What size crate?

[Pat moly]

Hi all, pat and puppy Molly here. I have learned so much from this site in the last 4months since adding Molly to our family. Molly is a six month old BC Queensland heeler mix. Mom BC /dad heeler. Very mouthy and sometimes bites me when she does not want her harness on or her feet wiped when muddy. I am working on desensitizing her to having her feet touched. I purchased her last crate to fit in my small car and she has outgrown it, still OK for short trips. Tried a harness in the back seat and she chewed through It first time used. She is now 33 lbs and I am wondering how big of a crate I need to get? I would like it to be the last purchase. This one is 19w X 30d x 21 tall. Molly is now 21" tall so can't stand up tall. I take her everywhere with me, but need to start leaving her so I can work. We live on acreage with no fences....has anyone used the wireless electronic fences? We do have a 10' x 10' kennel with roof and I am wishing I had started using it when we first got her. Have started putting her in an hour at a time when I am home. She is now resisting going in. Sometimes I take her in for short visits without closing the door.. So many questions!!!! I knew she was going to be a bundle of energy but thought I could handle it.

[Gideon's girl]

What size were her parents? This will give you an idea about the size a crate needs to be. Most Border Collies don't outgrow a 24" tall kennel.

 

To get her used to the run, start putting her in it with a special chew that she doesn't get any other time, like a new bone. I gave mine turkey necks in the run and now they are excited to go in there and look around and see what it might be this time. Do not use the run as an excuse for exercise. It will never replace the need for exercise or mental stimulation.

 

Invisible fences are not recommended. At some point, your dog will see something that will cause her to forget about where her boundry is and she will cross it. Then she will be stuck outside of her yard. Invisible fences also don't keep your yard safe from whatever might find its way in.

[Pat moly]

Not sure how tall mom was. Dad was not much bigger than she is now. Owner of parents is Mia...not returning calls..they sold the puppies at 6 weeks as they needed to move quickly. Will see what I can find 24" tall.

 

I agree about the invisible fence and predators being able to get at her. It would just be nice to let her out for potty alone occasionally. I had the flu for 3 weeks and had to go out in the rain with her....was not fun when you are not feeling well, also she missed her daily long walks...I did throw the ball down the hill for her. It would be nice to have an option for those times.

 

I will try to find some turkey necks to try in the run. We used walk 2-5 miles a day. When we can't walk, we play fetch down the hill.

Sometimes we get off the road and off leash for several hours at a time....she loves it. I was told it was too much for her growing legs and could harm her, so we have cut back to 2-3 miles. Thanks for the help!

[Gideon's girl]

At 6 months old, she will still grow some more height, but it shouldn't be much, so a 24" tall crate should be enough.

 

Pork ribs with the meat still on them make a great chew too, but you should make sure they are frozen for a couple weeks first to kill off any possible parasites. And if she isn't used to things like that, you might want to remove any extra fat.

 

Try trick training to replace some of the physical exercise. Mental exercise is more tiring to a BC than physical exercise anyways.

[Pat moly]

We have a new place here in the Bay Area called Zoom Room and I have taken her there for a session of agility training. We both had a great time and I am looking forward to getting there with her in a few weeks...she was spayed yesterday so we are trying to chill out for the next week. I am using this time to get her used to the crate during the day time. She is not very happy about it, but it is happening.....

 

Any recommendations on trick training videos for me? I have her bringing her toys to me and putting them in a tub, putting her front paws on an upside down tub and taking a bow. We work on all the basics daily....and she is catching a frisby and bringing it back to me. She is starting to drop it where I point on the floor.

 

I really love this dog, except for the biting.....luckily she loves other people...and saves the biting for me only when I am trying to force wiping paws or the easy walk harness.....she has finally associated the harness with a walk and this is no longer an issue. The worst biting issues have always happened when we were both stressed...I now know to back off and let us both calm before moving forward...not easy to do after being bitten. The vet tech that did the IV had an issue this morning and called in our dog trainer, who Molly loves, and she calmed right down and made friends.

[gcv-border]

Trick training videos - check out Youtube.

[BCjetta]

I have a 30 inch long by 24.5 inch tall by 21 inch wide in my car. Fits both my 33lb border collie and 50lb aussie however he is a bit squished as he is 23 inches tall. Both dogs have a 36 inch long crate as their sleeping one and the aussie has a 40 inch long one he's in during the day so he has a bit more room to stretch.

