bill virginia

Loggenboots I relate the following because all my dogs are rescue dogs. Angus (now 10) is my cheerleader. Arrived with diabetes insipidous. Rocky (now 12) is my number 2 herding dog. He arrived with heart worm and ticks all over his body. Zac (age unknown) number 1 herding dog. Story to follow. Zac was found running wild with substantial amount of burn marks around his neck. The pound contacted a service group and told them they were going to put him to sleep in one hour and if they wanted him to come down immediately. They tried to get him to pick up a phone and other service related act but to no avail. When Zac came here he had uncontrollable diarrhea and very serious personal problems. If I tried to touch his collar he would try and bit me. If I picked a herding stick he would go to the ground and quiver. I put away my herding stick. It took months for him to rid himself of diarrhea. Today, he is, in my opinion, a top notch herder. No, he and I will never trial because he has nothing to prove. Rescue dogs need love and understand. When you have accomplished this now comes the training. Put away the stick for awhile. Try moving the dog out with waiving your arms. Later get a stick and attach a couple of Wal-Mart bags and shake them when you want him to got back. Proceed slowly and things will work out. My reward with Zac is every night he lays him head on my lap and look up at me. Thanks for listening to Zac's and my incredible journey with him. bill

This has worked for me and it costs nothing. Get a stick and several walmart plastic bags. Put plastic bags together and tape them to one end of the stick. When the dog comes in too close i shake the stick(it makes a noise) while making a vocal noise at the same time. bill

I asked the question because i am interested in other's opinion. I have three BC, two are working dogs and one a cheerleader. the two working dogs i try to give them equal training time. Very interesting discussion and look forward to other folks opinion. thanks bill virginia

This is a philosophical and a procedural question on Border collie training. I have read that it is unfair to train more than one dog at a time, because in doing so, it does not give enough training time for the other dogs. With this said, I have worked with border collies for over 30 years. It would appear that there may be merit to this augment. What is your opinion? Bill virginia

Thank you for those kind words TEC I have two other BC Angus, my cheerleader, not interested in sheep, is a rescue dog that has a rare disease, diabetes insipitus. His pituitary gland tells him to consume large quantities of water and his kidney then must expel the water. Unfortunately, this condition does not allow him to stay indoors over night. Rocky, my number two worker, came from Texas with heart worm and almost died. His body was covered with massive amount of ticks. Many happy moments in my life have been spent in the company of a dog. If you listen they will teach you patience, logic and love. bill ps will try and post pictures.

The Story of Zac. Zac was found running wild with substantial amount of burn marks around his neck. The pound contacted a service group and told them they were going to put him to sleep in one hour and if they wanted him to come down immediately. They tried to get him to pick up a phone and other service related act but to no avail. When Zac came here he had uncontrollable diarrhea and very serious personal problems. I trialed many years ago and knew Ralph Pulfer. Yes the one thing he was good at, was winning. Yes he always kept the dogs that would win, others he moved on. Back to the my story, Zac. His handler brought Zac to my place to determine his ability to work with sheep.He was frightened of the sheep and ran back to his handler. I asked if i could have him for a week to see if i could do something with him. After some negotiations they consented. It took months for him to rid himself of diarrhea. Today, he is in my opinion a top notch herder. No, he and I will never trial because he has nothing to prove. Thanks for listening to Zac's and my incredible journey with him. bill

thank you all for your advice. bill virginia

My place is small and i have really never needed to use a whistle. Having said that, i decided i would like to try and get my dogs to work with a whistle. What am i doing wrong? 1. i give verbal command first then whistle. 2. i use body language to should dog which way to go. 3. either i am dumb or my dog is. 4. i go over and over one whistle command each time out. it seems the dog does not respond consistently. 5. we have only worked on "come bye" and "walk up." 6. It has been two week (i train every day). anyone have any suggestions????????????????????????????? thanks bill

Cyberdog i got a kick out you say you are getting old at 25. Keep working with your dog and both of you will grow and form a bond that other folks that do not own BC don't understand. I work my two BC every day with the three sheep i purchased. We go on outruns, go though gates and we pen the sheep. We have a great time. Sometimes their performance is great and sometimes not so good. But at the end of day we had fun. Tomorrow we will do it again. I am blessed having the opportunity to work with these wonderful dogs over the years. Each dog has his/her own personality and they bring delight and meaning to my life. At your age you will have the opportunity to have more BC's in the future. Note: you are not old at 25, i feel young at 80 bill virginia

1. would like to have dog stand instead of lying down. 2. BC will confuse down and stand command. 3. it is my fault 4. how do i correct it. thanks bill

great reply...... to answer question he brings them direct and straight. will work on this thanks and keep moving....you will slow down soon enough. thanks bill

i enjoy your comments, having said that here is my problem 1. on the fetch, good outrun 2. good lift 3. good walk up 4. when asked to go come bye or away my dog will not make a square flank either way. he just keep coming straight on. 5. i have gone out toward him but very limited success. 6. when close he squares every time i ask him. 7. do you have an exercise or method to correct this. 8. i do not run to make correction anymore because of my age (78) 9. any help would be greatly appreciated. bill

thanks i looked over my books and could not find anything about it. bill

what is clappy or clapping??????????????????????? bill virginia

great answer bob bill virginia