Your Questions About Rough Collie Rescue

admin answers:

I know how you feel, my father also hated dogs. Our dog of 16 years died last month and i have been very upset about it, and just yesterday my dad went to the humane society and looked at dogs and somehow fell in love, and he said we can have the dog if we rescue him from there. I couldnt believe it because my dad never ever liked dogs. But because i was upset he went in there and then he fell in love with this dog. So maybe you should try taking your mom to a shelter and then she might have a different perspective, i know for a fact if this dog didnt need help my dad would not have wanted one. But because he needed help he jst fell in love

admin answers:

It depends on your chihuahua really. You’re getting the BC as a young pup, so YOU can socialise him with all other dogs and animals to make sure he grows into a well balanced dog. If your chihuahua likes other dogs then I don’t see why there would be a problem.

I have a BC cross who loves little dogs – he is just a little too rough playing with them!! However if this puppy grows with a smaller dog I’m sure it will know how to play perfectly with a smaller dog 🙂

Get ready to do lots of training and socialisation! BC need a ton of exercise, but mental stimulation (such as chewing bones, eating meals from plastic bottles / food releasing toys etc) is just as important for this breed!

admin answers:

I agree with much of what michael C had to say. As a Border Collie, aussie and rough collie owner and trainer of my own dogs I can tell you that instinct is definatly working against you. That said the problem is certainly fixable. Training goes a long way.

Enroll your dog in a good positive training class with a trainer who is experienced with border collies. Border collies do especially well with clicker training, harsher methods that may work with other breeds don’t fair well with the intelligent and sensitive breeds such as the border collie. They can actually create problems and you can end up with a timid unresponsive border collie. They have been breed to work in unison with their owner (shepherds) not as a subordinate, they thrive when they know that they are getting something out of the deal.

You will be suprised by the improvement you will get in your car chasing problem if your dog is obedience trained. Training helps the dog to pay attention to you in all situations. So when he goes to chase cars, squirells, kids, you can give him a firm NO, or Leave it. Distract him with a high value treart (tiny pieces of cheese or meat) Praise him when cars go by and he ignores them on his own.

His drive will likely never go away, but this way you will have tools to control it. And do concider a dog sport when he gets a little older like herding, agility, Frisbee, flyball, Rally-O, obediance, tracking, backpacking, search and rescue or therapy work. A tired border collie is a well behaved border collie and those brains are too good to waist ;).
Good Luck!