What to do with my dog

[Harlow]

I'm sure there will be an obvious answer but I wanted to ask other border collie owners....

 

here's my dilema....I would like to get Harlow into something but not sure what. She hates tennis balls and frisbes to the point where I'll throw them and they either hit her body or she doesn't even look at them. She will only play with sticks. She thinks her 'job' is to fetch and retrieve them which we do for a few hours a day. She doesn't herd that good I've tried that, all she did was wag her tail and try to play. She's a VERY VERY focused dog, I'll hold a stick in front of her she'll stare at it for as long as I want and not look away, even when other dogs are jumping on her.

 

So I guess I'm wondering what I should get her into? She's very fast, focused and loves all people, kids etc. At the dog park when new dogs come in she walks past them and goes to the owners. She's also a tad clumsy so I'm not sure about agility

 

ANY comments would be great, thanks!!

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

Maybe she'd be a good service dog?

 

But really, if she's not that into anything...just let her be your bud. It was a tough pill to swallow, but when I finally realized that my dog wasn't going to be the activity dog I wanted her to be we started having WAY more fun. We learn tricks together and she loves it, that and watching t.v. with me make her happy!

[Izzysdad]

If you're into it what about search and rescue?

[Harlow]

If you're into it what about search and rescue?

 

 

search and rescue would be great! As focused as she is I think she would like that. I live in Green Bay which isn't very big but would be willing to travel. She's a good dog and is sooo willing to please, which I'm sure everyone here can agree on with their borders

[bn_here_b4]

My Jody is 5 months old and he loves sticks too. He brings sticks from all over the yard & stacks them at the front door. Since I can't get my kids to pick up the sticks that are big enough to tear up the lawn mower, Jody's stick habit makes me very happy! Since his favorite thing to do is to make me happy, it is a win for both of us.

 

That isn't much of an answer, and I'm surely no expert. Really, I am agreeing that maybe the best path is to relax & let Harlow be your bud.

 

Since you play stick so much, could Harlow be focusing so intently on the sticks because she believes they are important to you?

[Harlow]

So nice to hear another BC likes sticks!

Her brother from the same litter is into everything she is not, but he's also more hyper and doesn't listen as well. Harlow's more down to earth and others comment at how mellow she is.

When we're at the park I'll stand up and she'll run over as if to say 'what should I do??' She's great and the stick thing with her making me happy could be it.

Her being a service dog would be pretty cool since she's sooo friendly and loves kids I just need to find somewhere around here to do that

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

The Delta Society has a lot of info on therapy dogs and I know other members of the board to therapy work with their dogs.

 

http://www.deltasociety.org/Page.aspx?pid=183

[MaggieDog]

Therapy work is great for the right dog and handler, same with SAR - I've done both (6 years as a Delta Society Pet Partner team with Maggie, and 9 months in SAR training with Z).

 

Therapy work is fun, but takes someone who isn't just going to be the anchor at the end of the leash and a dog that truly enjoys interaction with strangers and is steady in all sorts of crazy situations.

 

SAR is a HUGE commitment of time and money and there's always the risk that you or your dog may not make the cut - lives are at stake so standards are very high.

 

Agility is also a great possibility - most dogs grow out of the clumsy phase and you can use whatever motivates your dog as a reward, be it sticks, food, etc. You can just do it for fun or compete, whichever you'd enjoy most. I'm an agility addict myself (started with Maggie in 2001 and haven't stopped yet lol).

 

Tricks are always fun, especially when you can wow people at the park or a local tricks event. I've taught Maggie some service dog tasks - I can't use her legally since I don't have a disability, but they are handy around the house (closing and opening doors, retrieving stuff, etc.).

[Olivia]

I agree with everything Erin said!

 

I did want to add a quick warning though. Playing with sticks can be very dangerous. Wander around the 'net and you'll find plenty of stories about sticks getting lodged in dogs throats as they are catching sticks; bits of stick irritating the intestinal tract as they swallow stick bits from playing with them, intestinal blockages from eating sticks, etc. Even if your dogs doesn't chew up the sticks it is still potentially dangerous to play with them. These aren't urban legends, I've seen it myself in the vet clinic I used to work in. If it were me I would remove all stick play from Harlow's interaction. If you want to teach her to fetch sticks for you to pick up your yard that would be cool but no throwing or fetching of the sticks. Just pick them up and bring them to you to get rid of. Take that stick obsession and turn it to balls or frisbees or some other toys. There are plenty of threads about teaching dogs to play with toys that they haven't been interested in in the past.

 

Olivia

[WildFlower]

Hi!

 

Daisy and I tried some tracking - which can be a good base for Search and Rescue - this summer at dog camp. I cannot for the life of me remember the lady's name that did the demo. She is WI.

 

I did find these two links though:

 

http://www.peopleandpaws.org/

http://www.nasar.org/nasar/specialty_fields.php

 

I found it - her name was Arlene King.

