Show off your border collies

[sara_sabian]

Wow, Stella is turning out a lot like Max, the expression in the 2nd photo looks very familiar

I've never seen a border collie that bites, that's not to say it doesn't happen though. The dogs that I see bite people the most are the little foxies and chihuahuas.

Collies aren't dogs to ditch in the backyard and forget about, they need mental stimulation and benefit from company, I think they make ideal companions. Ours don't yap, dig or destroy. The only bad collie I've seen was one that was stuck alone in a yard all day, it got a lot of exercise but none of the face time it needed.

 

[mungus]

Protective can lead to aggressive. Of all the other dogs i've heard and seen bite people and other dogs border collies are right up there.

Have you had a border collie before ?
Or do you go on what you've heard, bit like reptiles ?

 

[Noongato]

Well my collies went everywhere with me and i found they had a jelousy bug against my partner and anyone else who talked to me. But they mostly snapped when they were surrounded by people they didnt know.

 

[waruikazi]

Have you had a border collie before ?
Or do you go on what you've heard, bit like reptiles ?

Did you read what i wrote? I said...

I have seen alot of psychotic border collies.

And...

Of all the other dogs i've heard and seen bite people and other dogs border collies are right up there.

Those statements don't just make an implication they explicitly state that i am talking from personal experience.

 

[Pineapplekitten]

how come they are so fat? borders are supposed to be lean.. no offense of anything i was just wondering cos all our borders even when really old were still lean dogs..

 

[JupiterCreek]

If a border collie showed signs of aggression and change in temperament in the 15 to 24 month age range I'd be querying if it had CL (ceroid lipofuscinosis). If a pup has been kept in the litter until it's 8 weeks old, has been to puppy preschool and has had at least beginner obedience classes it should be a well socialised, well behaved dog with an even temperament, but all border collie pups are destructive little sods and love digging and chewing, and being working dogs they don't really mature past puppy stage until they're 2 years old or sometimes 3 years old.

One of the reasons that border collies show up as a higher frequency in bite statistics is the number of border collies and crosses in the population. We gathered some statistics from South Australian councils a few years ago and there were well over 50,000 border collies and crosses registered in the state, which was about 11% of the total dog population, second only to kelpies and kelpie crosses. Extrapolating that to reports of bites you would expect those two breeds to account for one in five bites, not because the dogs are especially aggressive but purely because there are more of them.

Like all working dogs border collies need a job to do, whether that's going for walks, obedience training, catching a ball or frisbee, or simply being a companion dog. They need lots of human interaction and being left out in the backyard isn't really enough. My dogs might only go for a walk with me a couple of times a week but they spend several hours a day with me, either playing or just sitting or laying near me. Being working dogs they're happy to be "on standby" until there's something to do, and as soon as I move they're off and ready to go, whether it's just going out into the garden, playing fetch, going out to my workshop, going for a walk with my grand-daughter and I, or a walk or trip to the beach.

If a border collie has developed bad habits I'd say there's a 1% chance it has a problem like CL, but more likely the 99% cause is lack of socialisation, lack of guidance and discipline, or boredom.

 

[Poggle]

Out where i am we run and breed border collies and Australian Koolies, which is basically collie X Kelpie. We have never had a problem with agresssion towards people, every now and again they can get agressive towards each other but thats completely normal. I think it depends on what you have got them for and what they are doing... peopel say if they work they can be aggressive,.... thets bulll.... all my dogs are workers and all pure bred and have never looked aggressive. My aunty also breeds collies and currently has the national champs and has also never had problems... i think also due to the amount of collies and collie crosses out there, there are bound to be problems in that breed... i can guarentee you dogs such as maltese and **** tzus bite more but hurt less so people dont worry bout them

 

[mungus]

Wow, Stella is turning out a lot like Max, the expression in the 2nd photo looks very familiar

I've never seen a border collie that bites, that's not to say it doesn't happen though. The dogs that I see bite people the most are the little foxies and chihuahuas.

