NCStarkey

So Sorry for your loss of Dan, Sue. He was definitely a good dog. nancy

Yes, please repost your question to another forum (General Border Collie Discussion is a very active forum), and it's not necessary but probably a good idea to delete this post. nancy

Hello new 2 BCs, This section of the BC Boards is for the discussion of training Working Stockdogs. You will probably get more responses with your post in another forum (perhaps General Border Collie Discussion). Regards, nancy

D'Elle, you are correct that Patrick and Riggs won the 2010 National Finals. I suggest that you contact Patrick directly about the video, either via an email ( pshanny@gmail.com ) or via a message through his Facebook page ( Red Top Kennels ). nancy

As Journey stated, any activity that you do with you dog is beneficial. However, activities like "sheep ball" and "treibball" are just games. Actual "herding" requires livestock. nancy

Thanks for the explanation about practicing without the sheep, and it could be that practicing and using the basic commands are adversely affecting your dog. Usually, when beginning dogs are introduced to sheep, the dog is allowed to freely interact with the sheep without our commands. We want awaken the instinct in young dogs, not suppress it. Of course, we want to be able to call the dog off, but in the beginning, there are no other commands given. Journey has suggested finding another instructor, and that may be a good idea for you and Braden.

To Braden's owner, You wrote, "We practiced in a pen without sheep" What do you do when practicing without sheep? nancy

Hi Jim, This forum is for Stockdog Questions Only. I see that you have also posted in the General Border Collie Discussion forum, as well. That would be the correct forum for your post, and you should have many responses there. nancy

Here's a chart that may help.

Hello Charles, I believe that the current protocol for the Leptospirosis vaccine is to NOT include it in the first puppy vaccines (Distemper, Parvovirus, Andinovirus/Hepatitis, and Parainfluenza). Then, after that series of vaccines is finished (and the puppy is about four months old), the Leptospirosis vaccine is given. Perhaps your breeder's concern is regarding including Lepto in the initial vaccines for the puppies, which is not recommended. nancy

There are many books about Border Collies (and their history) for sale on the B C Collectibles Facebook group. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/399223183777906 nancy

Broken Glass, if the reason that your dog is stepping on you is because he is not respecting your space, try this. The next time he steps on you, make a big deal out of how much it hurts. Fall down or hobble around, all the time vocalizing, as if you are really hurt....get dramatic! If he is like some of my boys that would carelessly bump into me, he will probably melt and do everything he can to apologize. I hope this helps. nancy

Popularity has led to the demise of many breeds, and the Border Collie is facing the same fate. However, this is not a recent occurrence. Historically, Border Collies were bred for one reason, their work with livestock. A few decades ago, as their popularity grew, Border Collies started being bred for the show ring, for dog sports, for fancy colors, for pets, etc. Is this harming the breed? Absolutely.

Thank you, Cheryl! This is a wonderful way to pay tribute to Donald for his endless support of the Border Collie! nancy

Thank you for posting the ABCA HEF statement on EAOD, Eileen, and we all hope that Dr. Lohi and Dr. Mickelson will be successful in identifying the exact mutation soon. Thank you, for the information about the currently available tests, as well. As someone who has a dog with a family history of EAOD (her dam and two littermates lost their hearing at an early age), I chose to have my dog DNA tested by Genoscoper. It was determined that she is "At Risk". After I received her DNA test results, I had her BAER tested, and she has been found to have Normal hearing at five years and 8 months of age. My dog, with her family history and DNA and BAER test results, is of great interest to Dr. Lohi for the ongoing research. I realize that the currently available DNA tests are not definitive tests for EAOD, but testing our dogs may serve to help provide beneficial information to be used toward discovering the causal mutation.

Hello tamapup, Whenever I read about situations like your's, I always wonder about the pup's diet. Often a pup with an "over the top" energy level is being fed a commercial diet that has ingredients that ad fuel to their already rambunctious puppy energy level. Ingredients such as chemical preservatives, artificial flavors, artificial colors , poor quality proteins, grains (especially corn. soy .wheat) all can contribute to excess energy in our dogs. Also, many dogs foods have extremely high protein levels, and that extra energy needs to be burned off for the pup to be able to settle down. I suggest that you check to see what is in your dog's food, and perhaps change your pup's diet. You mentioned training treats, so check the ingredients in those, as well. I have raised dozens of Border Collie puppies over the years (raised to adulthood), and I have seen first hand that a pups behavior is impacted by what they eat. Best wishes for you and your pup, and I hope that this information is helpful. Regards, nancy

When John Pilley had died last year, I wondered how Chaser dealt with his passing, as they were such a huge part of each other's lives. Now, Chaser has passed and will again be with the person she treasured most. God Speed, old girl. You and John are together again.

You're welcome.

If you are referring to stockdog training, Fernando Loiola may be the person you are trying to contact. He lives in Arlington, Washington . Sorry. but I do not have any contact information for him.

This video is of "fat tail" sheep. There are many breeds of of fat tail sheep in the world, and they are mostly found in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. Here is the link to the Wikipedia information about them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fat-tailed_sheep

You are certainly welcome!

Hello beachdogs, Here is a link to an article about white Border Collies that should help: http://www.bordercollie.org/health/kpwhite.html nancy

Hi Aisha, You can probably find the answers to your questions here: Border Collie Museum Merle nancy

Hi again, You are certainly welcome for my input...as I wrote, it's just my shovelful. Your girl is a beautiful dog, and she looks very much like many working Border Collies that I know. Also, it was obvious that she was truly trying to figure out "the game" in the first video. One thing to keep in mind is that lure coursing was created for sight hounds, dogs that readily do their job of chasing down prey on their own. Border Collies, on the other hand, do their work in partnership with their human counterpart. In the video, Molly was in the field alone, and she may have been waiting for you to be out there to give her some guidance (not to say that you should go help her learn to chase, just to explain the Border Collie mentality and her hesitance to do things on her own). If you would like to watch a sheepdog trial, there will be two not too far from you on June 22/23 and June 29/30 in Newport, VA. For more information, contact Laura Noll at info@glenrosefarms.com One word of warning, stock work is absolutely addictive, so if you want to get involved, be prepared to suffer the consequences (buy a farm, buy some sheep, buy a camper to go to trials, etc.). nancy

Hi CptJack, In my opinion, as someone who uses Border Collies every day to manage my flock of sheep, Molly did pretty much with a Border Collie should do. Border Collies have been bred for centuries to control the movement of livestock, not to chase them. About 40 seconds into the first video, she got in front of the lure in an attempt to stop the movement. She did the same at about 1 min 40 seconds, as well. In the first video, she was very serious, as a working Border Collie should be. In the second video, she is simply being silly and just running around. I'm sure that she can be taught to chase the lure, if that's what you want her to do. However, if you want to pursue stock work with her, I would suggest that you don't encourage her to chase moving objects. Just my shovelful. nancy