Lawgirl

Thank you for the update tamapup. Patience and persistence! I spent ages with a dog who I had to work with about forty feet from the other dogs at dog school because he went ballistic whenever we went closer. In the end, he went to Grade 4 (non- trialling) at dog school, got a rally novice title and competed and titled in agility. I cannot tell you how many tonnes of treats I shovelled down his gullet to get to that point!

One of my boys used to respond to Nexgard/Nexgard Spectra with diarrhoea too, although not bloody. Mind you, he had a sensitive gut to a lot of things. Pixie is precious, I have slight puppy envy right now. Keep the photos coming, she is adorable and we love seeing puppies grow!

Awesome run, well done!

On this topic, I have one boy who is seven and entire. I have had several people tell me that if I want to keep my entire male healthy, particularly in relation to his prostate, I need to masturbate him, because entire males need to ejaculate regularly for their own health I must be a bad owner because I have never done this.

I have never tried sit on the dog myself, which was why it was not my first or even second suggestion. I am very glad that crating worked eventually. Persistence and consistency will work. The other goal is to watch closely to try and catch him before he starts getting very overstimulated. Try to learn the markers of him starting to get worked up, and catch him before he is in full flight, and it will make things easier.

Ears go crazy around the time adult teeth start coming through. If you have not already, chew proof everything! And get lots of chew toys ready for your puppy, because she is abut to go through teething, most likely. I wish I had more photos of how different my puppy's ears had been from day to day, so keep on that camera!

Oh yes, the inevitable question of "What is she/he?" that those of us who have anything other than the traditional long coat black and white border collies invariably encounter throughout the lives of our dogs - welcome to the club! I have a red merle, two black tri colours, one new short coat black and white, and until last month had a white face black and white. Invariably I would get asked what type of dogs they were. In Australia, I often get asked if they are Coolie/Koolie , or Australian Shepherd, or Kelpie, or I simply get told that they can't be Borders because they aren't the right colours or coats. One of the loveliest comments I ever received was when I first started agility and a stranger told me that you just had to look at my white face move to know that he was all border collie, even if he did not have a pedigree.

Agree totally with the advice above. Also try calling her, treating/praising her, and then letting her go back to the fun stuff she was doing, so that she does not associate coming to you with the fun always ending. Also, if she eats, take her outside to toilet. If she drinks, take her outside to toilet. High likelihood of an accident if you don't. As puppies, they have limited bladders and eating and drinking seem to trigger them. This will improve each month as she grows, but safest thing is regular (and I mean frequent) trips outside.

There is another way of teaching self control to a dog which does not involve a crate, but does require long periods of time commitment from the owner. It is a way of teaching a 'long down'. There was a post called "Sit on the dog" a while back where this was discussed, but basically you put your dog on a lead, put the dog in a down, put the lead under a foot or under the leg of a chair so only a short length is available, sit on the chair and then sit and read a book, magazine, watch Netflix on your phone, whatever for half an hour or so. Do this in a park, in your yard, in your living room, wherever. There is some debate about this being a dominance exercise, which is a theory which has been essentially debunked by modern animal behaviourist research, but the exercise itself may be useful if you approach it more as an opportunity to positively reinforce quiet, settled behaviour.

It sounds as though he may be either overstimulated or attention seeking when he behaves like this. It is difficult to be sure from your description. If it is over-stimulation, he is not yet able to settle himself, i.e. he has not learned the mystical 'off-switch'. It comes naturally to some dogs, others need help to learn it. If it is attention seeking, he has learned that you respond when he behaves like this, therefore it is self rewarding (and it may just also be fun!) In both cases, the answer is simply to respond in the same way - a consequence of this unwanted behaviour is time in the crate. This is not a punishment. It is simply a force of nature. Say calmly something like "Uh oh, someone needs a time out." and then just put him in the crate until he calms down. If he naps, even better. A filled kong or other chew toy, to emphasise that this is not a punishment is good (although not every time, or he may start to do this to get the treat!). Once he is calm, you can let him out. If he does it again, rinse and repeat. Over and over until he learns. Be aware of something called an extinction burst, where a dog escalates their behaviour because it is no longer getting the desired effect, before they give up entirely. An alternative would be to teach place, by training him to lie on a mat, and rewarding calm lying on a mat for longer and longer periods. But if he is as over the top with furnishings as you suggest, and he is already crate trained, I suggest the crate would be best.

