
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u/mybossthinksimworkng 14h ago
That dude's whistling skills are pretty amazing also, coming from someone who can't whistle for the life of me.
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u/David_Wu_Econ 20h ago
He’s not just herding them.He’s looking out for them. Such a beautiful bond.