Collies aren't dogs to ditch in the backyard and forget about, they need mental stimulation and benefit from company, I think they make ideal companions. Ours don't yap, dig or destroy. The only bad collie I've seen was one that was stuck alone in a yard all day, it got a lot of exercise but none of the face time it needed.

Stella is 100% a black and white Max...............:lol::lol:
My mate brought his 3 kids over yesterday [ aged between 2-5 ] and they just played, rolled and pulled Stella ears all morning, she just took it with ease.
Her ears a just gorgeous !!
EVERYBODY ask's me were I got her from as she is so beautiful and if there will be anymore pups in the future, if so let me know.
Thanks again for our new friend.
Aleks.

 

[Poggle]

pictures of our parents to big to upload so here is a couple of puppy shots...just from phone... had some koolie pups born recently too only one lil boy left... he is a beauty, thought he would go first, looks just like these pups but blue merle in colour

 

[mungus]

Awwwwwwwwwwww, so cute, middle photo looks like a minuture stella.........lol

 

[Poggle]

yeah was funny. mother is 50% blue gene and father is a blue and white whit a blue and white mother and a choc and white father expected more then just all black and white bubs haha

 

[channi]

My neighbour has a grey one, not sure if this is what you are refering to as blue but she is the most beautiful border collie I have ever seen. She even has grey eyes. She is so cute and rounds up my kids on their skateboards as they ride past. If she is let out while they are doing this she chases them (quick chase as she is so fast) jumps up and knocks them off, but she doesn't bite them.
As for those people dissing border collies, according to recent stats ( i read them two yrs ago when I got my dog) German sheppards (sp.) are responsible for the most bites on humans, followed closely by huskies and mals. I have a mal and love him to pieces, I think I could trust him 100% but that doesn't mean I do. Even without these stats I wouldn't because he is a dog. I think you just have to watch your dogs as given the right circumstances ANY dog could bite.

 

[mungus]

My neighbour has a grey one, not sure if this is what you are refering to as blue but she is the most beautiful border collie I have ever seen. She even has grey eyes. She is so cute and rounds up my kids on their skateboards as they ride past. If she is let out while they are doing this she chases them (quick chase as she is so fast) jumps up and knocks them off, but she doesn't bite them.
As for those people dissing border collies, according to recent stats ( i read them two yrs ago when I got my dog) German sheppards (sp.) are responsible for the most bites on humans, followed closely by huskies and mals. I have a mal and love him to pieces, I think I could trust him 100% but that doesn't mean I do. Even without these stats I wouldn't because he is a dog. I think you just have to watch your dogs as given the right circumstances ANY dog could bite.

I agree, any dog can bite.
Should post photo's of your mal.

 

[Noongato]

Just cos my 2 were iffy doesnt mean i was saying BCs are mindless and aggressive, the first one i got was for free and was at a age where she already had bad habits, and the second came from the pound, which i have noticed they dont even bother giving dogs the behaviour tests here as alot of the dogs there foam at the mouth they want to get to you so bad.
No breed is just plain aggressive, but somehow the circumstances of the dogs when i got them and my lifestyle of having ALOT of visitors obviously made my dogs uneasy and as much as i love them i will never own the breed again. Actually i dont think ill ever have a dog again.
It makes you feel like a failure if everything isnt all perfect and wonderfull with your dogs behaviour.

 

[Dipcdame]

I have seen alot of psychotic border collies. They were never bred to be companion dogs, they are workers so i recon they don't necesarily make very good pets.

Agreed, they make the most wonderful companions, but because of the reason for their breeding, they are working dogs, and were bred for their intelligence, and their stamina, which means, in short, you have a dog who gets very bored very quickly and with unspent energy, they can tend to fall 'off the rails' so to speak.

The recently mentioned Fly-ball activity, Obedience training and trialling, and/or agility training is what these dogs thrive on. our two almost grabbedd their own collars and leads and pushed us out the door once we donned our club shirts!! THEY LOVE TO WORK.

With Border Collie/Kelpie crosses, you have TWO breeds with the same need to be doing something, hence they make the most brilliant farm dogs.