In my house, we call that "Doing a Border collie"!

Given that Buddy seems to have just discovered the joys of shoes as chew toys, I would say he is getting quite comfortable! The first night he jumped on the bed and fell asleep lying on top of me. I think I am a goner, and he is a keeper.

My dear departed Oscar did not get the nickname "Mr Poopyhead" for no reason. Rolling in stuff is a doggie thing that is perfectly natural, if sometimes much regretted by their human owners.

Oscar passed away less than a month ago, and left a huge hole in our hearts. It may have not been the wisest idea, but when this little guy came up in the Facebook feed of a local rescue, I had to go meet him. And he has come home with us. So far so good. Meet Buddy! Two and a quarter years old, was taken on by the rescue as a rehabilitation job because he was about to be put down for being too hyper. He is a much more petite boy than my others, but more than holds his own. He has settled in well and lifted all of our spirits. Technically he is currently on trial, but, well, yeah.

Seconding what GentleLake says! Border Collie puppies really are constantly using their minds, so every minute is learning. It does not have to be formal training, but the old saying "start as you intend to go on" really does apply. Do not give puppy license to behaviour you do not want to deal with as an adult dog, and consistency is key. You will never hear a complaint from me about puppy photos! Especially ones of such a cute puppy!

What a sweet puppy, so cute! Congratulations to you and Pixie! (Love the name, by the way!) I can see the tri, I suspect it will become a lot more prominent as she grows up. I have an absolute weak spot for tricolours.

Ah, I wondered why you were working on it so hard. Me, it would be so I don't have to run so much. But if Molly prefers the distance work, then that is where you need to go. And if it is easier on you (on course, not in training) so much the better! Are you using verbals, or is it mainly the arm signals/body movement? Because I suspect some combination will be needed for the more cluttered courses.

That is excellent, I love the distance you are getting.

A few months ago, my OH got a photo of my lovely Oscar squinting into winter sunlight. He had such a funny expression on his face, that I posted the photo onto a group on Facebook and asked people to turn him into a meme. Now that Oscar is gone, I wanted to share a few of the results. I have made sure these are all safe for work - not all of them were.

Thank you, this is exactly how we feel. No matter that we gave Oscar a wonderful life, and we did try to, he should have had another seven years of that wonderful life to look forward to. He was robbed and we were robbed. And that hurts.

