10/31/2025
Not my article, but I 💯 % agreee with this!!!!!
Unpopular opinion: Your herding breed doesn’t need a full-time entertainment coordinator.
Yes, they’re high energy. Yes, they were bred to work. But let’s get real: “real” herding dogs didn’t spend 12 hours a day working sheep and solving puzzles. They worked when needed, then chilled, without annoying the livestock or demanding a TED Talk from their human.
Somehow we’ve gone from “give them a job” to “run 5 miles, do a snuffle mat, play scent games, and teach them Spanish before lunch.” No. Your dog doesn’t need a circus act to be tolerable indoors. They need boundaries, rest, and the understanding that their human isn’t on-call for constant stimulation.
Let’s stop confusing enrichment with overindulgence. A fulfilled dog isn’t one who gets everything they want. It’s one who knows how to settle when nothing’s happening.
