bosworth Posted November 6, 2008 Report Share Posted November 6, 2008 Hi all! I am a very new BC owner, I have Australian Cattle Dogs, and was at a herding clinic with them this past weekend and got a 10 month old breeder return male BC. I totally agee, not the way to acquire ones first BC, however, he is from sole working lines, both parents were there, including several relatives/littermates, so got a chance to see first hand what he has behind him. He was sold to some people that apparantly gave a great story, but sadly brought him home and he was put on a 20ft. chain that he never left. So as, you can guess he was not happy and when the people made an appearance he jumped on them. They decided they did not want a jumping dog, so he was returned the weekend I was at the herding clinic....he certainly needs to be socialized, trained and the list of every other thing he has missed out on....I do have experience with dogs like this from this type of situation, just not this breed. He is just starting to come out of what I call the "Honeymoon" stage where they seem to be these quiet, unassuming dogs and start showing who they really are...I was hoping for some advice/tips on this breed and how the best way to handle this breed.... The Cattle Dogs present a much bigger presence then the BC does, so I am trying to switch to a gear that is more to his level.... I plan on putting him on stock, but want to wait until he seems to trust me a bit more, and we have at least started to bond a bit....am I on the right track with this line of thinking? Thanks in advance for any and all advice! Lee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted November 6, 2008 Report Share Posted November 6, 2008 Welcome! I think you are wonderful to give this deserving and previously neglected dog a good home! Since he is well-bred and you saw that his "family" were good working dogs, I think that both you and he may have lucked out finding each other this way. Yes, it sounds like the honeymoon is over and to complicate things, as you well know already, this dog is at the adolescent stage. Sounds like he will need kindness, clear and consistent direction, a defining of the boundaries for behavior in your household, and some time to mature before he goes to stock. Now is a good time to work on basic obedience (recall, down, manners, and such) so that, when he and you are ready to go to stock together, it will make things a bit easier (understanding, as you do, that oftentimes their minds take a brief vacation when they are first introduced to stock). It sounds to me like you know what you are doing and I wish you the very best together! There is at least one other poster here (Deb Meier) who has ACDs and at least one Border Collie. I hope you feel right at home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lrayburn Posted November 6, 2008 Report Share Posted November 6, 2008 Hi and nice to meet you! It sounds like you are on the right track with your pup. In my experience, a BC is going to tend to be a lot softer than an ACD. An ACD will take a pretty hard correction and keep on going, the average BC won't. Likewise, something startling that merely causes an ACD to say, "Hmm what's that?" may totally shut down a sensitive BC. Now, those are just generalizations but that's my experience. Good luck! Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bosworth Posted November 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 Hi and nice to meet you! It sounds like you are on the right track with your pup. In my experience, a BC is going to tend to be a lot softer than an ACD. An ACD will take a pretty hard correction and keep on going, the average BC won't. Likewise, something startling that merely causes an ACD to say, "Hmm what's that?" may totally shut down a sensitive BC. Now, those are just generalizations but that's my experience. Good luck! Lisa Thanks! Yes, I sure do see that he is much softer than the Cattle dogs! I have to pups that are about his age, and wow, what opposites! The BC is a little taller than the boy ACD, but probably weighs 20 lbs. less!! I did manage to let him play with each of them one on one tonight...he was probably in shock when they came flying out to meet him, but I saw for the first time him act like a puppy and they played until they were exhausted, so that was nice! Lee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShoresDog Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 Welcome aboard! Thanks for giving your young dog a good home. My older border collie came from a similar situation, though it was a small pen rather than a chain. She caught up pretty quickly, but she is still quite cautious of strangers. This board is a great resource for border collie information and advice. What's his name? We'd love to see pictures, too, though I realize with a new dog in the group photography may have to take second place to dog management. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allie Oop Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 Welcome! Good luck to you with your new BC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bosworth Posted November 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 Welcome aboard! Thanks for giving your young dog a good home. My older border collie came from a similar situation, though it was a small pen rather than a chain. She caught up pretty quickly, but she is still quite cautious of strangers. This board is a great resource for border collie information and advice. What's his name? We'd love to see pictures, too, though I realize with a new dog in the group photography may have to take second place to dog management. Well, he came with the name "Rascal" but we really did not like that name, and he didn't know it anyway, so his name is now "Drew" would love to share some pix, will have to read up on how to post them to the list! :-) I feel pretty lucky so far, he has greeted everyone with a little caution, but also a wag of the tail.... Lee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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