ARCHIE THE DACHSHUND WON’T LET HIS SHORT LEGS STOP HIS DREAM OF BEING A SHEEPDOG
Source: Metro (Extract)
Posted: Jan 21, 2020
Archie the sausage dog has a dream to be a sheepdog.
Despite being pretty small, he’s not letting it hold him back. He is determined to help out on the farm where he lives in New South Wales, Australia. His owner Ebony Hewitt says when he was younger, he would jump in excitement from the passenger seat of her buggy when he watched the other dogs herd sheep. She decided to let him out to run around and realised he actually had some skills.
She said: ‘Archie would always come mustering with us and get over-excited like he wanted a turn at working the sheep. ‘I let him out to have a run around and that was when we discovered he was actually useful!
‘Archie would almost be my pick if I had to choose – he is small and has very fast little legs which means he can get around the sheep with ease and speed. ‘The other working dogs don’t mind Archie out there working with them. They probably find it as amusing as we do.’ After growing up watching the other collie dogs herding sheep, Archie has had plenty of time to learn from their technique.
But herding sheep is a lot more work for Archie with his shorter legs. Ebony says he ends up exhausted because he has to work twice as hard to keep up – but it hasn’t stopped him giving it all.
She added: ‘Dachshunds are definitely a stubborn but smart breed, they also have very selective hearing.
After a hard day at work, Ebony says Archie likes to cool off in a trough before going home, lying down on the couch and dreaming of chasing sheep.
