Weirdest thing your BC has done/does?

[Maralynn]

Kenzi also does the back sleeping thing!

[MrSnappy]

If you give Speedy a jellybean, he will put it on the floor and roll on top of it.

 

Mr. Woo will dig up worms for the single-minded purpose of rolling on them. I find this less weird than I do disgusting. No matter what any childhood song tells you, worms smell REALLY BAD, especially when smushed into dog hair.

 

RDM

[terrecar]

When Maryland felt a 5.8 magnitude earthquake (epicenter in Virginia), Hannah started shaking and tilting her head as though she had suddenly developed a severe ear infection.

 

 

[MaryP]

This video demonstrates two weird things that two of my dogs do. First, Charlie ALWAYS attacks my suitcase. If he even sees me reaching for it in my closet, he'll begin his attack and won't stop until the suitcase is physically out of the house. Skittles ALWAYS exits furniture the way he does in the video. Always, even if he's in a hurry. To this day, it makes me chuckle every time he does it. I don't have a photo of it, but the weirdest thing that Ollie does is act like a cat. If you are sitting in a chair or on the couch, he'll climb to the highest point on you (the shoulders) and lie down. I'm sure if he was small enough, or your head was big enough, he'd climb up there to lay down.

 

[arf2184]

I love the way Skittles exits the furniture...lol.

 

I raise chinchillas (small, soft, furry rodents). Meg gets upset if I move any of the chinchillas from one cage to another. She knows where each one goes (I have 20) and if I move one she'll stare at him/her, go to the cage where she thinks they should be, stare, and repeat. Like "HEY! What are you doing over there? You're supposed to be over here!"

 

She also likes to lay on my head in the morning if I don't get up fast enough after the alarm.

[Dex BC]

OK, I'll play, though I regret all of these today...

 

When I was young and foolish, I allowed my Border collie at the time to develop some, um, interesting quirks/tricks. People kept telling me I should have had Molly on Dave Letterman's "Stupid Pet Tricks". "Stupid pet owner" is probably more appropriate. Some of her weirdest ones:

 

* if you said "Toto" to her, she'd attack the nearest vacuum cleaner (or electric broom, if that was the closest approximation)

* "Zipper" made her search out my brother's skateboard and turn it over

* "Rock" and she'd seek out a nice big rock, try to move it with her front paws (digging backward) and jaws. (Yes, she ruined her teeth). (These last three were all punctuated by interesting growly yodelly vocalizations).

* "Tail" and she'd chase her tail.

* "Are you h___" (honestly, you didn't even need to finish the word, just say the initial "h" sound), and she would attempt to hump the nearest leg. (And yes, she was spayed).

 

My wife and I are guilty as well

- If we say "Where is papa" or "Papa!" Dex goes nuts and starts running to every door and window in the house in a frenzy. This is because my father-in-law is the "treat man" who always brings cookies, etc. whenever he comes over.

- "Where is Jordan" makes him talk and grumble and "roo roo" and then bite the nearest sheet, pillow or blanket. This started I think when he was a pup and my son would hide under a blanket and we would tell Dex to go find him. He now repeats this behaviour on command!

- "get it" makes Dex attack the vacuum.

 

I could go on....

[AW1688]

Secret is all around just weird.... When she gets a wild hair up her butt and tries to get my big guy to play with her she gets all submissive and flattens out underneath him. When he starts sniffing at her trying to figure out what the heck is wrong with her she rolls over, kicks all four legs wildly in the air for several seconds and then springs up and dashes across the yard. If he follows her, she repeats it all over again. She is so odd.

 

Wren plays like that sometimes too! She also likes to do drive-by moves where if a more dominant dog is ignoring her for a nice toy she'll walk by all innocent and then turn and grab their ankles lol. Once they're fully distracted she'll sneak in and steal the toy so they'll chase her.

[NorthfieldNick]

 

Dex hugs *everyone*. Like stand up, put his "arms" around their neck and hug them. Apparently his siblings all or mostly do it too, as does his mother.

 

So that's genetic, eh? Hoot (Dex's littermate, for anyone who doesn't know) hugs everybody, as well, but only if they're on the ground already as he was a major flying-leap-at-everyone youngster and jumping of any kind was disallowed.

 

Hoot also does the bed through the back legs thing. He'll lay on a dog bed and "run" on his side while making crazy noises. We call it "having the crazies."

 

Nick is pretty normal, except that he perfectly times his "woo-woo" howls when there's a lull in conversation. He also howls, coyote style, and will howl with coyotes, but not wolves.

 

When Nick was younger, he'd dance around food items (like peanuts, etc) and give them the "eye." My old Lu (a mutt, not of the border collie variety) would look at the food, look at Nick, and eat the food (no one challenged Lu. She did not play well with others). Needless to say, Nick no longer plays with his food.

