buckeyemanohio

wow! ALL of you have given me such great advice! I actually want to print and save some of your responses so I can use them to reference when I move ahead. The more I research, talk, and think about goose abatement the more I am leaning towards NOT getting into it. However, I constantly see goose problems all around me where people are in dire need of getting them off of the property. I am taking it slowly and I am going to have fun trying all training aspects with Maverick. I believe we will continue with sheep herding first and see where that leads us. Thanks all!!!!!

Thank you so much! Gloria your advice was awesome. This is the reason I come here is to get good advice from people have have experience. I agree with the "chasing" vs. "herding" concept. Do you think if we keep with the sheep herding training that some day he would be able to transition to geese? I would love for some day to be able to herd geese with my dog and possibly earn some money doing it. However, if that never comes to reality I just want my dog to be active and happy. Perhaps we will continue to train with sheep. And I love my pup so much that after some more training my wife and I are considering buying some sheep just so he can be happy and active. We have a 1 acre fenced in horse pasture and plan to get two horses next year since we had to put our last horse down last year we are taking a year off before we get horses again. How about chickens? Could I have my pup herd chickens? Or are chickens to crazy? We have 6 chickens. We have 4 sweet barn cats that Maverick likes to herd. He never hurts them and they love him and rub on him but he sure does circle them when they are running and he gets them to stop. Maverick is a lot of fun. I never want him to be bored. I love the advice I get on here as long as I don't get attacked. The advice all of you have given me on this thread has been helpful and kind. Thank you again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

thanks. I did use the search function at the top of the page that's how I heard of the "sitting by the side of the road and rewarding him when he is calm". I have been out with him at a distance from the road and he is ok. He doesn't chase after them when we are at a distance. If we are within maybe 30ft or so is when he can't handle it. Farther away than that he doesn't have a problem. Geezer chasing geese is a profitable business where I am located. Actually there aren't any businesses around me so that's why it would be a perfect area (my county in Ohio) to start such a business. That would be my "long term goal". GCV what is LAT training? I will look up that book though. Thanks

My 10 month old border collie Maverick is awesome. He wants to please and has learned "most" of his basic commands. Although I feel his recall is not solid unfortunately. When he is outside and distracted he comes to my command but sometimes he thinks "naw I'm gonna keep walking or running" after he has looked at me. He had an introduction to herding (sheep) about 2 weeks ago and we both loved it! I want him to chase geese since we don't have a working farm but have tons of geese throughout many populated neighborhoods. We were chasing geese for the second time in his life yesterday and he got distracted when they were in the center of the pond since he hasn't been introduced to swimming yet. He got distracted by a bicyclist and ran after her in the middle of the road. People drive down our road at 50mph!! He would NOT listen to my come command or his name. Finally he ran off the road and I was calling him and he was running away. I was so scared he was going to run out after a car after this. He actually started to run away from me. I finally got him back on his lead. When we walk near the street he lunges toward every car, truck, and motorcycle that drives by. I DO NOT want this behavior! I love this dog and do not want him to get killed. What's the best remedy for this? I do not want to shock him in any way (invisible fence or shock collar). I read a thread posted on here from 2011 that suggested sitting by the road until he calms down and reward him when he is calm. I like the sound of that. But how do I react when he is going crazy every time a car goes by? Do I tell him NO and pull his lead? Do I ignore him and act like it's no big deal so he feels the same? Any advice would be MOST appreciated!! I know now that I am NOT going to release him off the lead even if we are chasing the geese since it is so close to the road. Please help. Thanks in advance!

Ok, I'm sure it's been discussed several times in the past but I couldn't find everything I need an answer to on past discussions. We finally got our first border collie puppy. He is 8 weeks old. How do you stop the whining in the crate? When I have trained puppies in the past I have said NO loudly or shook a can of coins or some loud noise and they stopped instantly. I have talked with you guys before about this and you have stated that with a border collie I may ruin him and make him afraid for the rest of his life. Do I just ignore him when we are trying to sleep and just let him out periodiocally? sometimes its just to be with us and not to go potty. Biting and the chewing go together: How do we get him to stop chewing things or biting us when we are playing? He wants to chew everything and often times when we are playing he may try to bite us as well. With my past puppies a loud NO or HEY or something loud would stop them immediately slapping a newspaper against my hand and saying NO always worked as well. But once again I don't want to "ruin" the sensitive border collie. Any advice from all of you experienced border collie lovers would be greatly appreciated!!!! We think this puppy is awesome! We have only had him since Saturday (3days only)

Ok, I'm sure it's been discussed several times in the past but I couldn't find everything I need an answer to on past discussions. We finally got our first border collie puppy. He is 8 weeks old. How do you stop the whining in the crate? When I have trained puppies in the past I have said NO loudly or shook a can of coins or some loud noise and they stopped instantly. I have talked with you guys before about this and you have stated that with a border collie I may ruin him and make him afraid for the rest of his life. Do I just ignore him when we are trying to sleep and just let him out periodiocally? sometimes its just to be with us and not to go potty. Biting and the chewing go together: How do we get him to stop chewing things or biting us when we are playing? He wants to chew everything and often times when we are playing he may try to bite us as well. With my past puppies a loud NO or HEY or something loud would stop them immediately slapping a newspaper against my hand and saying NO always worked as well. But once again I don't want to "ruin" the sensitive border collie. Any advice from all of you experienced border collie lovers would be greatly appreciated!!!! We think this puppy is awesome! We have only had him since Saturday (3days only)

Thanks All!!!!!! I was thinking along the same lines as all of you I just wanted to hear it from good people like yourselves that have more experience than me!!