 

Another option that no one mentioned was Lure Coursing. Daisy tried it at Dog Camp and loved it. She did pretty good - was faster than every dog we ran against except some greyhound type dog. You could tell she wanted to get in front of the lure and would hesitate at the turns at the course trying to figure out for a split second how to do that. They guy that was doing the demo is a flyball guy so he is familiar with BCs and he thought she was pretty good!

[PSmitty]

I know there are some dogs who just don't care about tennis balls or frisbees, but I have to think that if Harlow loves to fetch sticks, that you can (with effort and time) transfer that desire to retrieve to something else. I bet if you stop throwing sticks and concentrate on balls and frisbees, she'll catch on. But you have to stop letting her fetch sticks, or you'll never be able to get her to fetch something else.

 

Another thought, how many times did you have her on sheep? I know she's young, and many puppies do the tail wagging/playing thing the first time out. If she was quite young when you tried, I would try again. Find a good trainer and let them see her and what they think. An honest trainer will tell you if there's enough to work with. If so, I swear, once you see your dog "turn on", there might be no turning back for you.

 

Also, there's agility. Do you have a training facility where you can take agility classes or lessons? I bet she would love that, too. Trust me, if you think she's a tad clumsy, just get her into a class for a few weeks and see what she does...you may be very surprised.

 

What about flyball? Any of that in your area?

 

I have no experience with SAR or therapy work, but I know either would be very rewarding.

 

Now, all that said, you don't HAVE to do any of the above to have a healthy, happy dog and a good relationship with her. As long as you spend quality time with her, engage her mind (training) and her body (exercise), she'll be fine. I do think that Border Collies in particular love to *do* something with their humans, and that you'd both probably get a lot out of sports or working, but it's not a requirement.

[Pat W.]

You might want to check agility out one of the big basis for foundation training is body awareness. We train specific exercises for front and hindend awareness. Find a good trainer/club/facility and sit down and talk with them let them know what you're looking for and your concerns.

[MaggieDog]

Along with Olivia's warning - there are rubber stick toys available now if you want to stick with sticks.

[bc4ever]

Along with Olivia's warning - there are rubber stick toys available now if you want to stick with sticks.

Scooter has an orange one that he just loves. Very durable. And safe.

[Harlow]

Thanks everyone, all the suggestions have been very helpfull!

[silhouettestable]

Does she like water? If she does maybe she'd enjoy dock diving. With my dogs I've tried a little of this, a little of that, (agility, disc, playing around with flyball and dock diving) but our main sport is sledding and they love it. Don't know where you're located, if you get snow or not but if you do and you're a skier, skijoring may be an option. In the race circuit I compete on there is now a 1-dog and 2-dog skijor class at every race we attend. Or, if there's no snow where you are there's always scootering and bikejoring too. There are dryland races but you could also do it just for fun.

[bc friend]

How old is she? You mentioned she's clumsy - Sara was almost 2 before she outgrew occasionally falling over her own feet in agility! What does Harlow seem to want to do? You talked about what you've tried with her but what she does she show interest in besides chasing sticks? If she's a swimmer, how about dock diving? If she's a runner, how about weave poles? If she's great at obedience training, how about formal obedience? If you can divert a natural behavior into an activity for both of you, then you may find it easier to train her to do something else. Just fyi - my late Meg didn't like fetch, agility, digging, running (other than herding), or obedience - and she just became a couch potato companion except for short walks (well, short for a bc) and occasional herding outings. Not all border collies are hyper about working at something. Hopefully you and Harlow can find something you both enjoy!~

[Anda]

How about just playing with her? I know it seems like a mind boggling idea for a lot of people, but I don't see a reason to engage in an organized activity with my dog. I spend a lot of time with my dog, indoors and outdoors. Fetching, running, tricks, walking, goofing around, chasing imaginary squirrels or alerting me that the big black cat outside is about to eat a duck (he did that this morning and we were able to startle the cat enough from the balcony so that the duck can make an escape onto the pond, out of reach from the ferocious black feline ).

 

Those of you who've seen my pictures know that I interact a lot with my dog and he gets plenty of exercise and stimulation. I tried agility and it sucked for us - mainly because of the instructor - and also because of the fact that out of one hour of class, we only got to "do" something about 20%-30% of the time, the rest we were waiting our turn. It was frustrating and unless I'd practice alone at home all the time, where's the fun in going to such a class (only had 5 or so dogs in it)

 

You can spend a great time with your dog just playing with her, enjoying her company and getting her to fetch plastic sticks (if that's what she's into ).

 

The only organized activity I can see a reason for is working stock. But since that's too far from us (and nowadays too expensive)... tough luck, we need to make do with what we have - and that is all free

[Harlow]

All the suggestions were great. I've decided she really doesnt need a certian organized activity. She did her puppy class when younger and I may get her into more obedience classes since she catches on SO quick. Taught her to roll over a few weeks back and it took at the most 20 minutes. Amazing breed.

 

I do take her on a walk/hike in the woods everyday with another pack of dogs which pretty much wipes her out for the day. From what other bc owners have told me Harlow is not what they call the 'typical' border collie. She's very mellow, laid back, and enjoys just sitting next to me on the couch. But when she's ready to go she goes!