BORDER COLLIE TRAITS

[beachdogz]

Ok….a sort of fun post.

 

I’m new to owning a Border Collie. So…are the following traits that I see:

a. Border Collie traits?

b. General dog traits?

c. A particular dog’s trait?

 

1. Points (lifts a paw to “set”) – both my BC and my mix do this. I noticed a photo of Monicah’s dog in another photo with that paw up

 

2. Walks like a cat, one paw in front of the other – both my BC and my mix do this. Sometimes (not always) they will walk on the narrow brick trim between our pool and the grass, one foot in front of the other. There seems to be no reason to do this; no reason to avoid the grass. And, my BC did it the first day she got here…so it’s not like she learned it watching my mix.

 

3. Lays on back and plays with toys in the air (like a cat) – both by BC and my mix do this. We used to say that the mix was either raised by a kitty or was part kitty.

 

4. Curls her paws and uses them like hands – Only my BC does this. It is amazing what she can do with those paws. I don’t remember ever seeing a dog curl their paws like that to hold things. It’s like they’re her little hands.

 

5. Lays her head in your lap – I noticed other people referring to this trait in other posts. Mine does this. Is it a Border Collie thing? I never had another dog that did it quite like this and so often.

 

6. Any other things you would label as Border Collie traits (besides stalking and staring)?

[Tea]

Hum.....

 

tracking sheep manure into the house.

[beachdogz]

Hum.....

 

tracking sheep manure into the house.

 

Well that would qualify for a BC trait I guess, since many sheep people have BCs. However, I do not have sheep.

 

And I thought of "rolling in deer poop" but I'm pretty sure that's a general dog trait

[Root Beer]

My Border Collies pay extra close attention to what I am doing a lot of the time. Much, much moreso than my other dogs do. I often catch Dean watching me with an expression that suggests that he is listening to every word to try to catch some meaning as I speak! Speedy does the same thing, but not as intensely.

[Dixie_Girl]

Curling the paws to grab or hold something is one of the first things I noticed with Jackson. I thought it was just one of his weirdy things, but Skip does it too. And yes, Border Collies seem to know everything your doing, sometimes before you have completely made up your mind to do it!

 

Now I will tell you a little story and y'all can draw your own conclusions. In my house, the kitchen and dining room are next to each other and the front room is in front of them and the same size as both of them. The only thing seperating them is a small wall about 5ft in the middle. There is a 3ft wall juting out from that with a small bar attached to seperate the kitchen and dining room. It makes the perfect "circle" for the dogs to chase each other around and around. Well, if the dogs are in a playful mood and I am busy, Skip will intice Jackson with a toy so Jackson will chase him. Skip just trots around and poor Jackson is trying so hard to catch him that he slips and slides and gets no traction and this goes on and on. Last night they were doing this and I told DH, ya know, as long as they have been doing this, Jackson has never figured out that if he would stop and go the other way, he would catch Skip. We laughed. Today, the circle game started,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and after 3 turns,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Jackson stopped and went the other way, got the toy.

 

Just makes ya wanna say, hmmmmmmmmm.......................

[Tea]

I guess I was being a bit droll! It has rained here and I forgot to rinse dogs off in water trough!

 

I don't know any traits? Mine don't curl paws.....I don't think I've ever seen them lie on their backs? One of my sled dogs does when she's hot?

They really know what the word Sheep means!

 

They are funny little dogs.

 

My new young dog got out today and got in with my ram lambs. His trait I guess is causing alot of commotion!

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

Daisy uses her paws like hands. It's creepy. She doesn't really point but has one heck of a knack for "punching" you if you aren't paying attention when you should be. She is also way to attentive to what I am doing at all times. One day while I was driving, I looked over my left shoulder to see her peering between my head and the car door and I swear she was trying to figure out how to drive. She's also very quick to pick up if we are about to do something that involves her. I don't know how, I can just decided to take her for a walk and not say anything and she'll know. They are much more in tune with us than regular dogs I guess.

[Jedismom]

Lying down with a loud haruumph!

[Katelynn & Gang]

All of my dogs point and they also move their feet one in front of the other, esp. if they are trying to be sneaky.

