Need advise, recent proud owners of a border collie

[NielZ]

I need some advise on owning a Border Collie. My Fiance' and I are recent proud owners of a Border Collie. We did extensive research before hand and we are fully aware of the attention and stimulation a Border Collie needs.

 

That being said we currently live in an apartment and we have limited access to a fenced yard. We take our puppy for long walks in the morning and in the evenings, I also plan on running with him daily once he is old enough. We both work full time, roughly 8-9 hours a day so we crate him while at work. Because he is a puppy we have hired a dog walker to come by for the time being to let him out so he can relieve himself half way through the day. We have been providing private obedience training which has been working very well. He seems to be adjusting very well, of course in the morning and when we get home from work he is non stop and has limitless energy, but we dont mind entertaining him. We will eventually be moving into a house with a large yard, but this is a year or two away.

 

My question is regarding all the articles online that I am reading that claim you should not own a border collie if you work full time, or if you do not have any farm work for them to do. Does anyone own a border collie who works full time? Are we in for a rude awakening as he gets older? Judging from some of the articles online we may be.

 

If someone is in a similar situation maybe you have some advise, perhaps you have some ideas of jobs we can give him around the house to occupy his mind.

 

Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks!

[chrisandgabe]

We both work full time and adopted gabe, our presumably border collie/Australian shepherd mix (but maybe all border collie) at 2.5 years old. We think we are a good home for him, but he's definitely not for the "casual" dog owner.

 

I wake up almost 3 hours before I leave for work to walk him (approx 1 hour and we work on leash skills and reactivity), sometimes a little training session in the morning too. My husband and I have staggered work schedules so he's home earlier than I am, takes gabe for another long walk, and they often run in the yard or do some work out there. We do a lot of trick training. Weekends are all about the dog. I sometimes take him herding, and more recently am teaching a class where we take a pack of dogs on a trail walk on weekends to work on socialization in that setting. I offered to teach the class because my dog needs it.

 

We are currently on vacation with Gabe and found a state park to walk through this morning, and plan a lot more "what to do in the hotel" things than we would otherwise so we can be with him.

 

Find some hobbies you can do with your dog, and start to love training. Also praise and reward your dog for being calm. Stick around these boards, they're a great resource. Enjoy your dog and all the things he will teach you

[Luana]

Hi, and congratulations!

I also got my first BC when I came to America. I'm on my own and I work full time, but this did not stop me from getting Spillo, the best thing I did so far!

I wake up quite early in the morning, to take him for a long walk or a run. when he was a puppy, he was in his crate till I was sure he could stay around the house without creating troubles, and I had a dog sitter coming at mid-day to let him out.

in the evening I was dedicating again time to him, playing and training and walking.

weekends are pretty much when we do more activity, we run quite a lot and he is starting herding, but any activity is fine.

now that he is older, he can stay the entire day doing basically nothing in my office (or home if I leave him there).

I still have someone coming at mid-day if I will have a very long day at work.

also I do not have a big yard.

 

Luana

[rushdoggie]

Jobs should occupy the brain. So anything that requires thinking is good.

 

Scent work is a fabulous way to occupy the brain. You could try tracking (my favorite but not everyone's cup of tea - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracking_trial) or Nosework (much easier to do and practice at home or in town - http://www.k9nosework.com/). You could train for them for competition or just train for fun. Puppies are already excellent at scenting.

 

You could train a structured retrieve (not a play fetch, but a specific "pick up that item, hold it securely and deliver it to my hand" activity...I recommend Shirley Chongs method of shaping - http://www.shirleychong.com/keepers/retrieve.html) and have fun teaching him how to collect your keys for you, or teh newspaper, or whatever.

 

Teach a series of fun dog tricks...roll over, play dead. Get creative with props and have the best party tricks ever.

 

I think the idea that someone who works full time doesn't have time for an active dog is based on the idea that people are busy and after working all day they are tired. Many people think just being home and around the dog is enough, when the dog seeks personal attention and 1-1 activity to satisfy his brain. Your average busy family gets home from school and work and has soccer practice and home work and making dinner etc, having 30 minutes to slot in a walk with a dog is not enough for the dog. So, the dog is bored and wants more attention/action, and problems start.

