Who has border collies?

[sirrahved]

Jason and I are in the process of adopting an 8 m/o border collie mix named Muffin. She will come home with us on Wednesday (after she is spayed and we get back from Ohio!). Can anyone tell me more about the breed? What can I expect? The shelter said at her age she won't get any taller, just gain a little weight. Is this correct?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

[binka_nugget]

No Border Collies here but Shayna (Cali) will be able to tell you all you need to know.

My cousin has two borders though. They're pretty typical of the breed. BCs need exercise. A 5 km run could be considered a joke to them. They're very intense dogs but SO intelligent. They thrive on work. If there's no work for them, they'll find it on their own. Because they're so intelligent and willing to work, they're excellent obedience dogs (along with agility, herding, flyball, etc).

But since you're getting a mix, maybe you'll get lucky and get the intelligence without the "ball, go, ball, go" personality. :p

[BCBlondie]

I have a Border Collie!!!!!:D

Borders are usually VERY energetic.. very willing to please, always wanting to do something. They're very smart and loyal. They also do have a mind of their own... which can get them into trouble sometimes.. They can be destructive if bored.. Remember - they DO have herding instinct, so most tend to be cat, car, bike, skateboard, etc chasers. They can be shedders as well.. my BC is a pretty big shedder.. Like Ashley stated above, they make EXCELLENT agility, obedience, herding, etc dogs. Borders can do absolutely anything!!! :D

Good luck with your new addition! I hope you will post lots of pics! :D

Do you have any idea what your BC is mixed with?

[gotalonglildoggie]

HYPER HYPER HYPER HYPER!!!

Make sure you have a tooooon of room for it to run! We have a 2 yr. old BC here and she is just a ball of energy. She is EXTREMELY smart and easy to train, but goodness is she hyper! She loves to jump and run all over the place. She always does make sure you pay her attention though. She even does this growly thing to greet you if you don't pay her attention. It is hillarious!! :p

[sirrahved]

We're not sure what she's mixed with. She looks a lot like a border collie, but with different ears and not as delicate face.

As for running around, we have Jason's school across the street that is a couple hundred acres of almost all grass. There's also a big park with a dog run about two miles away. We're hoping Muffin will force us to get more active! We've been very slowly starting an exercise routine.

The one thing we are a tad worried about is the other animals. There was a POSTER of a dog up on the wall in the interaction room and Muffin all of a sudden started barking at it! I have heard that the more exercise they get, the less likely they are to herd. Is this true?

I can't wait to bring her home and have everyone meet her!

Thanks for the advice!

[Karen]

Originally posted by sirrahved
! I have heard that the more exercise they get, the less likely they are to herd. Is this true?


I think that only applies in "An exhausted Dalmatian is a good Dalmatian!" sort of way. The herding has been bred into them for countless generations, it can be funny to see - a friend of my brother had a Border Collie, who, for example, spent their entire graduation party trying to herd those stupid humans back to the group - people were just wandering around, and chatting, and didn't know he would have preferred them in one big group in the middle of the yard.

[EssTer]

I havent any BC but I'm petsitting one sometimes.. His name's Bruno. By me experience I can say border collies are great dogs, they are very eneretic and clever :)

[binka_nugget]

Originally posted by sirrahved
I have heard that the more exercise they get, the less likely they are to herd. Is this true?

Well, Border Collies are intense herders. Herding dogs were bred to work for the entire day, if needed. That's why a 5km run would be considered a joke to a border collie cause they can take in a lot more than that. A border collie friend of mine once said a 35km run would just be a warm-up. :p

But with physical exercise and a lot of work involving her to think, you can easily poop her out.

By the way, welcome to the dog side! We'll be expecting pictures when you get her.

[*LabLoverKEB*]

Our family friend has a Border Collie named Wisher, (you know Wish like the wind, get it? lol) She's a sweetie! But she;'s afraid of the camera! LOL! :D :D So when I try to take her pic, she just hides from me! All she does is run and jump, and oh, LICK YOU TO DEATH! But I LOVE her so much! Have fun with your new puppy!

[cali]

as ash saidI can help :p I have 2 BCs and I am around them all the time :p I was just wondering what you meant by different ears? you know BCs dont look like anything, they can have ANY ears because looks dont matter in the breed ;) anyway the personality also differs a LOT they can be crazy hyper, one minut and calm and cuddly the next, they can be lazy, or they can hate cuddling etc... they are all different. but they DO need a LOT of stimulation, and physical stimulation does not come close to enugh, you can run a BC for 3 hours and not begin to tire it, BUT stimulate a BCs mind for a half hour and you got a BC ready for a nap :p but when training do NOT focas on one thing you need to train many things at once and mix them all up because when a BC refused to do something you are trying to train in general its because they are flat out bored. they learn VERY fast, fo example I am working on 5 totaly differnt things with happy but I mix them all up, one minut I have teaching her how to talk, the next she is rolling overm then she is holding somthing, all of a sudden I have her talking again, it prevents her from getting really bored. but they still need a lot of physical exersize and no walk will tire a BC you will need to take it for LONG off leash runs, at least 1 a day. a lot of exersize will NOT make them less likley to herd, herding in instinct. warning they DO stalk, and be prepared to have the BC staring at you regularly for long periods, because some people find this very uncomfortable. BCs also have many tricks up there sleeves lol here is a board for you to join, they can help you with your new addition!

border collie boards (http://bordercollie.heatherweb.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi)