Can Australian Shepherds be trained to be strong-eyed and crouch a lot?
The inherited loose-to-moderate amount of eye in an Aussie can be enhanced by training. An Aussie can be trained to appear to have “natural crouch” in certain situations by repeatedly downing him during training. This is not an inherited trait, but anticipation of the command. However, when the situation requires the dog to get out, do something and do it fast, the dog will rely on inherited reflexes and behaviors, and revert to what is naturally comfortable for him. In other words, a dog will automatically go to his “default behaviour” when the chips are down! Crouching and strong eye are NOT “default behaviour” for an Aussie. If Aussies can’t beat Border Collies in trials, why not improve Aussies so they can win? The ASCA Stock Dog Program was not created to guarantee that Aussies always win top honors at our trials. It was created to preserve the natural working ability of our breed, and to improve the overall level of usefulness by helping breeders choose from dogs that exhibit the
