Jump to content
BC Boards

Poll: How protective is your border collie?


Recommended Posts

I am just curious about how protective your border collies would be. By protective I mean, protective of you and not of your home, car, etc. Suppose you are walking on a lonely street at night and a bad guy jumps at you and starts attacking you, how do you think your BC would react?

 

This has never happened to me but my guess is my Golden Retriever will think the bad guy is playing a fun game and will probably join in, happily barking and running circles around the bad guy, jumping up and licking him. My ex-girlfriend's JRT will surely growl, bite the bad guy's ankles once, run away and keep barking from a distance.

 

Has something like this happened to any of you and if not what's your best guess about your BC's reaction?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm happy to say that it hasn't happened but I always felt quite sure thar Sam would have gone for anyone who attacked me or my son. My husband was definitely third in line and we were never sure what would have happened with him.

 

Sam was a very friendly ,quiet, laid back dog but he had limits. With other dogs he'd put up with quite a lot but when he'd had enough you,d just hear a very quiet rumbling not even a real growl , no barking even and then he went for the throat! He also seemed to know just how much force to use fortunately so he never did any real damage.

 

One Christmas I heard the rumble from him when a friend put an arm round me to give me a kiss as he was leaving. We'd all been laughing and there was a lot going on but Sam needed to be told firmly NO. Then he was fine with everyone. I did just wonder what would have happened if I hadn't noticed the warning :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just remembered the other time when Sam got protective. We were in a park and a 2 year old toddled over and grabbed Sam loved children and would put up with any amount of handling by them. Of course the father ran over and we chatted while Sam and the child played Then he bent down to pick up his son and being 2 the baby let out a deafenung scream and Sam was really would have attacked the man if I hadn't stopped him .And that was with a child he'd just met!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Its early days yet for our wee pup Ash. I couldn't say at the moment how protective he would be.

 

I did however have a tri colour once and he was extremely protective. If it wasn't for him I don't think my kids and I would be here now...we owe that dog alot.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, one time the Rottie was chewing on something--since I didn't know what it was, I bent over to take it from him to make sure that it was something that he should be chewing on. He growled at me. Instantly, Whisper was between us, snarling at the Rottie. I don't know how protective she'd be against a person; she has certain fears towards some people, but she is also reactive, so she just might fight to the death to protect me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hard to say for sure, having never been in that situation, and I hope I never am...but, I'm pretty sure if that occurred, my dogs would all be pretty protective, and if I gave a hit command, they'd do it! :rolleyes:

Anna

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I count on the fact that I have a dog to serve as protection. If we're up in "our" part of the neighborhood, she's off leash. If I see a stranger, I put the collar and leash on her, then hold the leash short. If she's already wearing the collar and leash, I really shorten it.

 

I don't seem to look vulnerable - at 5 feet tall and 60 years old! - anyhow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am pleased to say that my collies are placid and friendly, with wonderful temperaments. I have serious doubts that they would protect me from any attacker - thankfully it has never been put to the test. I do have a big, very hairy GSD bitch too, whose appearance would be enough to deter most would-be weirdos :rolleyes: (Although she is a big softie too!)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Maggie does a good job of security and I have no doubt she'd step up if necessary. Strange noises and people knocking on my door are met w/ ears up, alert posture, and often deep barks. She'll sit stay at the door when I open it for someone and watch them closely and generally bark a bit until I remind her that I can deal with it from here. :rolleyes:

 

On walks at night, she will alert to people or movement within about a block or so.

 

In the past she has run up to friends who are play fighting with me and has looked pretty darn serious, but is also easy to call off and never acts on the warning posture. I do kind of encourage some roughhousing behavior so she knows that it is ok in certain situations.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have an over friendly LGD who loves to love everyone. One night I was bent over working on a fence and he took the oppertunity to jump up on my back when I didn't expect it. I let out a small yell and Mick the bc jumped on the LGD and had him down it 2 seconds flat. The LGD does a great job guarding the sheep but don't think he'd be much help with strangers. Unless they acted like they were going to hurt me. I think Mick the BC would protect me from anything he thought was threatening.

Another time I was really going after one of my BC puppies who was chasing the wheels of my DH's truck. It was a live or die lesson so I was really letting her have it. The 2 LGD's were penned up in what I thought was an excape proof pen. They were both out and between me and the pup in less than 1 minute. They didn't try to bite but got between the threat (me) and the puppy.

So I guess it depends on the situation.

