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Pep - Border Collie


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Hi all!

 

Finally getting around to posting about Pep, our new Border Collie. I picked him up at right around 8 weeks also, and he just turned 4 months last week!

 

He is very smart and very sweet. I believe he is technically considered a tri-coat. When we first got him, the #1 guess at what he was was a Bernese Mountain Dog - fortunately, I think this has proved not to be the case. He went from very cute to pretty darn handsome.

 

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//at four months

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It was very difficult raising Pep at first - he was just a puppy and there wasn't anyone to watch him while I was at work. I didn't kennel train him - instead, what I did was fence off a certain area with a pet carrier, food and water bowl, and pee pee pad and toys. (I know this isn't the "correct" way to raise a dog, please don't judge). We've gradually opened up the rest of the living room to him, and he no longer goes inside the house at all (but sometimes can have an accident). Basically, I took away the peepeepad while I was at home and took him out every hour, gradually moving to every other hour. Anytime he went while he was outside, he got a treat, and he really only goes potty outside. Now, my girlfriend watches him 24/7 while I'm gone, so we don't have too many issues any longer, and don't leave a pad out anymore.

 

I think at four months he was right around 15-16lbs, but I have a feeling he has a lot more growing to do. We were told by the breeder that he was fairly "laid back" as far as border collies go, which is surprising to us - he is FULL of energy. He is solely food-motivated, and it seems like to an extreme degree. This has had its benefits though -

 

We've been taking him to puppy training school, and will soon move to intermediate school. He's been called by the trainer as the "valedictorian" and "show off" because he is so smart. I think he can literally pick up a new command within 5 minutes, and as long as there is food in my hand he will do it without fail. Hoping to keep him healthy, I feed him strictly Purina Pro Plan (switched to adult food now) and purified water lol.

 

Commands he knows:
- Sit

- Stay (can leave the room)

- Come

- Leave it (food left on paws)

- Watch me

- Handshake

- High five

 

Working on:

- Distinguishing different (stuffed) animals

 

 

I'm hoping I could address some concerns through this forum - here a couple to start:

 

- He only cares about food and strangers - particularly food. I know that describes a lot of dogs but his case seems to be extreme. We went to the park the other day, and unless we literally had food in our hands he sat as far away from us as the leash allowed (unless we were playing fetch, doing something else, etc.). It's kind of a concern to us, and to be honest a little embarrassing as well. We properly trained him to "come" and he does so without fail, but once the food is out of our hands, he's gone. He doesn't seem to enjoy petting very much, and practically doesn't do anything unless we've got food. When we're outside, we are the absolute least of his concerns, and it almost seems like he's willing to go home with anyone! If a stranger came by with dogfood in his hands, Pep would be long gone.

 

- As far as strangers go, he goes absolutely crazy for anyone who comes by, jumping on them licking etc. I suppose this is fairly normal though, but he just seems to have an intense fascination in anyone who isn't us.

 

- He seems to "chew" on himself pretty often. Either biting his leg or tail. I've read this could be a sign of an allergy or something, so I should probably see the vet soon.

 

 

Anyway, very glad to be a part of the bc boards and looking forward to getting information and continuing to learn about our Pep!

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What a cutie! I love a tricolor anyway, but he's extra cute.

 

Others can probably reassure you about training issues. I have a bunch of dogs; some are the loving, cuddling, hang right with you sort, and others are not. Don't take it personally if he seems more interested in the world around him or other people. It could just be a stage, or it could be his general personality. As long as he comes when you call and responds to your other commands, I don't think I'd worry overmuch about his seeming independence. He's young yet.

 

Also, you can try toys in addition to treats. Keep things interesting around you and he may be more interested in you.

 

J.

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Love the tri-color. He is NOT a BMD. :) - although I have to admit that the coloring is similar.

 

Regarding your questions:

I agree with Julie ^^^, and here are some additional thoughts:

He is still a puppy. He is still figuring things out. As long as he is happily obeying your directions, that is good.

