I was already on the fence about replacing humans with robots for e.g. driving, but dogs? Why would anyone want to replace dogs with robots? Worst trade ever.
Dogs that have a built-in need to herd things, no longer having a job.
They would tear the world apart in months burning off their energy.
Of all the things we could replace man's best friend with (literally born to do this job), does it really have to be Skynet?
Lithium batteries simply need electricity.
Annual costs are around £500-1k
They also require a significant time investment when not working.
Dogs can fly^Wrun without remote control.
I expect that at some point the utility of the robot/drone will outpace the utility of the dog in this role (and others). Wanting to hang on to our dogs isn't a bad thing, but I don't think we will be able to make as many arguments based on their utility. Instead we'll just have to accept the idea that the reasons for having them (and even working with them) will be cultural/emotional instead, which are perfectly good reasons.
We have an Australian Shepherd as a family pet - they're amazing companions!