Nature verses Nurture
Mel isn’t the first animal I could share this about, but he’s the one I’ll talk about this time.
Mel has been with us since he was a young pup. We know his life before he came to us, too.
He is a Heeler x Feist. The mother had no behavioral issues and was a bit of a working dog and loved pet. The father, I don’t know. We helped the owner place the litter after an accidental breeding.
He has never had a bad day. He’s been well socialized with dogs and people. He’s had no stressful days.
We picked him because, of the litter, he was the one who would stay off to himself, was timid and quiet. No other puppies in the group acted like him. I thought his lower energy would be better.
Honestly, as a puppy, he was easy, maybe because he wasn’t outgoing or loud.
He’s a scared, worried and somewhat dog and human aggressive dog. He’s not dangerous, but he’s not friendly or cheerful. He’s not a dog that would ever adapt to new situation or new people.
No matter how many times he sees people or is around dogs that he met once he was a grown dog, he doesn’t like them.
He’s perfectly happy with the core beings he grew up with, but that’s all.
Someone could meet him and imagine some life of terror he endured, but it would be a work of fiction. He’s just, by nature, how he is.
Both breed and nurture impact disposition, but you can have multiple dogs from the same parents raised the same way and have three outcomes, same with children in the same household, actually.
It’s fine for Mel. We know who he is, and he is our dog.
But it’s so important to understand that everything about a being isn’t determined by external circumstances.