 

Remember, as a puppy, his attention span is minimal. So you have to be extra fun and interesting to keep his focus for more than a few seconds because "wow, there is a lot of interesting stuff (distractions) to look at." To increase his interest in you, try mixing it up -- treats for a few repetitions, then toy play, then run away from him while calling his name, play hide-and-seek. Keep him guessing as to what you will do next.

 

BCs are 'motion-activated'. One of the challenges of being a BC owner is being creative enough to keep their attention when so many other distractions are screaming "look at me!".

 

Don't be embarassed to be training your puppy to be a good citizen.

 

Personally, I would rather have a dog that loves other people to a fault (and I do have one) than one that I have to worry might nip or snap at someone.

 

Enjoy your pup. Don't worry, you will soon be the center of his universe but he has some growing to do.

 

Jovi

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Look up 'reinforcement schedule' , 50/50 is more powerful.

 

Loving other people is awesome, both mine do (one is a cuddler/lover, the other one is a wiggly bum crazy thang). It's soooo much better than having to worry about a dog that may bite, from aggression or fearfulness. Consider yourself lucky!

 

Lots of self control work! Start with puppy zen game and progress from there. Also control unleashed (the puppy book, better format)

 

And btw, super cute pup... Those ears, omg :)

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What a cutie! I love a tricolor anyway, but he's extra cute.

 

Others can probably reassure you about training issues. I have a bunch of dogs; some are the loving, cuddling, hang right with you sort, and others are not. Don't take it personally if he seems more interested in the world around him or other people. It could just be a stage, or it could be his general personality. As long as he comes when you call and responds to your other commands, I don't think I'd worry overmuch about his seeming independence. He's young yet.

 

Also, you can try toys in addition to treats. Keep things interesting around you and he may be more interested in you.

 

J.

 

Thanks! I figured that some of it had to do with his personality. Don't get me wrong, he's happy when we come home, etc. but he is in general fascinated by things other than 'us'. He will still obey as long as we have treats (though sometimes the temptation of a stranger is too much for him and 'come doesn't work). We've got all sorts of squishy, squeaky, wobbly toys that we use, as well as balls, frisbees and kongs, which he enjoys.

 

Love the tri-color. He is NOT a BMD. :) - although I have to admit that the coloring is similar.

 

Regarding your questions:

I agree with Julie ^^^, and here are some additional thoughts:

He is still a puppy. He is still figuring things out. As long as he is happily obeying your directions, that is good.

 

Remember, as a puppy, his attention span is minimal. So you have to be extra fun and interesting to keep his focus for more than a few seconds because "wow, there is a lot of interesting stuff (distractions) to look at." To increase his interest in you, try mixing it up -- treats for a few repetitions, then toy play, then run away from him while calling his name, play hide-and-seek. Keep him guessing as to what you will do next.

 

BCs are 'motion-activated'. One of the challenges of being a BC owner is being creative enough to keep their attention when so many other distractions are screaming "look at me!".

 

Don't be embarassed to be training your puppy to be a good citizen.

 

Personally, I would rather have a dog that loves other people to a fault (and I do have one) than one that I have to worry might nip or snap at someone.

 

Enjoy your pup. Don't worry, you will soon be the center of his universe but he has some growing to do.

 

Jovi

 

Haha yea, definitely not a BMD, more obvious the older he gets. Definute true about 'motion-activated' - anything that moves just draws his attention completely - his mind just switches to "WHAT IS THAT?!?! I MUST CHECK IT OUT NOW!" lol. Good point about liking people than one who's afraid/defensive though. He will nip at us if we run away from him though lol but as I understand it that is a border collie/herding thing.

 

what a handsome little fellow...

 

Thanks! Was very cute as a young pup, but getting handsomer and handsomer as he gets older.

