Ricochet, A tale of nature and nurture

this is a story about the nature/nurture debate. pit bull advocates claim nurture overrides nature with love and humane treatment. this story provides further evidence of their delusion.

Dogs In Service recently blogged about a golden retriever named Ricochet who was bred for service work and raised from birth for service work. Ricochet's genetic hard wiring turned on at 9 months. although Ricochet excelled in her training, her trainer could not discourage her from genetic trait of chasing birds. her owner was smart enough and honest enough to recognize that despite her best efforts, she could not stifle Ricochet's desire to chase birds and released her from the service dog training program. Ricochet went on to do great things, just not as a service dog. watch the video.

dogs are amazing creatures. we owe it to them to appreciate their unique breed traits. we owe it to them to recognize what they are and what they are not. we owe it to them to recognize the power of DNA.




the most recent example of the failure of the love conquers all approach.