runaways?

[aje]

I am volunteering at an animal shelter and a dog that recently came in I believe to be a border collie mix. She has the right coat, right build and right head and face shape. I understand the mix part may change some characteristics. She has been injured and is extremely skinny. She appears to be very low key and tolerant and I am considering fostering her. She has some wounds that need to heal and she needs to put on weight and build up her strength. I'm wondering as she gains strength and confidence what problems we may have. Do these dogs tend to want to run, even if you are right with them, such as if I take her out somewhere to walk? I have a fenced backyard. Do they tend to be destructive? How are they generally with other dogs and cats? Any help is appreciated.

[Claire Owen]

Well my BC mix loves other animals (except sheep, they scare him). His best friend is one of my cats but I think that depends on the dog itself more than the breed (although I've always thought of BCs being all round friendly), I could be wrong! Bailey suffers seperation anxiety and in some cases that can lead to destructive behavior (I'm lucky and Bailey isnt a destructive dog). They love to run, so it'd be good if you have somewhere that you could exercise her off lead!!! Oh and they need A LOT of mental exercise! Hope thats helped a little.

 

You're a really special person for considering fostering her and doing that sort of volunteer work, if only there were more people like you!!!

[Deanna in OR]

Any dog who is unknown to you should be considered likely to run if given the chance.

Fostering the dog sounds like a good thing to do--just make sure she is in an enclosed area (a fenced yard, with you present) or on a leash or long line, or best of all, in the house with you.

 

If you leave her alone for long periods of time, she may become destructive. Border Collies are really people-oriented dogs who do much better spending plenty of time with their people, not left alone for hours. They usually need some "job" to do, since they were bred to be working dogs. The job might be obedience training, Agility, herding, Search and Rescue (SAR), Therapy-dog, Rally, Freestyle ("Dancing with Dogs")....any number of things. Physical exercise is good for them but mental exercise is even more important.

 

If you have to leave her alone, consider a crate or at least a small, enclosed area with nothing in it to destroy. Leave her a couple of toys that can't hurt her (chew bones of some sort, a frozen filled Kong, for example), and don't leave her for too long. I would not leave her for any length of time in the fenced backyard, alone. She might be great or she might try to dig her way to China, destroy expensive landscaping, or find a way to escape your backyard.

 

Your patience and willingness to spend time with her will be paid back many-fold by the affection, loyalty and love that most border collies show their humans.

 

Border Collies can be great with other animals, or not--it's very dependent on the individual. They can be taught to behave nicely around other animals, like cats. They do tend to want to herd other animals--our border collie, Tenaya, is very nice to our Mom's little mutt Mandy most of the time, but if she thinks dinner is coming, she will work hard to keep Mandy away from us and away from the pantry where the food is kept.

 

Other than that, read a lot here and you will learn more about the range of behaviors that border collies can show.

 

Thank you so much for considering fostering her!

 

Deann in OR

[Kat's Dogs]

They stray that I found (or rather, found me) that I later gave to a friend stayed for a few months but one day, she was gone.

 

Just out of curiosity, what color is she? I like to picture how different dogs look. Or, if you REALLY wanted to - I guess you could post a picture of the pretty girl!

 

Good luck with her!

[aje]

Unfortunately I do not have a picture of her yet. She was picked up off the side of the highway about 6 days ago. She is black and tan, but really has the border collie face. I hope to bring her home tomorrow and get her on the road to recovery. I will post a picture as soon as I have one.

My main worry is that once she feels a little better she will try to run. I had a fox terrier that, sweet as she was, if she got loose from you she was gone in a flash.

Thanks for the information!

[GeorgiaBC]

I have a rescue that was picked up in animal control as a stray. She has shown no desire to be anywhere but near me, and our home. She got out of the backyard through a gate that was accidentally left open less than a week after we got here. When we got home she was waiting for us at the front door. That being said, I have heard it said time and again by experienced rescuers that many of these dogs are prone to wander. So, once again, it appears there is no definitive answer, and it depends upon the dog and the environment it's in.

[Kat's Dogs]

Also, it depends on if the dog really did run in the first place.

 

Where we used to live (with more land) a lot of pets (cats and dogs) got dumped. Those animals didn't run. And good thing, some of them were pregnant or hurt in some way.