A shepherd dog mistakes a poodle for a sheep and his instincts immediately kick in

A TikTok clip of a shepherd dog’s reaction to a visit from his poodle friend proved that one canine’s ancestral history still runs deep.

A pet owner invited her friend and her friend’s dog to play with her Australian Shepherd, Ayra. Australian Shepherd dogs, also known as herding breeds, are loyal and intelligent. They can monitor the movement of other animals and will sometimes try to gently move their owners.

But Ayra’s owner told him Newsweek Magazine Via TikTok, Ayra says that her dog doesn’t usually display these herding instincts. She does notice these herding traits from time to time. The playdate was different, however. Ayra mistook the approaching poodle for a sheep and dove right into the role she was born to play.

In the clip posted yesterday by TikTok user @arya_the_cattle_dog, Ayra stood across the yard watching the “sheep” invade her garden. With her head down and following the poodle’s movements, she was ready for her job.

Ayra even seemed excited to finally have the chance to herd an animal. A smile spread across her face as she got to work.

The owner estimated that Arya kept up this behaviour for at least a minute. She was also taken by surprise.

“We have two dogs and she has never done that to her sister,” she said.

Meanwhile, Ayra’s behavior didn’t bother the poodle at all. The little dog sat down to catch her breath after playing. And if she saw Arya stalking her from the other side of the garden, she didn’t care.

“My friend and I were laughing our heads off,” she said. “I don’t think the poodle had any idea what was going on.”

TikTokers react

As of Monday, the TikTok clip has had 579,300 views, 84,900 likes and 212 comments. Viewers were left cracking up at the dog’s funny comment.

“He doesn’t even know why he does it… he just knows it feels good,” one TikToker commented, while a second person said, “Aaaayyyyy when those genetics kick in it’s either awesome or inconvenient but either way it’s a good time.”

Another wrote what the dog was thinking: “He said, ‘He’s been waiting for this moment his whole life.'”

One TikToker said: “Heeler: FINALLY! WORK! Here we go! Got it!”

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