[MrSnappy]

So that's genetic, eh? Hoot (Dex's littermate, for anyone who doesn't know) hugs everybody, as well, but only if they're on the ground already as he was a major flying-leap-at-everyone youngster and jumping of any kind was disallowed.

 

Totally! I got a big hug from Sagan last time I saw him, and Dex in turn hugged both Mary AND Phil (Sagan's owners). Sister Ginny hugs me too. And she piddles with glee when she sees foster mum Hilary, who raised the pups. Dex just hugs her as hard as anyone else. I think that is a darned weird genetic trait ... but it's highly preferable TO WORM ROLLING!!! *shakes fist at Woo*

 

RDM

[rushdoggie]

He wasn't making much noise, and the TV noise is masking some of what he is making, but you get the idea. He is an odd dog.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awaUevDI9cY

[sixx]

I remembered something weird Seek does often... she licks my sheets and pillows, sometimes the couch. The weird part is that she sticks her tongue out as far as it goes and wraps it under her chin, then bobs her head forward trying to get it "unstuck". She does this for quite awhile until I tell her how weird she is. I always get a good chuckle out of it though.

 

I will try to catch it on video sometime.

 

Initially when I put something on Cedar, such as a harness or jacket, she acts claustrophobic. She lays down and crawls along the wall trying to rip it off. It's so strange. After the initial freak out she's fine and can wear it all day without a problem!

[KelliePup]

When Kellie was a puppy, she never wanted to go to sleep. The whole "I ca sleep when I'm dead" thing definitely applied. It was so bad that she'd running around the house, playing with Bandit, the cat, and then just drop, dead asleep, mid-run. There would also be times when she was playing with Bandit that he would cry and we'd say "Kellie!" She would peek her head around the corner, we'd say "Gentle!" and then she would slink back and start scuffling again, but softly.

 

Kayzie is also a talker and a hugger. She also does this complete collapse thing when people are petting her. It tends to frighten people the first time they see it happen because it's just the perfect stage fall and her eyes even roll back. If the person doesn't continue petting her after she collapses, she'll give him/her a disdainful look, leap to her feet, and push her head under his/her hand. Completely my fault, she has to have her massage every day, but I really don't mind that since it makes her completely relaxed, so much so that people at obedience trials comment that she's the calmest border collie they've ever seen (she falls asleep at the trial if I start giving her a massage). Kayzie is also a snacker. I feed twice a day, and she'll carefully empty half her bowl, one kernel at a time, and hide the pieces in her bed, under the mat. After I pick up the bowl, she'll secretively return to her bed throughout the day and eat one or two kernels before going off again. Only issue I have with that is Maverick found her stash and it's ruining his diet.

 

Last thing, Kayzie was bitten on her paw by a snake almost two weeks ago while we were in Texas, and ever since then, she's been licking the doors and walls. I think it might be a little bit of boredom since I had to keep her pretty quiet to heal. She's just now to where I'm letting her really run as long as she's wearing her boot. I'm hoping that one will stop once we get back to our normal routine.

[sixx]

Does anyone else have the Hansel and Gretel BC? I thought this was unique to Seek, but then realized that Cedar does it, as well as my foster dogs... maybe it's a Border Collie thing, at least my mom thinks so.

 

They take a big mouthful of food, walk away from the bowl, drop the food in a line, walk back towards the bowl while picking up piece by piece.

[urge to herd]

How are they quirky? Let me count the ways - only one for each dog, though.

 

Samantha - our first. Her favorite sleeping spot was behind the couch, on her back, legs resting on the wall. If someone knocked on the door when she was snoozing, you'd hear a wild scrabbling plus a high pitched 'stranger' bark all at the same time. It ws pretty funny.

 

Shonie - the Queen of Quirk. It's hard to limit this to just one, but she re-arranged tennis balls at the park. Every time we went, first thing. She'd trot a little circuit, picking up and carefully placing some of the random tennis balls, moving them north, south, east or west anywhere from a few inches to a couple feet. She didn't drop them, she carefully put them down. I could never figure out her criteria.

 

Buzz - Had to greet strangers. He loved his friends, but he looooved meeting strangers above everything. He'd refuse a food treat or a ball toss if there was a stranger visible somewhere. He once snuggled up to a new friend's bosom, tucked his head under her chin, closed his eyes and lifted his chin in bliss while she petted him.

 

Gibbs - Hates to see anything unexpected or out of place. I left my shoes on a hassock a few days ago, he trotted into the living room, stopped dead, and he gave his big "DangerDangerDanger!" bark.

 

Ruth

[WildFlower]

If I make the "pssst" sound to Daisy she will bite my nose if she can reach it. I have no idea why she does this. And if I ask her where Merry (my cat) is, she will run around crying and looking for her.

 

Devon makes wierd grunting/moaning noise when you rub his sides and he also makes them when he is really playing by himself. And Devon gives hugs too! Devon also likes to sleep under blankets or be covered up when he is sleeping.