 

Katelynn

[Dal & Mad's Mom]

I think approaching from behind and standing between an owners knees is a weird border collie trait. About 25% want to stand this way with me for a petting.

 

Disgusted looks. We have a few bc's who look at us like we are utterly appaling. adopters have noticed it about them so it isnt just me. One man said about Dave "I never had a dog look at me with such disgust before"

[Rachel1786]

One man said about Dave "I never had a dog look at me with such disgust before"

Lmao, that is too funny, i actually lol'ed

[sweet_ceana]

Ceana & Pepper are pointers. Poke listens to every word you say and I swear I can just talk to him and he gets it a lot of the time. He is VERY in tune to me. Ceana could care less what anyone says because no one is as interesting as she is. Either your presence is pleasing and she will let you know with continuous "high fives," or you are nothing more than a mere nusence. Poke paws at you as his version of "excuse me." It is some what of a tap/swipe.

 

All 3 dogs exhibit a high prey drive and intense focus. Out of the three in the house though, I can safely say Poke has almost no eye. His stares, while intense, just do not seem as weighted as the girls. Poke and Ceana both wish they has opposable thumbs at times, and are very paw oriented. If there is a fan anywhere on the ceiling ceana is on her back. Ceana will lay any way that keeps her belly the coolest.

 

No one mentioned how BC's curl themselves up into those tiny balls like contortionists, so that will be my contribution. Poke and Ceana both roll into balls with nose to rear end. I think Pepper is too fat for this, and that is the only trait I really haven't seen from her since she came to us about a month ago.

 

Ahh, and how about extreamly noisy play!? Is it just me, or do they attempt to make the largest ruckus when playing? If I couldn't see, or know, my dogs I would probably swear there was some sort of fighting going on!

[monicah]

Zimba really pays attention when I am driving. It's like he HAS to know where we are going. I drove past the parking lot to the woods I am walking him in yesterday and he stuck his head forward and touched my shoulder with his nose. Like he was telling me I was driving in the wrong direction. He got really confused when I didn't turn the car around, lol! My old dog Benny never did anything like that. He just sat there and didn't really care about anything.

 

Zimba is also very curious when we are out walking. If we meet another person he'll stop and stare him/her right in the eyes. Benny never did that, he avoided eye contact with others and he didn't care why someone else was walking in the same area as us. Zimba has to know why and will just stare at them and look quite curious. Some people get a little nervous when he does that because they think he might be aggressive. Zimba also stares a lot at me when we are home. It's like he's trying to figure out what I am thinking.

 

And one last thing that I think is weird: Keira had an accident on my bedroom floor one night and Zimba woke me up to let me know. He has never stuck his nose up in my face while I am sleeping to wake me up. The smell from her accident was horrible, so no wonder why he woke me up to clean it up, lol!

[Rachel1786]

No one mentioned how BC's curl themselves up into those tiny balls like contortionists, so that will be my contribution.

 

That reminds me, when we first got Gretchen we kept her in the kitchen with baby gates(she would poop in the bedroom at first)so i go downstairs to get a drink(it was storming out by the way) and she is no where to be found, not in her crate, all the gates are up, i start freaking out, where could she have gone, we searched up stairs, downstairs and she was no where, finally i went into the upstairs bathroom and i found her curled up in the cats litter pan between the toilet and wall, i have no idea how she squeezed herself in there, it was so tight she could barely get out.

 

Oh and she also does the laying on her back and playing with the toy thing, it's so cute to watch :-D

[Lewie'sMom]

...Jackson has never figured out that if he would stop and go the other way, he would catch Skip. We laughed. Today, the circle game started,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and after 3 turns,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Jackson stopped and went the other way, got the toy.

 

Just makes ya wanna say, hmmmmmmmmm.......................

 

Love it!

 

Friday night during our walk Lewie almost killed me twice and himself once (dang squirrels) so I decided he has to wear his Easy Walk harness from now on. Last night I told him it's time for a walk (happy dog!) but as soon as I picked up the harness he backed away, which in itself is hilarious when it isn't irritating the carp out of me. He refused twice to let me put the harness on him so we didn't go for a walk. OK by me, I had work to do.