It is with tears in my eyes that I share that my much loved boy Oscar has passed on September 11, 2019. He was just seven years, two months old. On Saturday, Oscar was racing around, happy as usual, but then developed an occasional cough. By Sunday, his bark was quite hoarse. On Monday, we took him to the vet, who diagnosed tracheolitis, and put him on antibiotics and anti-inflammatories. On Tuesday, Oscar was much worse. His head was hanging low and he would not lift it vertically, he was reluctant to drink, and could not jump up onto anything. So back to the vet. After a complete blood panel, Oscar's liver enzymes were slightly elevated, his red blood cell count was elevated, but his white blood cell count was down. Oscar's neck was not sore, but he would not voluntarily raise it, and he had mildly reduced reaction in his hind legs. The conclusion was likely sepsis with neurologic involvement. We left him at the vets overnight for IV antibiotics and pain relief. On Wednesday morning, Oscar's condition had deteriorated again. He could just about roll from his side to his stomach with help, and could move his legs, but could not stand. Oscar could not raise his head. It appeared his organs were shutting down. There was nothing more our local vet could do for him. Oscar was incredibly stressed at the vet. They could refer him to a vet hospital 500 kilometres (310 miles) away for further investigation. Oscar is not a good traveller, and does not do that well away from home when he is well, let alone sick. There was no guarantee there was anything anyone could do to help him, given how quickly he had deteriorated. We brought Oscar home and let him spend the day surrounded by love before the vet came and put him to sleep. He was much calmer at home. My partner wrote this post on Facebook, It says everything Oscar meant to us so much better than I can. Oh Oscar, Mr Schnoz. What can I say about you? I will try and write something but forgive me, my eyesight is impaired, burdened with tears so big that only the greatest sorrow could ever create. A story maybe. As a boy I loved Footrot Flats and from the earliest readings of those comic strips I had always wanted a Border Collie. They seemed so intelligent, so individual. Come 2012 we had moved into our own house and my thirtieth birthday was fast approaching, knowing from many discussion that it was the dog I had always wanted Kate was on the hunt and a week before my birthday she found what she was looking for. Border Collie puppies. I have had good dogs. Dogs that I had a deep connection with. I grew up with the most unique Lassie Collie you could think imagine. This new fluff ball was going to be Kate's first live inside own dog, we had to decide between two available puppies, one called Orange and one called Yellow, named due to their coloured tags. Which to choose? A tri colour pup with the cutest black paw print on his pink nose, or a white faced pup with two different coloured eyes? Kate had formed a deep fondness for Clancy, my parents tri colour Lassie. The choice was made. We would go with Orange but Kate, even prior to calling and organising pickup of Orange had made it clear that Yellow, the white face was an "Oscar", no understanding why but that was just the right name for him. We set out on our trip to Dartmoor, to pick up Orange from a breeders son who was making the trip to meet us kind of half way between our home and the breeders home. We were instantly in love and Orange, due to his insatiable curiosity, would become George. But it was still fated and some may say Thanos like, inevitable, Kate had already named Oscar. So by the time we got home that evening, settled inside with Orange, Kate made the call "Can we pick up the white face too." My birthday. Two days after picking up Orange we set out for the same trip to collect Yellow, Oscar. It was instant madness. Oscar was a fat bombastic bully that tormented George in only the ways a puppy can. They were the last two pups in the litter and they were always going to be inseparable. It was everything you could ever hope for. Endless fun. But. There was a dark underside to all of this. I was suffering. I was in a terrible head-space. Somewhere I thought, at the time, was so deep I could never come back from. George and Oscar came at the exact right time. We're here for the most briefest of moments in the course of all of time and space and I lucked out, I got the exact cure right before there could have been none. They saved me. They helped me be a better person. Oscar, he was a childhood dream. He was the white faced Border Collie from Footrot Flats "dog". He was as unique and individual as his comic counterpart. He was everything I had hoped and dreamt of. Life rarely fulfils your desires. Your wants. I was lucky. I may never be so lucky again. Today, I suffer. Existence is so fragile. It comes from nothing in the blink of an eye and can as abruptly return to that from which it came. Oscar, all I can hope for is that as you passed you knew that you mattered. That you were a dream fulfilled. That you were deeply loved and that you were a hero, even inadvertently. Oscar, the suffering of your passing will never be fully articulated as we simple beings will never have the language skills to ever give it due credit. It's a feeling without words. Maybe it's better that way, unspoken gives it a reverence that seems fitting. Today is supposed to be a good day, it's warm and windy with the spring time sun that makes you feel the season of renewel. As I write this the sun doesn't seem as bright but rather dull and cruel, how dare it try to give me the impression that new life is here. Instead of signifying we're out of the dark it only feels like the start of it. Oz, I'll keep George company for you. You will never be forgotten and I thank you for being you. Farewell Oscar

She is so gorgeous! Still love the poking the tongue out picture - so full of sass and character! I remember when my pups were young and flexible enough to twist 180 while lying down - front legs one way, hind legs another. That does change over time, but at least you have photographic proof it happened!

I think you have had absolutely excellent advice about on lead walking, and also about the barking. Some people find that teaching your dog to bark/talk on command can help as well. Otherwise, if he is reacting to noise, I don't know whether some kind of white noise/masking noise may help? It may be worth trying. Your boy is gorgeous, and I wish you the best of luck with him.

These are not the same as your toy, and are not cheap, but they seem to be a pretty good quality, and partially support various good causes in Australia, such as helping native wildlife and vet care for desert dogs in aboriginal communities. Also they support genuine Aboriginal artists. There are multiple retailers in America. https://outbacktails.com/collections/outback-animal-toys

I will add that when I find a mat in my dog's fur, I often do not resort to a brush at all. It takes more patience, but I will often work at it with my fingers, gently separating out the mat from the fur until I can pull the mat out without hurting my dog. I can intersperse this with pats and belly rubs and verbal reassurance, and not have to worry about the fear the appearance of a brush will create. If the mat is too big or too tight, the scissors come in, but it sometimes surprises me how much you can get out while your dog is lying relaxed on the couch with you.