 

If you work but really devote your off time to quality dog stuff with your dog, they can do fine. Many of us like our dogs a lot, and frankly I look forward to coming home from work and spending time with them doing fun doggy centered activities. So mine don't care that I work, they are comfortable with the routine and sleep all day, and then I get home and we do doggie stuff most days.

[NielZ]

Thanks for all of your advise. Do you think I will still need a dog walker to come mid day when he is older, or does your collies do well enough until you get home?

[rushdoggie]

Thanks for all of your advise. Do you think I will still need a dog walker to come mid day when he is older, or does your collies do well enough until you get home?

 

Depends on how long you are gone...Mine are alone 6-8 hours and do fine, but f its going to be 10 or more than I try to come home at lunch.

 

Also when I had an old dog on Lasix I needed to come home a lot (luckily I have a flexible job so I can do this).

[Sue R]

Welcome!

 

While there are people here who do work their dogs on livestock (sheep, cattle, etc.), most people here occupy their dog's brains and bodies with mental and physical exercise - manners training, dog sports (agility, nosework, etc.), pet tricks, walks/runs, and so on. And the best exercise of all for these intelligent dogs is that which challenges the brain.

 

So, with a young pup, do not overdo the physical activity like walks (which you already seem to understand) and especially anything that involves high-impact (if you play with a ball or frisbee at all at this age, roll it - your dog's body won't be ready for more strenuous, higher-impact activities until the growth plates close, usually sometime after a year of age to as much as 15 to 18 months of age.

 

Don't condition your youngster and his body to expect a lot of physical activity. Other that maybe putting too much stress on the growing body and joints, too much activity leads the pup to *need* that level of activity. One day, when he's older, if you have long walks or rides in mind, is the time to ramp up the activity level if you so chose.

 

Now is the time to take that sponge-like brain and train, train, train - in little segments, only a few minutes at a time. In addition to the usual "sit", "lie down", "come" or "here", and "stay", teach "life skills" like having every part of his body handled (feet, ears, mouth, between the toes, and so on) so that your vet will love him and love you for training him to be handled for exams and treatments. Teach him how to accept medications, both liquid and solid - a small syringe with water substitutes for liquid meds and a TicTac can substitute for solid meds (make sure anything you use does *not* include any artificial sweeteners) - Xylitol is very toxic to dogs). Teach him a solid "leave it" which can also be a life-saver. Teach him silly pet tricks. Teach him a joyous and solid recall, another life-saver.

 

Give him experiences - walking on different surfaces (tarps, crinkly paper, bubble wrap, boards, wobbly things, grates); meeting different people (men, women, folks with hats, men with beards, children - especially children, and make sure they are quiet, slow-moving, and well-behaved about meeting and greeting your pup); meeting different dogs and other animals where possible; becoming accustomed to seeing moving vehicles including bicycles, scooters, cars, and trucks and not reacting to them; teach him to focus on you when something new or strange or scary comes along.

 

He can learn to be quiet in his crate, enjoy a frozen stuffed Kong perhaps while you are gone, and learn to "chill out". As for a dog walker, my adult dogs have never needed one (except in unusual circumstances) but if you like it, there's nothing wrong with having one come and take him out, and he'd enjoy it.

 

There are just so many things that are not simply "walking the dog" or "playing fetch" that will expand his world, challenge his mind, and help him to become a well-rounded, well-adjusted, happy dog. Very best wishes!

 

PS - Use the "search" function to find different topics from past postings that may help you with some ideas for your pup or answer some of your questions, and don't be afraid of asking questions. There are a lot of people here who are happy to share their expertise and experiences with you.

[teresaserrano]

I live in an appartment without a yard and find it not dificult at all to own a bc. I work, although I always come home to lunch and she isn't usually alone for more than 3 or 4 hours in a row.

