Hard-Wired Behaviors

If you can't teach your old dog a new trick, it may be because their genetics and brain physiology are working against you. The behavior of dogs, like that of all animals, is shaped in part by instinct that is essentially hard-wired into the animal. Over time, this unlearned behavior has been honed by human choice via selective breeding to create the variety of dogs we have today. For example, herding dogs are hard-wired to control the movement of the animals; they'll intimidate, stare, stalk, bark, and nip to do so. Hunting breeds such as pointers and setters instinctively track game and freeze to point it out, while retrievers bring wounded or dead animals to their owners (whether they want it or not). Hounds are far more independent, and will take off on their own in pursuit of prey, using scent or sight (or both). Terriers are famously aggressive, driven to kill animals like rats and other vermin, which they'll furiously dig to catch. Although many of the most popular American Kennel Club dog breeds no longer work for a living, they still show signs of these ingrained behaviors.