Dogs truly are man’s best friend as they’re by our side through thick and thin, ready to defends us at a moment’s notice.
And that’s the exact reaction one mom got, after she decided to play dead to see how her trio of Border Collies, sometimes referred to as sheepdogs, would react.
Sasha Poldmaa shared a clip to her TikTok account, @sashapoldmaa, which she captioned: “Wonder what they’d do if I played dead at work?”
It shows the mom of four boys standing in a field surrounded by cattle, suggesting she works on a farm, as she suddenly drops to the ground.
The cows appear startled and instantly take a few steps back, as her dogs seem perplexed in the beginning.
They sniff her apparent lifeless body, while two suddenly spring into action. They advance towards the cattle, forcing them to scatter.
One dog stays near Poldmaa, before it too joins its fellow pooches in warding off the other animals, now in retreat.
She added in the comments, referring to her cows: “They wouldn’t have harmed me. But the dogs don’t have the same faith!”
Poldmaa, from New Zealand, captioned the footage: “Dogs are the best.” She added the hashtags #hero #farmlife #cattle and #playdead, among others.
The clip, shared at the end of last month, has amassed more than seven million views, and can be seen here, as people agreed with the mom.
Carolyn Marsh wrote: “Omg they protected you!! You don’t deserve dogs. They’re loyal even after they think you’re dead.”
Taylor Anne said: “Oh my goodness. This is the best. Your head dog checking on you. The others creating a perimeter and keeping you safe. What a bond!”
Nates_Fate87 added: “Smart dogs, making sure the cows don’t step on you… well trained.”
“The dogs backing the cows up to keep her safe. They know their job,” Tyishi commented.
Border Collies are among the most intelligent breeds, and was crowned the top spot by pet food brand Purina.
It said: “The majority of obedience champions, agility stars, flyball wizards and sheepdog herding winners are Border Collies.
“Their intelligence, enthusiasm and willingness to work has seen them awarded the top spot in canine psychologist Stanley Coren’s intelligence rankings, so they deserve their place at the top of a list of smartest dog breeds.
“Amazingly, most border collies can learn a brand-new command in under five seconds and follow it 95 percent of the time. They even have an intense stare technique that intimidates livestock. Be warned though, they’ll probably do it to you to try and convince you to hand over your sandwich!”
Newsweek reached out to Poldmaa for comment.
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