| Border Collies The world's best herding dogs. Pictured to the right: Chap, our male who is 12 years old and a sweet guy. He is with his daughter, "Natalie" |
| Chap, pictured below, middle, is our ABCA registered Border Collie male. He originally came from Patrick Shannahan's ranch in Idaho. He was trained by Patrick and works our sheep and we have had some wonderful pups from him and our registered ABCA female, Breeze (right). They are our friends and companions, in addition to working dogs on our farm. Border Collies are not for everyone, especially if you are gone a lot. They need attention, play time and stuff to do to burn off their energy. Going for a walk around the block isn't enough, they need vigorous exercise every day. They love to work, but if you don't have stock, they will thrive in other sports like flyball, agility, scent hurdles, etc. We do not like to see our puppies go to families who live in the city. Yes, some Border Collies can be kept busy by going to the park and playing ball, but most people who live in the city do not have the necessary time that it takes to keep these dogs busy enough. They need room to run and play. There are many breeds of dogs that do well in the house most of the time, for all fairness to the dog and owner, please seek out one of these breeds. We prefer our dogs to only go to families who live on a farm with some type of livestock they can work or at least live out in the country. Even ducks can be herded for fun by Border Collies, it doesn't have to be sheep or cattle. Most of all, these dogs hate unemployment, if they don't have a job, they will invent one! I don't know of any Border Collie job invention that people really like. Sometimes it is car herding, wallpaper removal, shoe repair, or fence and wall scaling. The jobs that the owner is most happy with is the ones the owner assigns the dog, and the dog is almost always content to do this job and not invent other ones. A NOTE ABOUT ALPHA DOG PHENOMENON: All dogs need to be taught were they fit in your "pack", your family of two-legged beasts. They are the dog, not the boss. Please click to read "Who's in Charge Here?" Almost all behavior problems are taught by owners, unintentionally. This article helps you avoid common mistakes we all make with our dog. You are actually doing more harm than good when you let your dog be spoiled and the "alpha" dog. This leads to dominance problems with visitors (especially small children) and with members of the family. If your dog knows his/her place, no matter what the breed, you will have a much better relationship and more trust in your dog around other people. Border Collies, like any other breed, need to be socialized properly. They are very intelligent and don't need a lot of reminders after they learn something. A big clue that you have a serious problem coming up with your dog is if they are aloud to sleep with you, stare you in the eye, shows his/her teeth, or plays rough-housing games with you. These things in dog language mean that they are on the same level or are dominant over you, you are giving him/her permission to be your boss. Training Your Puppy To Your Lifestyle We recommend buying your dog a crate if he or she is going to live in the house. The crate will be used to house your dog when you are gone and during the potty training phase. A Border Collie potty trains relatively quickly, but you must take them outside every few hours and immediately after taking them out of their crate. Accidents are common during the first couple of weeks, so you may want to keep them confined to an area that is easy to clean, avoid carpet if possible. Be patient, once these dogs are trained they never have accidents on the floor (unless you are gone for extremely long periods of time, then obviously they will have to go in the house). We recommend that you teach your puppy basic obedience commands, you can buy videos or books to teach you how to do this, and that you work with your dog every day. If you have a fenced-in yard, they will enjoy being outside the majority of the day. They are perfect dogs for homes with children, we recommend that you socialize them and also teach your child how to play with these dogs, they will be best friends as long as the dog is not abused or teased. They will tire each other out playing ball or Frisbie. In fact, they are quite protective of their families and have been known to bark and growl at strangers until their families tell them it is ok. Our female is very protective of her "human pups" and follows them everywhere outside like a nanny. She usually prefers playing with the kids over working the sheep. Our male, however, would work sheep 24/7 if we let him. He is very eager to please and will do anything you ask him. He loves to ride in the truck, hay wagon or lawn mower cart when hauling feed! |
WHY DO WE LOVE BORDER COLLIES? Baxter Black sums it up in his writing of "The Border Collie Soliloquy": (Cow Attack, page 48) "Just a word about one of the greatest genetic creations on the face of this earth...the border collie. Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall fences in a single bound. The dog that all sheep talk about but never want to meet. The fur that legends are made of. Makes coyotes cringe, sheep trip the light fantastic and eagles soar somewhere else. Invested with the energy of a litter of puppies, the work ethic of a boat person and the loyalty of Lassie, they ply their trade on sagebrush flats, grassy fields and precipitous peaks from sea to shining sea. "Away to me!" I command. They streak and sail zipping like pucks on the ice. Black and white hummingbirds, in out, up down, come by sheep. With head up, one eye cocked over their shoulder asking directions. To the gate through the race. Mighty dog moves behind the bunch like a towboat pushing barges around a bend. And heart? Do they try? "Just let me at'em, Dad!" "Stay? "Cmom, I'm ready!" "Stay!" "Can't you feel me hummin'? Listen to my heart, it's purrin' like a cat! I am primed! Aim me, point me, pull the trigger!" "Away to me!" It makes me feel like Robin Hood. He leaves my side like an arrow. Workin' dogs is like manipulating a screwdriver with chopsticks. Like doing calligraphy with a plastic whip. Like bobbing for apples. Like threading a needle with no hands. Like playing pool on the kitchen table. There are no straight lines in nature. Only arcs. Great sweeping curves of sight and thought and voice and dog. Always having to lead your command about a dog's length. Sheep bunched like logs on the river. Dogs paddling in the current, always pushing up stream. A ewe breaks loose. Then another. Another. The log jam breaks. Dogs and sheep tumble about in the white water. Calm again, they start back upstream. Border collies. Are they truly smarter than a chimpanzee? Cuddlier than a koala? More dedicated than Batman's valet? Can they change course in mid air? Drag Nell from the tracks and locate the missing microfilm? Yes, I believe they can. They are the best of the best, the epitome of "above and beyond the call of duty". Head Dog. Top Gun. I salute you, for man has never had a better friend."-Baxter Black |