[geonni banner]

Oh yeah, I forgot the spinning. The only time she does it is in the building hallway to the outside. And only if she's off-lead. Two complete spins at each turn in the hall. No more, no less. If I ask for a heel she forgoes the spin. I wonder what she gets out of it?

 

It used to irritate me. I thought she was going to start doing it everywhere. You know, the Border Collie obsessive stuff, But no, just at the two turns in the hallway. Now I just laugh or shake my head.

[Rua]

one of the many weird things that nova does is she rolls on her back and starts kicking all four legs frantically. it looks hysterical. i like singing "everybody was kung-fu fighting" while she's doing it. it works perfectly. wish i could capture it on tape.

 

Kaida does this.. tickles me to no end as she seems to really get into it. Her other weird thing is she always watches when i get dressed to see if i put my bra on.. if i do she automatically loads up into her crate.. she my lil weirdo =)

 

I remembered something weird Seek does often... she licks my sheets and pillows, sometimes the couch. The weird part is that she sticks her tongue out as far as it goes and wraps it under her chin, then bobs her head forward trying to get it "unstuck". She does this for quite awhile until I tell her how weird she is. I always get a good chuckle out of it though.

 

 

Evea does this.. i think its funny too.. especially the look she gets on her face when she does it...likes its the best thing shes ever tasted and doesn't want to let go.. =D

[Tuxedodog]

If I don't make a big fuss over giving Buster his anxiety meds, he makes it very difficult. I have to say dooooggggiiieeedrugs, now my huband is doing it too. If I am late with his meds, he comes to get me and walks me over to where I keep the pill bottles. He also has to be told go potties, he has come in and had accidents when my huband didn't tell him to potty.

[OurBoys]

She also easily walks backwards up steps

That was cute. You also reminded me of something.

 

Jake hates slick floors. We have those vinyl tile squares in kitchen and if he's in there and wants to leave the kitchen in a hurry, he'll turn around backwards to get out of there. That's something he taught himself. I don't know why walking backwards gives him confidence when walking across slick floors.

[beachdogz]

That was cute. You also reminded me of something.

 

Jake hates slick floors. We have those vinyl tile squares in kitchen and if he's in there and wants to leave the kitchen in a hurry, he'll turn around backwards to get out of there. That's something he taught himself. I don't know why walking backwards gives him confidence when walking across slick floors.

 

I have a bull terrier that boards at my kennel that does the exact same thing. Enters the kitchen or any vinyl floor backwards!

[beachdogz]

Kylie must have had a ladder fall on her in her previous life...she hates ladders of any kind. If we bring one out, she will sulk in a corner all day. If we let her out, she will not come in the house...we have to go get her and put her in. This lasts all day, even when we put the ladder away. However, next morning, she is fine.

 

She is also a stickler for routine. Anything that upsets her routine will also make her sulk. Her routine is to go out at 9:30 every evening....and you can set your clock to her barking at 9:30 to go out. She eats at 3:30 and you can also set your clock to her dinner bark. She sleeps with my son, but if he's out of town she is upset...doesn't want to sleep in his room alone and doesn't want to sleep with us. And part of her routine includes the furniture...if you move it, she is out of sorts for the whole day! I am wondering if this "routine" thing is also a border collie trait????

[sixx]

Seek grunts or moans often. This is usually when she is sleeping or trying to sleep and people are being loud... she'll let out a big UUUUHHHHH!!

 

Her nickname is Seeky Seeky Uh

[OurBoys]

And part of her routine includes the furniture...if you move it, she is out of sorts for the whole day! I am wondering if this "routine" thing is also a border collie trait????

I wonder too. JJ & Jake are the same way. You would think as many times I've put up and broke down the foster dog crate they would be used to it but noooo.

 

And Jake hates for anyone to touch any of his paws when he sleeps. We can touch his paws during playtime, to clip his nails or to examine them but if the boy is sleeping, DO NOT TOUCH! He'll jump up in instant Cujo mode if anyone does. Hence the main reason he sleeps in a crate at night in case my mom gets up. He likes to sleep in front of her bedroom door. He'll never bite but the growling would wake me up every time.

[AW1688]

Seek grunts or moans often. This is usually when she is sleeping or trying to sleep and people are being loud... she'll let out a big UUUUHHHHH!!

 

Her nickname is Seeky Seeky Uh

 

Wren moans alll the time. Big sighs too. She also grumbles at you if you're asking her to do something she doesn't feel like doing, like she's being all "fine, but I'm not happy about it!"

[sixx]

Wren moans alll the time. Big sighs too. She also grumbles at you if you're asking her to do something she doesn't feel like doing, like she's being all "fine, but I'm not happy about it!"

 

Exactly! That is too funny Seek definitely is one of those dogs who is saying "QUUUIIIIIEEEEETTTTT!" when she does the long "uh" sound when trying to sleep. It works, too. Anyone who is over is baffled at what the sound was, I simply reply "Seek is trying to sleep!"