 

Guess that's not necessarily a BC trait except maybe for the way he "dances" backward to express his objection to something. Rest assured that if I had really WANTED to take him for a walk he would have been outfitted with him harness despite any protest

[Rachel1786]

I thought of something else to add, but i don't know if it is a BC trait, or just Gretchen, but when we are walking and she starts to pull i'll stop and i wait for her to heal, so she walks backwards like she is being a good girl, but then she will try to jet towards the dog, it's like she's saying "look i'm listening, now we can go so lets go" and it's very annoying lol, my hands can only take so much of the bolting :-P

[Tranquilis]

Suka's not particularly typical... But then, what is 'typical' for a BC, other than they're a bunch of iconoclasts?

 

'BC' traits...

She takes the arch-typical 'slink' when she's stalking The Rude Dogs At The End Of The Neighborhood. That's the only time I've seen her do this.

 

She 'does inventory' on the people in the house, when we're in seperate rooms - Every so often, she'll poke her nose in the room, do a quick check, then return to whichever room has the most people, or the most interesting activities.

 

General traits...

When she sees something interesting, her head snaps upright, ears a-prick, and her tail sticks straight up like a flag. She's got a very flamboyant tail, so it looks like she's got dust mop strapped to her butt. She doesn't 'point,' but it's REAL obvious where her attention is.

 

She's got a lot of 'nose' and she'll put her head down like an anteater, snuffling from side to side whenever we go for a walk - I can always tell when she's found something particularly interesting to sniff - She starts waving that dust mop again.

 

Wherever I want to place my feet next, that's where she'll be sleeping - without fail.

 

Particular traits....

She's prissy about wet grass, and walks with a high, prancing action when in tall wet grass. It's a treat to watch - it looks like she's doing dressage.

 

When she wants to play, she'll take her toy, back up until she's leaning her butt on me, and growl. I'm guessing she's signalling that she's not trying to misbehave, but really wants that toy flung. Her other play enticement is to lay on her back, toy between her paws, and growl at you.

 

When she really wants some lovin' on, she'll try to put her head in your lap - upside down.

 

When excited, and put in a 'sit' or 'down,' she bounces up and down about an inch - she looks like a furry jackhammer.

 

Car windows are objects of intense interest; an open car window - any car window - apparently means "jump in" to her.

 

Apparently, my beard tastes wonderful to her. She simply has to lick my face. I don't think I'm that sloppy an eater...

[beachdogz]

Story to add re my mix (who could have some border collie in him since he does some bc stuff -- but who really knows). He is the smartest dog I’ve ever owned, though Ky has only been with us over 2 months, so she may also become more “in-tune” with us as time goes on...she is blossoming every day.

 

So it’s a very hot day and the dogs are outside with me. Stormy (the mix) looks thirsty and so I ask him if he wants a drink, and I open the gate to the pool deck so he can go up on the back porch and get a drink of water from the dog pan. The pool deck has water puddles on it, and he stops to get a drink from one of those. I say (in a normal voice, like I am talking to a person – not a dog) “Don’t drink from the deck. Go on the porch and get a drink from the pan.” He stops drinking, looks at me, then walks straight onto the porch and gets a drink from the pan!

 

I used to tell my students that dogs don’t hear us or understand us when we speak in sentences (sort of like the old Gary Larson "Far Side" dog cartoon; blah, blah, blah) but I swear that this dog understands everything you say to him. I am now hearing stories (like Dixie Girl's story re the dogs chasing each other) that also signify that these dogs understand what you are saying. I find that amazing. I am seeing small glimpses from Kylie that she also understands more than I think she does when we speak.

 

Oh, and my dog also lies down with a loud haruumph!

 

PS - There is also a WONDERFUL article in National Geographic from March with a border collie picture on the front cover about animal behavior (someone may have already mentioned it back then on this board, when I wasn't even thinking that I would own a BC!) You can still read it on line.