Kristen

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have found out that Black Jack waits for me to protect him. So I would have to say he probably wouldn't jump in to save me if that happened. But he did save me from a tiny little dog with a jacket on once at the park :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Geez, I do not know the answer to that. Ceana is protective, she growled constantly until she was out of the room at a woman who was trying to swindle us into renting our house to her false ID/SSN. I do not know if she would jump in and save me though. If Chris and I wrestle and fight over something (fun and good exercise) she jumps around "playing with us" or I can get her to lick him to death. Neither one of those things would save me from assault, I like to think she would, but I hope to never test that theory.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest WoobiesMom

Not really at all. Usually if my kids and I are wrestling around, he gets scared and hides. Lately he'll join in but can't really tell who's the aggressor so will just gnaw on both of us. He'll bark if he hears a noise outside the house or yard and has gotten protective of the dog park we frequent. If people w/o dogs walk around the outside of the fence, he'll bark as though he owns the place. Other than that, I don't think he's old enough or confident enough to be protective just yet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My Border Collies would probably run off and let me get beat up. My small male Rat Terrier would lay down his 12# life for me. I had a female Australian Shepherd who although she never bit anyone, could put the fear of God in people. Her eyes would turn red and she would growl like she really meant business, but she didn't. If you knew dogs you would realize that she did not want a confrontation: she kept her head turned away the whole time she would be growling at someone.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kessie goes by my own reaction. If I'm scared of somebody she uses a deep threatening growl that she never uses for anything else, and looks straight AT them, not away.

 

If I really did get into a fight, I could imagine three scenarios:

 

a. she'd keep a safe distance but help out by barking

 

b. she'd keep a safe distance but help out by barking, and also by diving in, biting the guy in the a... - almost like she does with other dogs when I play too rough with them for her taste, but biting for real.

 

c. she'd really go in for the kill. I don't know if she has it in her. But I can't say for sure that she doesn't.

 

I can't really imagine that she'd run off completely. It would be her right to do that, as long as I claim any kind of "leadership", even the messy kind :rolleyes: , but my gut feeling says she'd stick around somehow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This has never happened to me but my guess is my Golden Retriever will think the bad guy is playing a fun game and will probably join in, happily barking and running circles around the bad guy, jumping up and licking him.

 

This is the definition of Chemukh

When we went to camp, sometimes she could bark at people approaching in the night, but if said people greeted her or just smiled at her, they were instantly friends.

She, as TV dog, knows to growl and show her teeth in a very menacing way, but that is just to receive her cookie :rolleyes:

 

Auca (not BC) is still young and discovering her defense instincts. She has barked at drunken people at night in the park and I've been neutral to that until now. On the other hand I think Auca is the reason why I still have a computer to be typing on after burglars entered to my apartment three weeks ago.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have no doubt that Solo would die to protect me if he had to.

 

I have been in situations where Solo was appropriately protective. He is shy of strangers anyway but the times he was protecting me he was very different -- instead of looking fearful, he was all business and also very appropriate. Once, a drunk stranger asked me for directions late at night while I was walking the dogs in Philadelphia. Solo first stepped quietly between us, then escalated to a growl when the stranger began to get belligerent (the was completely lost, and thought I was telling him he was stupid when I was merely saying he was in the wrong place), and then went to barking and lunging when the guy still didn't get the message. Solo was completely calm, in control, and had none of the postures that he has when he is being fearful of a stranger, his ears were up, his tail was up, his pupils were not dilated. Once the guy left he calmed down immediately and went back to his own business.

 

During the event my other two dogs were hiding behind me. As the guy walked away Skeeter the Papillon barked at his retreating back, as if to say, "Yeah, you heard him!" Fly kept hiding behind me. She would be no help at all if I needed protection, but I feel very safe when I am with Solo.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

River would try to say hi and might trip the bad guy in the process, Diesel acts like a Golden when it comes to people (wanna see where we keep the silver?) and Jaida my non-BC would guard me with her life.

 

That said, Jaida is 6 years old and other 2 are still under 2 yrs of age, so I've had more opportunity to see Jaida in situations that make me believe she'd protect.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ummm... Once Shelby Wicket and I wer walking, and then this guy jumped outta the bush's and went ... RAWR!! They freaked and ran all the way back to the car, didn't head back my way for five minutes...... with scruff up and barking at the strange scary man

 

the guy happened to be my boyfriend and his dog.... some brave pups eh? Well they are young and he even scared me.... but sheesh not even a bark outta either one, just tucked tail and ran.

 

:rolleyes: I protect them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...