Kassidy

Thanks for all the replies everyone, sorry I took so long to answer, I have been gone. I am contemplating all your input at the moment.

Ok so I am anti-AKC, and I know most people on these boards are also. But, we are getting started in agility, and eventually would like to compete in trials. But it seems like AKC trials are kind of the only option. I don't mind competing in AKC trials, but I don't really want to register Chloe with AKC. Do you have to register with AKC in order to compete in their trials? If you do, does registering a border collie with them help encourage them being bred for confirmation? I want them to be bred for working ability, so I don't want to encourage confirmation breeding.

Sounds like she did great! Especially for a dog that had to be rehomed because she didnt herd up to the rancher's standards! The crouch and slinkish look that the more experienced dogs have usually develops over time (Chloe didnt have it at first, although Libby had it the minute we took her on sheep. So it just varies between dogs), so don't worry that she'll never be a graceful and beautiful sheepdog! Usually the second and third (and on and on) exposures to sheep go better and better. Some times people have to take their dogs to sheep multiple times before the dog is even out doing what Emmie was doing on her first exposure to sheep! So be proud! I hope you two have a great time in this herding world! One thing I learned when I first started is I had just as much to learn as the dog! (Maybe more...) Good luck!

Wow. That was.... Wow.

Thanks for all the ideas guys, I'll try some out, and let you know how things go! If anyone else has any more ideas I am still open to ideas!

Chloe is about 5 pounds or so overweight. She gets a fair amount of physical and mental exercise (not an excessive amount, as I don't want to create a dog who requires tons and tons of excercise). She was eating 2-3 cups of food, twice a day. Since then, we have switched her from the Purina junk (sorry, I'm not a huge fan of most of Purina's kibbles) that she was on at that time, to Evo. We have worked her down to now getting 1/2 cup twice a day, with a big spoonful of 100 percent pumpkin so as to make her a bit more full. When we train, I deduct the amount of treats from the amount of food she is getting, so she gets the same calorie intake. We have been doing all of this for about 3 or 4 months, and she has only lost 1 pound. Is this a normal speed for losing weight? Since she is getting 4 or 5 cups of food less a day than she was a few months ago, I would have thought she would be losing weight a lot faster than that! Although I am glad she is making any progress at all, if you think that she is losing weight slower than she ought to, any tips would be appreciated!

My personal experience with it is I can discourage the herding of other things, but the dog still gives its best on sheep. But, that is my personal experience, others may have had different experiences.

I don't think discouraging herding cats will hurt his drive to herd other things. That instinct is imbedded in them and all the training in the world couldn't get it out of them. You can redirect it, but not completely get rid of it. You should be able to discourage the herding cats behavior but have him still give his best when put on sheep.

I would advise that you are careful about what you let him herd, because once a habit starts it is hard to break, and someday he might take it to the next level or the cat will become super stressed out from being herded (or some other reason you want the herding of cats to be stopped) and it will be much harder to stop the behavior then compared to if you stop now.

How did you go about teaching handstand? I was going to teach Chloe, but I heard some people on the boards say it hurt their dogs.

I personally like close the door. It's helpful for when I'm too lazy to get up, and it's also fun to show off to guests. I also like the trick where I get down with my knee out and Chloe leaps over it.

Very handsome, I'm sorry for your loss, but at least he got to spend 11 happy years with you.

We took Libby off puppy food at 16 weeks (sorry my signiture is out of date), but i dont know much about large breed dogs. We were feeding her ProPlan Focus Chicken and Rice. She seemed to do well on it, although as soon as we switched her to adult food we took her off of ProPlan, the only reason we had her on it in the first place is because that's what she was on when we got her.

We only give them to Chloe once in a while because her gums usually bleed when she eats them. Does anyone else have a problem with that? Is it normal, or something more serious? Chloe hasn't had a rawhide since she got her teeth cleaned at the vet a few weeks ago, so we will see if its any better or worse now...

I definitely agree on what Kate said about only get another dog if you want it for you, not as a companion for Xena. Because otherwise you may be disappointed and have a dog you don't really want. When we got Libby I was looking for a companion for myself and a dog to get serious in herding with more than a companion for Chloe, which is a good thing because Chloe's attitude on Libby turned out being "You keep your distance and maybe this could work out." If I had gotten Libby because I wanted a companion for Chloe, I would have been very disappointed.