[Gloria Atwater]

Hi there ~

I'll echo the advice against the invisible fence. It's not worth your dog's life, however convenient it may be for you.

The 24 inch tall (30 inch long?) crate should work for use in your car. For home use, a bigger one may be nice so she can sprawl out. My girls each have a 32 inch long crate but they like to sneak into their brother's 36 inch long crate for naps during the day.

Per the outside run, I'd say make it awesome! Feed her in there, give her treats in there, make it a place were lots of good things happen. Make it the place where FOOD happens.

Best of luck,

Gloria

[Gideon's girl]

Where I do agility, they won't let you start a dog until it is 1 1/2 years old. They don't have a foundation class, you go straight to beginner agility.

 

My crates in the house are always oversized for the dog too, but for the car I try to get the smallest that they fit into. Actually I got the 2 biggest that would fit into my van side by side and were tall enough. I couldn't find the exact dimensions I would have liked to have, but these 2 work great. I made mats for them that tie in place so they don't shift around.

 

I second the recommendation for youtube. Seach Border Collies, you'll find tons of them.

[mum24dog]

A blanket start age for all dogs isn't justified; it would be ridiculous to make a JR wait until 18 months to start agility but maybe a Rottweiler would benefit from waiting longer.

 

On average we take dogs at around 12 months to start training but it is just a guideline and we consider each dog as an individual.

 

But 6 months to start anything that could be called agility is way too young.

 

Didn't the guy from the Zoom Room come on here to say he was opening up?

[gcv-border]

A blanket start age for all dogs isn't justified; it would be ridiculous to make a JR wait until 18 months to start agility but maybe a Rottweiler would benefit from waiting longer.

 

On average we take dogs at around 12 months to start training but it is just a guideline and we consider each dog as an individual.

 

But 6 months to start anything that could be called agility is way too young.

 

Didn't the guy from the Zoom Room come on here to say he was opening up?

Yes, to the above. ^^

 

I think the Zoom Room is a franchise. At least when I Googled it, I saw links to Zoom Rooms in several states. Not sure if the two Zoom Rooms mentioned on these boards are one and the same (for some reason, I am thinking they were in different states, but was too lazy to look it up.)

[Pat moly]

What we did at zoom room was not very strenuous....it was introducing some equipment, tunnel, hoop, short ramps, wide spaced poles...going down the middle, not weaving, standing on a platform and a wobble board. It was more about training me in how to guide with treats...it was done slow, not for speed. Is there a reason to wait to begin?

[d112358]

If you're at a place that is encouraging you to train slow (for most behaviors), you want to find another instructor. It's way easier to refine a behavior and get more precision than it is to rebuild drive if you teach your dog to overthink.

 

Because of that, your dog needs to be physically able to handle doing things at speed. When they're still growing and awkward, they're not going to learn well. Jumping before the growth plates close is also pretty hard on a dog, and jumps are 60+% of the course.

[alligande]

If you are interested in agility as a sport and really learning then I would find another location to train at, there are all sorts of things a dog can learn before he sees real equipment. The problem with agility is that if the dog learns to take the equipment slowly and without drive you might never get the speed you want, which is a road I have travelled. At 6 months they can be playing with wobble boards, learning that putting their head under things, making things move all sorts of things. My current dog started competing at 18 months, I did all his foundation work at home and then started training him on equipment when he was about a year. There are all sorts of books and DVDs but if you have never played the sport then it is best to find someone to teach you foundation stuff as much of it does not make sense when you first start out.

[urge to herd]

I second the trick training, and will throw in to take her different places routinely. Taking my Gibbs to a new-to-him location is very stimulating to him - he loves it and gets pretty excited with all the new smells, sounds, etc.

 

Teach her to use her nose. google canine nosework, there might be a class or two near you. She can start now, it's not physically demanding at all.

 

On Youtube, look for kikopup - she's got a lot of how to videos.

 

If you have friends with well mannered adult dogs, playtime with friends can be awesome. Some dogs don't enjoy play as much as they turn into adults, others love to goof around. Be careful that you introduce her to dogs who like other dogs and know how to play appropriately. A couple weeks ago, Gibbs joined an impromptu play group that included a Newfie/husky mix. Very nice dog, and very LARGE. For whatever reason, Gibbs didn't like Zeus, and the two of them respectfully kept a nice distance between themselves, and went on playing with the other dogs that were there. It was great to see that, both Zeus' owner and I were impressed with how well it went.

 

Good luck with her! Sounds like you're going to have a blast!

 

Ruth and Agent Gibbs