 

I'd say not a bmd... They called my guy a chow chow. I think they need to try again :) the avatar picture was taken about 3 weeks ago (he's 9 months now). I got him as an 8 week old, too.

 

Yeah - definitely - I guess puppies can be a little ambiguous when young.

 

Look up 'reinforcement schedule' , 50/50 is more powerful.

 

Loving other people is awesome, both mine do (one is a cuddler/lover, the other one is a wiggly bum crazy thang). It's soooo much better than having to worry about a dog that may bite, from aggression or fearfulness. Consider yourself lucky!

 

Lots of self control work! Start with puppy zen game and progress from there. Also control unleashed (the puppy book, better format)

 

And btw, super cute pup... Those ears, omg :)

 

I'll definitely have to check those out! Thanks!

 

 

 

Thanks to everyone for the replies - computer was dead over the weekend so I didn't have a chance to reply. Looking forward to learning more as time goes on!

 

FYI, he has just started to lose his puppy teeth, and has started the shedding process as well.

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Personally, I would rather have a dog that loves other people to a fault (and I do have one) than one that I have to worry might nip or snap at someone.

 

This. An outgoing, loves everyone personality is so easy to work with, comparatively. With the very shy ones, random stuff can and will set them off. With the fear aggressive ones, you're always just a bit on edge, no matter how much work you do.

 

It's much easier to teach good manners rather than be constantly watching/on guard.

 

Ruth and Agent Gibbs

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"As far as strangers go, he goes absolutely crazy for anyone who comes by, jumping on them licking etc. I suppose this is fairly normal though, but he just seems to have an intense fascination in anyone who isn't us."

 

Buzz was the same way. I think it's kind of a novelty thing, and it was actually one of Buzz's most charming traits. I did have to work on him not jumping on people. Once he got the idea that all he had to do was sit for 2 seconds and then he got to Meet Brand New Best Friends, he was fine.

 

Enjoy your Pep - he's adorable!

 

Ruth and Agent Gibbs

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My neighbour has a collie that looks a lot like yours, same markings and also has that same full of beans look in his eyes. I was going to take mine to obedience classes and the trainer told me to bring a pocket full of his favourite treats and because of that I never took him because I don't like it when a dog becomes food motivated. In the absence of work as a reward I think collies like interaction and play so much they don't need food rewards. Maybe try and replace the food reward he's always looking for with a tennis ball fetch or a game of tug of war(if you do that with him). That's what I use as treats for mine. As far as the strangers that's not a horribly bad problem, probably embarrassing and annoying but could be worse. My dog doesn't like strangers at all, to the point where a total stranger could not pet him safely and to me that's a worse problem. Maybe a bit of dog whisperer type training with having a visitor come to the door and owning the space around the door or something, you can find loads of those on youtube. But he'll probably settle down with time. But I'm not an expert at all so don't quote me.

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  • 4 months later...

Mega old update -

 

Pep is now 9 months old and has been happily living with us. We leave him in the crate when I go to work, as he has been a little destructive during the day. He is still as happy and as sweet as ever, and full of energy.

 

I do have a behavior question though: even when we're not in the living room, Pep loves hiding under the dining table and staring at his ball which is lying somewhere in the living room. He doesn't come to us if we're in the bedroom, or bring the ball to him to throw it - he just constantly stares at it, as if it's going to move. If we kick the ball, which we often do, he'll rush to grab it and drop it down somewhere in the living room, and go back to hiding under the table to watch it.

 

Is this a herding behavior? Does anyone else's dog do this?

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Yep. Definitely not BMD. :rolleyes:

 

I'm confused, though. Didn't you say something about having gotten him from a breeder? But then people were guessing he was a BMD pup? Where did that confusion come from?

 

haha I forgot about that. basically yeah, I did get him from a breeder, but everyone kept saying he looked like a BMD. At that age, it was a little hard to tell. Not so much anymore, or since basically 3mo old lol

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