Herding instinct isn’t about needing sheep. It’s about control of movement. It’s a neurobiological drive - a pattern of behavior rooted deep in the brain that exists whether or not livestock are present. The object doesn’t matter. What matters is that something is moving. For a Border Collie, herding instinct activates whenever they perceive motion that feels important to manage - think children running, a ball rolling, dogs playing, even shadows or cars. To them, each of these things is "sheep"