should read this interesting and well thought out article ... http://www.agilitynet.co.uk/training/bordercollie_suekitchen_leewindeatt.html
What a wonderful article, I think that about sums it up. Funny how people who come here seem to think that as we foster children the dogs must be used to rough handling by children and so thats OK then ...... not the case whatsoever If we get a housefull I like to put mine on thier bed in the kitchen and let them get used to the noise....as you well know it can get noisey if alot of people tuen up. Equally we are lucky that they like strangers, but I think introducing slowly is better for them than just expecting them to ''cope with it or else'' which would be wrong of me. Bruce worries about alot of little people's feet.....not sure why as he has never been assaulted by any, but he moves away.....maybe its just ''don't tred on me thing''. Shoes off seem to settle this with him, so I ask ''can the kids take thier shoes off plse'' As for the part where BCs don't need to mix with other dogs, I knew this from old, most of my BCs present and past have never really bothered with other dogs on walks etc., although they are defo better with other BCs, but they are not really into sniff and greet Bruce can get snappy when other dogs get into his face, so we just don't force it. I think the article made brill reading......mind although I have BCs I never really promote them to people as pets, they need as we all know mental and physical exercise......and yes a CALM handler is defo with them. I've met ''nasty' BCs, little socialising and heavy handed handlers, they don't fair well:-(
I'm the same, I never recommend Border Collies to other people but I wouldn't be without one myself, why is that? Haha. I wish more people were aware of this, so much of this is seem as 'problem behaviour' which is unfair when like you say, they've been bred to be that way.
If thats the article i think it is it is brill----I read it a while back and thought it ought to be written on every farm gate or breeders kennels! rune
I so agree;-) I've printed it off, as I know someone who is thinking of one as a '1st time dog' i'll give it to her;-)
I've seen this before and it's a great article. Luckily for me Lee Windeatt who brought the article to agilitynet is my trainer and what a good one he is. I just reread the article and alot of his training is true to the article. Maybe everyone who would like a border collie should read this before collecting their pups and maybe they'd realise they are not just a pretty face. I wish I'd seen this before a friend got a collie as a first dog. She took him to a training class twice and by a year old he was attacking the Hoover and chasing everything including cars. By 18 months he was just walking round the block and never came off a lead. He was a lovely boy too.
Although I only joined this forum this evening (hello everyone ) I too have read this article before. I am a virgin collie owner - Rosie is my first BC (smooth haired, farm bred) and before you all raise your eyebrows in disapproval - panic not! I have gundogs and had numerous springers - if you can cope with those you can cope with anything! LOL!! Anyway, this collie we have now, has been incredibly easy and simply just fitted into our way of life ( we do live on a farm right out on the moors). She has been no trouble at all, is amazingly affectionate, constantly craves attention, loves everyone and is amazingly biddable. Her recall is 100% to both voice and whistle. OK, so now you get the picture that I am not a numpty owner Anyway, I like to think that actually our way of keeping dogs fits into that article perfectly, the dogs do out to the kennels when I am working and at night, its gives them downtime and each others company. As this collie will not be used for working sheep I am really keen to give Agility a go - personally, I think she will be fab, I am sure she is crossed with a greyhound! and its good to give a dog a job! So glad I have joined this site - please be prepared for a million and one questions on agility and I am hoping I can offer gundog training tips in compensence!
I really wish this article could be read by anyone considering a collie as a pet ... preferably before they buy their pup or rescue their dog, as it gives real insight into the collie, its ancestry and its thinking and way of acting. There are also a series of very useful videos on the BC Rescue website entitled "A Useful Dog" which would be of use to many owners considering owning this breed. What a shame for the collie of your friend :-( Has she still got him? How is he doing now? Does he ever get off lead? :-(
It was a real shame,to be honest I lost contact a few years ago but at last contact she still had him but he was permanantly on lead. I tried everything I could to help her, took her to my local training club but she took offence when they very politely told her to be fair to the dog she needed to gain more control. Then I offered to do some agility training with her, I have equipment in a field where there are no distractions so I thought he'd enjoy some free running. Offered to walk with her with one of my bomb proof collies but none of it was ever taken up. Guess some people can't be helped. The only saving grace was he was a show bred dog from quiet lines, goodness knows what she would have done with a working line dog which was what she originally wanted. It's a shame some breeders aren't more interested in researching the background of the owners they sell puppies to.
Very well put together and very interesting It does make me think alot about Mia, how she is so much better if she gets lots of crate time and a very structured day Also think about my friends. They have 4 collies, 2 of them are littermates The first the male they got, spent ages socalising and going to classes and doing everything right with him His sister they rescued from the farm when at a year of age she ran away from the sheep to go and play with a football Interestingly enough the girl is the much calmer dog - I think there are quite a few really easy unbreakable border collies out there - which can lul people into a false sense of security when you end up with a difficult one