Ok what is everyone's opinion on basic training (sit, come, stay, etc., etc.). What's the best technique? train with food by rewarding with food? Train with positive words only? training collars? I have used them all. Thanks all!!!

Ok what is everyone's opinion on basic training (sit, come, stay, etc., etc.). What's the best technique? train with food by rewarding with food? Train with positive words only? training collars? I have used them all. Thanks all!!!

Hey thanks Vicki and Waffles!!! tommycoyote said: But if you really want a dog that obeys your every command this is probably not the best breed for you. BC's think for themselves. I just don't believe in turning dogs into robots. It's just so unfair to the dog. I love dogs with personalities. I totally agree I don't believe in "robotic" dogs. As I stated earlier my choice of words may not have been the best when I said "obey my every command". Of course that may be illogical but I DO want a smart and obedient dog. I love dogs and all dogs have personalities, just like people. I am excited about BC's challenging me with their thought processes, training them, and of course loving them. Is there a Border Collie "cheer" or mantra or anything on here I can chant?

Wow! Thank you all! This is the information I have been looking for! A lot of these conversations have gotten out of control and may have gotten a bit heated but I figured we could all weather through it and get some positive results. Julie thank you so much for your awesome advice and wisdom. I have to admit and agree that some of my comments like "obey my every command" may have sounded like a drill sergeant. I guess I would have to say that may have been a bad choice of words. But I am definitely not like that and WILL not be like that with a new dog. I train with love and affection. Training takes time, lots and lots of time. As was stated earlier texting or typing stuff on here can often times get misinterpreted or misconstrued. Julie I would however like to talk to you in a bit more detail about goose chasing. I don't know if this is the right forum or not. Should I post on another forum or send you a message? D"Elle thanks for being so nice and supporting me! Donald & CptJack thanks for sharing your experiences and knowledge as well! Teri thanks for your support and kind words too! I am glad I am going to stick around and THIS is why I come to this board because of people like all of you who have given such positive and helpful advice. I am actually considering many options now after discussions on this board. Although I love puppies and that may be the route I go I certainly am not completely closed off to looking into other possibilities such as a rescue or other. However, if I go down another path other than the "puppy path" I think my desire would be to get a younger dog or an "older puppy" but that's just my preference. Who knows now, we will see!! Again, thank you.

cptjack, maralynn, borasarus, and mum: I agree and appreciate all of your responses. Perhaps I should clarify my original statement and explain the "obey my every command". I definitely understand that those "expectations" may be irrational and perhaps impossible. I have trained many dogs throughout my life however I have never had a border collie yet. I agree I am not going to be able to have my dog obey "every" command. I have just read throughout this forum and others, and books, other articles online, etc. about how intelligent the border collie breed is and this has thoroughly intrigued me and that is why I have always wanted a Border Collie. I understand as well that their intelligence may actually be one of the challenging aspects of owning a border collie. That is one of the reasons I come to all of you for help and "support" although I'm finding out the hard way that some of the advice may be a bit harsh and some of my replies may be translated a bit differently than I had thought. Like I said I am not giving up on this group. I agree a puppy is a gamble. ANY dog at ANY age is a gamble when acquiring a new member of the family. I love animals and I hope some day that I can say that one of my family members is a border collie.

oh my! I just read my last post I meant to say I am NOT giving up on this group!! Thanks for all the nice responses.

A choice is personal. It is my choice so it can't be "flawed". It may not be what you prefer to hear but it is my choice and how I feel.

rufftie are you saying I'm not going to be able to handle getting a border collie and that I will have to hand my dog over to a border collie rescue?? If that is what you are saying, wow! Is that not offensive!?? Do you know who I am? Do you know how many dogs I have trained in my life? True, I have never had a border collie. But do you know me? Do you think I am a quitter? I most certainly am not. I am someone who is going to love this dog no matter what and most certainly would not give up on a dog. Are you speaking from experience? You certainly do not know me. My dogs are considered family members and I certainly don't get rid of a family member if things aren't going right. When you say "i have a feeling we'll be seeing a great dog in Ohio rescue next year." That is extremely offensive, as if I won't be able to handle it. There are sooooo many nice people on here and I don't feel that was being very nice. Gentle Lake I agree text messages can be translated much differently than someone talking face to face. My choice is not flawed. It is a personal choice I have and yes, it is cool if I want to get a puppy. There have been many nice responses on here and some responses I have received privately have been extremely nice. Some people just have a negative and condescending way of replying. Thanks again for all the nice responses! I'm giving up on this group!