5 replies to this topic

[APH512]

I have a border Collie that is very talented but I have been moving around so much that I have not been able to get her trained. She will be 2 in late August, is that too old to start???? any input would be welcome. If it is not too old then I also need the name of a good trainer. Thanks alot!!!!

Cynthia

[juliepoudrier]

Cynthia,
Dogs are really never too old to be trained, though how far you get and the capabilities of the dog might be affected (this is more of a concern with older dogs--say, 6 or 7, whose age will limit how far you get simply because you will have limited time before old age interferes with abilities, that is, limits the dog from putting in a hard day's work or doing really long outruns, etc.).

At any rate, 2 is definitely not too old to start. Many folks don't even really start serious training with a youngster until it is at least a year old, so your dog isn't very far behind agewise.

As for finding a trainer, there are two things you can try. Go to the USBCHA website (usbcha.com) and look under "directors and officers." Find the region you're in, then find out which people are your directors and contact them for help.

Littlehats (littlehats.net) also has a list of trainers searchable by state.

Good luck.

J.

[Keegan's Mom]

I started Keegan at 2 years old but he wasn't serious about it until I put him up for 6 months and tried again. So we didn't start really training until Keegan was 2 1/2 years old.

[APH512]

Thank you so much for your help!! Its good to hear that I'm not too late!

[Pippin's person]

We also started Pippin when she was 2--before that, I don't think she would have done much other than eat poop. She has taught me a great deal about how long it can take a BC to mature.

We started Tansy, our rescue, at 5 and she's a little harder because she had such an impoverished life prior to age 41/2. She's from herding lines but was sold to a pet home and left to languish in a pen. She learned many good tricks for keeping herself entertained and also learned to rely mostly on herself.

With herding, she has lots to work through (e.g. lying down, not waring incessantly, slowing down) and she'll almost certainly never be an open dog (she might not ever make it to novice), but she is finally having a life and that's what matters most to us with her.

[leahluvsherpups]

We adopted Niki when she was two years old. At that time she was extremely unsocialized and just a mean nasty little biatch. She hated men and was food agressive. When we first took her to Petsmart she snapped at the lead trainer. His words, "Border Collies are the smartest dogs, that one is not.". We immediately enrolled her into obedience class and continued classes for the next year. Today,at 6 years old, Niki is the sweetest dog you could ever know. It is possible to turn them around, I've done it more than once.