[JohnLloydJones]

I used to tell my students that dogs don’t hear us or understand us when we speak in sentences (sort of like the old Gary Larson "Far Side" dog cartoon; blah, blah, blah) but I swear that this dog understands everything you say to him.

 

I think the truth is somewhere between the "blah, blah, blah, Ginger, blah, blah, blah" of the cartoon and understanding everything. I certainly talk to Sennca in sentences and it is very clear that she can pick up enough meaning from them to understand what I intend. But even if they are tossing out the "noise" words and just picking up certain keywords, that still makes them pretty smart.

[Lewie'sMom]

When excited, and put in a 'sit' or 'down,' she bounces up and down about an inch - she looks like a furry jackhammer.

 

 

Please, oh puulleeeeze get us a video of that!

[Guest maya's mom]

Maya also does the curling paws/hand thing when trying to get her snacks out of her Kong. She also figured out very quickly that the best way to get the food out, was to put it in her mouth, throw her head back, and drop the Kong. It is really funny to watch! She also loves to chew on Bully Sticks or Cows Ears, and get a tiny tiny piece off. She then proceeds to throw the thing up in the air, watch it land, then pounce on it and start over again! Another funny thing she does is, if she is laying on the couch and wants to play, but isn't getting enough attention, she will let out singular barks that are so forceful, her whole body levitates up off the couch. She will look at you, then proceed to do it again and again, one bark at a time. We also call her "bunny" sometimes, b/c when playing in water (our dog park has a zero entry pool), she will pounce high through the air to get to her frisbee that was thrown across the pool. While there, she also refuses to let the frisbee out of her mouth. We are usualyy there for an hour or two a day, and she carries it around in her mouth the whole time! Even when chasing the other dogs. And while she is chasing them in to the water, she will thrash her head back and forth, shaking the frisbee and growling. She sometimes also tries to jump on the other dog's back while they are chasing their toy! So funny and quirky!

[Ooky]

Some of Odin's BC traits compared to other dogs I've known - please do not take offense if some of the things I attribute to "BCness" is actually just Odin himself. But these have all been remarked on by not just me, other people who have also had other types of dogs, or in multi-breed class, etc.

 

1. Boundless energy combined with amazing focus and calm (for a puppy).

2. Willingness to "get serious" when I do, i.e. being on very best behavior when I take him to work. Or the way that when my landlord comes over, he seems to just *know* (from the very first time) that he is to stay with me and drop to the ground when I stop, so that he looks like the world's best trained dog (which he is NOT, lol).

3. Without being clingy, he is always attentive to me and what I am doing.

4. A pushy desire to head off moving cats, dogs, and people. This is not allowed, but I'm just saying I've never seen this sort of come around to the front and attempt to drive said object in another direction behavior from another type of dog. I've seen other dogs chase or body block, but not this tendancy to come to the head and turn to redirect the movement of the other being. Others see this and are impressed with him for what they clearly see as "herding". I have been given flack from strangers or other class members for stopping him b/c I am supposedly not letting him "do his natural thing." I'm not saying this is herding, it's just a totally different way of being pushy and controlling (traits I HAVE seen in many dogs in certain circumstances, but expressed differently).

5. I call him a "show me once" dog. Not always true, but for your average simple trick like high 5 or whatever, that's typically all it takes.

6. Obsessiveness lurks under the surface and must be watched! I think he has an addictive personality.

7. Super soft, silky fur that naturally smells nice!

[Tranquilis]

Please, oh puulleeeeze get us a video of that!

Heh!

 

I'll see what I can do.

[dinah_kay]

Lying down with a loud haruumph!

 

LOL, Dave is so dramatic when he lays down. He makes a loud urgh/groan sounds as he goes down. It is so funny and silly. I have never had another dog do this like he does.

[Anda]

She's prissy about wet grass, and walks with a high, prancing action when in tall wet grass. It's a treat to watch - it looks like she's doing dressage.

 

 

That's exactly how Ouzo walks in wet grass or even puddles. He loves water where he can swim or dive in (as some of you might have noticed in some of his pics ....), but hates sprinklers, puddles, rain and wet grass. Let's not even mention bath time .... What a dork