All You Sheltie People.....HELP!!!!

[GuideDogPuppyRaiser]

I'm puppy-sitting a 8 month old male sheltie named Rudy and he is reeeeaaaalllly jittery. Is this normal? I am raising a 4 1/2 month old Guide Dog Puppy and I have two full grown dogs at the same time! I was wondering if it is normal for shelties to be so skitish. He is very tall for a sheltie, he has the long hair but he's not fluffy like most of them are. It just worries me how he is so skittish. He's a really great dog! Give me all the advice you can give you sheltie ppl!

Thanks a million billion!

[Shelteez2]

No that is not normal. Well at least not for a healthy well bred sheltie. However many of the shelties that come from puppymills or back yard breeders tend to be really skittish.
The sheltie standard says that the breed should be reserved, which many people interpret incorrectly to mean that they should be shy.
Do you know much about his background, and how he's been raised so far?
If he were my dog I would start socializing him as much as possible. I would encourage him to go up and investigate whatever it is that startles him. Don't react to him when he startles at something, just ignore him.

As for his height, well it is common to have size variations in shelties. The standard says they are supposed to be between 13" and 16" tall, but they don't breed true to type as they are a fairly new breed (in the grand scheme of things). Both of my shelties are over-sized. His coat is probably normal for an 8 month old pup. Emily didn't have a full coat until she was about 2 years old.

Hope what I've told you helps. Feel free to ask if you have any other questions.

[stacwase]

I've heard a lot of people say they would never get a sheltie because they're "neurotic". I guess that trait has been bred into some of them by poor breeders.

I wouldn't say Jake was ever "skittish". He was smarter than heck, and stubborn and difficult to catch when he was younger though.

[Labman]

If I didnt have the lab i have now, then the choice of dog would be a Pitbull/Boxer. Both breeds are very smart but sometimes stubborn. Love to have a firm but fair leader. Both breeds inherit this great value and it and it is loyality. Also Pitbull and Boxers are said to be the best guards in the world. Imagine combining them! Lots of ppl. have Bull Boxers. go to google.com and type in bull boxers and go to images. You will see why i love them so much.

[binka_nugget]

Shelties seem to be a bit more timid than other breeds but a well socialized (and well bred) dog shouldn't be skittish.

Kai's coat wasn't fully in until he was about a year and a half. I remember asking a bunch of Sheltie owners about it cause I was set on a really fluffy Sheltie but Kai's coat was lacking the fluffiness until he was over a year old.

How tall is he? The standard calls for 13-16 inches but it's not uncommon to find a Sheltie over the height of 16 inches. Kai is 17.5 inches which isn't terribly tall but he has a huge frame. Kaedyn, my other sheltie, falls within the standard at 14.5 inches.

[CorgiLuvr]

The breeder I got my corgis from also breeds shelties and none of her shelties ever meet a stranger and are never skitish or neurotic. That is definitly not normal. He could just be scared of the new enviroment or something, or his background may not be very high-quality. Feeding him a good quality food could help his coat, even though a lot of coat is not somthing shelties have at that age. For now, just don't make a lot of quick movements or corner him, and coax him to you with a lot of treats to help him gain your trust.