brookcove
Posted : 9/7/2007 8:08:04 PM
How high is their prey drive?
Very high. I would never trust one of my guys with small animals, poultry, or livestock - and they can also be somewhat reactive around children if they are not used to them. Some lines are better than others - it depends on how much of a "hair-trigger" dog you ended up with.
Are they prone to running off?
A well-trained Border Collie will tend to stay around. However, they are not at all the kind of dog you can leave outside and hope the dog will amuse itself. If the dog doesn't feel welcome at YOUR house, they will go try to find somewhere, where they ARE welcome! And they are very clever escape artists.
Will they stay in the yard?
Not if they feel like there's something more interesting elsewhere. And then no fence man has devised can hold a determined Border Collie from escaping. I like to say, build a fence, then throw a bucket of water at it. If the water goes through to the other side, a Border Collie can get through too.
How high is their drive in general?
I'm often asked this and I'm not sure how to answer. They have an extremely high work ethic, and they are very determined to find something to do, whether you want them too or not. They love to work, to train, and love to be with their people so they can think of ways to please them, all the time. A Border Collie that gets a notion says "Damn the torpedoes!" and it's very difficult to stop a Border Collie in mid-action. You've always got to stay a step ahead of these dogs.
How much excersize do they need?
How long is a string? Really, it's not so much physical exercise, as mental exertion and interaction with YOU. Routine is way, way more important to a Border Collie than sheer physical exertion. You can spend more and more time building up a Border Collie to physical feats, but if there's no other training involved, you'll still have a dog that's looking for something to do, possibly with results you won't like. Most Border Collie owners invest some time in moderately strenuous exercise, and then a great deal more time doing games, tricks, and formal training.
Are they capable of running beside a bike for long amounts of time?
See above. Border Collies originally were bred to run miles and miles over incredibly rough, steep terrain, to round up sheep off mountain sides. A healthy Border Collie from working lines can be conditioned to just about any physical feat that a human could share with them. The problem is that once the dog is conditioned, then the dog will
need to do that frequently. You can't train to run/bike/hike thirty miles, then do it only once a month. The dog will be leaving to go do that thirty mile hike alone!
Good luck. I'll say that if all you want is a biking partner, the vast majority of lab/bully breed/shepherd/BC/Aussie mixes you can view at the pound, would love such a lifestyle and probably settle down in the house better than some of the purebreds you've mentioned.