 

[Dipcdame]

Protective can lead to aggressive. Of all the other dogs i've heard and seen bite people and other dogs border collies are right up there.

Would love to know where you got these stats Warui............... Border Collies, according to the listing put out by the police here a number of years ago, Border Collies were about third from the bottom of the list of dozens of breeds!

 

[waruikazi]

Would love to know where you got these stats Warui............... Border Collies, according to the listing put out by the police here a number of years ago, Border Collies were about third from the bottom of the list of dozens of breeds!

Well i did say where i got those stats from. This is a cut and paste form another one of my replies.

Did you read what i wrote? I said...

I have seen alot of psychotic border collies.

And...

Of all the other dogs i've heard and seen bite people and other dogs border collies are right up there.

Those statements don't just make an implication they explicitly state that i am talking from personal experience.

 

[Dipcdame]

Personal experience doesn't constitute the fact: "Of all the other dogs i've heard and seen bite people and other dogs border collies are right up there." that is only a result of your own personal findings. What I stated was a statistical fact taken from police records of incidents of dog bites and or attacks!

Border Collies are one of the best and themost intelligent breeds there are, I think they ranked second in intelligence trials, and as I said, they are working dogs, and so need something to do, something to occupy them, otherwise, their 'darker' side will emerge through sheer boredom!!!

 

[waruikazi]

Personal experience doesn't constitute the fact: "Of all the other dogs i've heard and seen bite people and other dogs border collies are right up there." that is only a result of your own personal findings. What I stated was a statistical fact taken from police records of incidents of dog bites and or attacks!

Border Collies are one of the best and themost intelligent breeds there are, I think they ranked second in intelligence trials, and as I said, they are working dogs, and so need something to do, something to occupy them, otherwise, their 'darker' side will emerge through sheer boredom!!!

Are you serious or what?

So i can't talk from personal experience?

Personal experience DOES constitute the fact that I have seen more border collies and crosses of bite people and other dogs.

What do you want me to say? 'I have seen more border collies bite people and other dogs therefore pumas are the biggest of the small cats.' Of course not! I can only comment on my experience and make a 100% accurate statement that in my experience border collies and their crosses are bitey dogs. Comprehende`?

 

[JupiterCreek]

In fairness I think our perception of a "type" of animal plays a big part. When I first researched getting a snake I read that spotted pythons and jungle python were bitey/snappy critters, but when I bought my spotted I found she's placid as hell unless she's very hungry. And of course the bite of a spotted is less of a drama than the bite of an olive python. Does this mean that olive pythons should be seen as more agressive, or just that they're best left to more experienced handlers?

From a couple of personal experiences I find it hard to trust huskies and malamutes, as well as the bull terrier breeds, so I avoid them and wouldn't recommend them as pets, but of course I'm probably doing a huge disservice to the vast majority of those dogs that are just as good in temperament and behaviour as my border collies. How big is the sample I've based this prejudice on? 4 huskies/mals and 3 bull terriers... hardly a huge sample but enough to sway my thinking.

If waruikazi has decided that border collies are more likely to bite you're not going to convince him otherwise unless you have Australia-wide bite and euthanase statistics from councils, the hospitals, Animal Welfare League and the RSPCA, and even then prejudices based on anecdotal evidence and personal experience dealing with a small sample of individual animals aren't going to change his prejudice easily. Of all people we reptile keepers should understand how deep seated prejudices against some animals are! We can argue stats all day about the relative safety of our snakes but there's always going to be someone with unsubstantiated claims of snakes attacking people, and sadly the anecdotal claims will usually sway the uninformed more than any scientifically researched report.


But science is our friend, so a quick Google search came up with these two documents:

Dogz Online Forums > Popularity Breeds Dog Attacks?

http://www.dlg.nsw.gov.au/Files/Information/Dog%20Attack%20Report%20July%202004%20-%20June%202005.pdf
The NSW paper suggests that border collies and bc crosses are 10th on the list of dogs inflicting bites, which is lower than I would have expected, but maybe my anecdotal experience and limited research is flawed too.