 

As someone else said, they are not for the casual owner though. I wake up 3 hours before work so we can go out for 1.5 hours in the morning. In the afternoons we go out again, for a shorter walk, and we train obedience and tricks at home too. We play frisbee, do dock diving, play tug and search games, fetch, etc. I take her swimming and obstacle jumping. She goes with me everywhere and we do lots of different things together.

 

We do all these things because I really like it, but I do think she would also be happy if we didn't do as much, as long as she was a real part of my life. That'a what a bc needs the most, I think, to be a part of his person's life. Tess just loves it when I ask her to bring me my slippers, or to pick something up that I let fell, or to help me carry the laundry to the washing machine. She likes to feel usefull and part of everyday life.

[D'Elle]

All good advice above. I will just add that I, too, have owned a border collie while working full time and living in a small space in a large city with no yard (although that is not where we live now). I simply dedicated myself and my time off to doing dog things with my dog. This was no sacrifice for me, as I got the dog mainly because I wanted to spend my time off doing dog things. But as has been said above, border collies are not for casual dog owners who don't relish the idea of spending a lot of their time with the dog. If you are dedicated to your dog you will do fine.

[Gloria Atwater]

You've got good advise here, particularly from Sue and D'Elle. The only thing I would add is to be careful not to fall into the trap of thinking your border collie must be entertained every waking minute. Don't accidentally train him to be busy! It's not that they need to be constantly running and playing, it's that they have very agile, clever minds and don't do well with being bored and ignored for too long.

But that said, working border collies also have to learn about down time. Along with training, your pup should also learn to just be on his own while you are home and use his toys or chewies to entertain himself. You don't want him to think that if you're awake and at home, you must be doing something with him. Just like children, pups need to learn to hang out and entertain themselves at home.

Lastly, as D'Elle said, these dogs aren't for casual owners. Whatever you raise and train your pup to do, make sure it's a program you will be good with maintaining for the next 11 to 15 years. Enjoy your pup!

~ Gloria

[DutchBorderfan]

I live in the city, in an apartment with a small yard, I have my own company, a fairly good social life, oh.. and I have a Border Collie from a working line. And she is perfectly happy.

 

I think it can be done. If, and ONLY if, you make sure you put in the time after work is done, every single day. Coming back from a hard day's work: no sitting down and relaxing for a few hours, you have to get out the door and do stuff with your dog (which believe me, is the best way to unwind).

 

And make sure your dog has plenty of stuff to do during the day when you are away. Buy a few Kongs, fill them up with stuff and freeze them, so your dog is occupied for at least an hour doing that. Buy some smart toys as well.

 

My girl gets three pee rounds of 15 to 20 minutes, and one hour-long walk with lots of mental stimulation on a regular day, and she goes to sheep herding once a week. She is quiet in the house and not hyper at all.

 

A few things to remember:

 

1) running your border collie for hours a day will not do the trick, mental training is what they need. And the terrible side effect running for a few hours a day, is a great build up of stamina, you end up with an over-energetic dog, that won't bloody settle down.

 

2) When your dog is home a lot, make sure you train an off switch. No bouncing around in the house: running, fetching, training, that's done outside.

 

3) If he's still a pup, I would not walk him for hours on end. Train the basics, and play games that train the mind, instead of going for long walks.

 

4) When he grows older, I would keep investing in a dog walker for a few times a week if you're really gone every day. Your dog will likely be very thankful for that.

 

Good luck!

[Gloria Atwater]

A few things to remember:

 

1) running your border collie for hours a day will not do the trick, mental training is what they need. And the terrible side effect running for a few hours a day, is a great build up of stamina, you end up with an over-energetic dog, that won't bloody settle down.

 

2) When your dog is home a lot, make sure you train an off switch. No bouncing around in the house: running, fetching, training, that's done outside.

 

3) If he's still a pup, I would not walk him for hours on end. Train the basics, and play games that train the mind, instead of going for long walks.

 

4) When he grows older, I would keep investing in a dog walker for a few times a week if you're really gone every day. Your dog will likely be very thankful for that.

 

Good luck!

 

 

All this.

 

~ Gloria