Define "energy"

I love border collies.  I think they are frighteningly intelligent, intense, beautiful and all around great dogs  - but firmly decided there's no way I could keep up with one!  I consider Ari "border collie light"  and she is enough of a handful as is!  I think a pack idea is great - she's too young for any weight, and I worry about even getting one now and keeping it empty only because it seems every days she's filled out or gotten taller!    

My SO just got word of someone whose interested in meeting up with us with his dog to see if they get along and would have fun together!  I'm hoping it works out - Ari never gets so tired like she does after a play session with another pup!  This Friday we have a play date with a husky (same age as her roughly) - they met once before when they were both around 12 weeks and had a blast together - hopefully they will have as much fun the second time around!   Both were drool covered grinning passed out maniacs after just playing, wrestling and running around like goofballs.  The SO and I have joked we should just get that second dog now so she has a permanent play buddy - but 'tis not a good time for many many reasons.

Mind games are also a good way to tire them out.

She's able to think a little more these days so I have been trying to "up the stakes" with in the house games (aka her puppy brain has developed the ability to focus on something for more than a few seconds at a time hehe).  I started introducing the "find it game" using treats - she thought I was being silly and just went "well duh it's under the pillow I just saw you put it there, why get so excited that I got it"?  I also taught her to "shake hands" last night and introduced roll over.  Unfortunately now she thinks whacking me with a paw means I dispense a treat!  She's too darn smart, I really only have to show her something once or twice before she gets it.  Well "down" was the exception.  It took us weeks working with her on that one!  Also just for kicks last night I told her to kennel up while I was in the kitchen and she in the living room (I was holding a meaty bone for her) and she FLEW into her kennel and waited there.  We never tell her to kennel up like that - it's always been when we are standing right there and either it's time for bed or she's at my office.  So it was out of context for her, but with a meaty bone in my hand I was speaking her language all right!

We are still working on teaching her to retrieve and "give".  Once she learns that I may very well teach her how to retrieve items for me (remote, my shoes, etc etc). 

I love watching her think - it's beautiful and exciting to behold.  Then when she gets it both her and I get happy and it's just a nice moment to have with her. 

my/my neighbor's dog is 2.5 years old at this point and hasn't shown any signs of slowing down. He never stops moving and has never shown any signs of ever being tired or of having had enough. I mean never. My highly energetic bird-dog mix is, at age six, starting to slow down a little bit and show interest in resting from time to time.

Indie will be 1 next week and she shows signs only of SPEEDING UP...... That dog never, ever stops moving, it's ridiculous.  She runs laps around the house, around the other dogs, etc.  We go for LONG walks, and she wears a backpack, and that does help a little.  Usually she crashes out for about 15 minutes and then is back at it again, nipping at the others, who are trying to relax.... I have high hopes that she'll settle down when she turns 5 LOL.....

the_gopher

I should see if she has any interest in a chuck it!  Weirdly when we are outside she wants NOTHING to do with any toys, only sticks....silly girl :)

The exercise that I do with my dogs (who don't work) is more to keep up their physical condition than to "wear them out."  I'm a big believer that mental interaction and structured activities are way more important than mindless physical activity for any dog, whether couch potato or tireless hound.   I have Border Collies but I don't do endless fetch games with them.  I teach them all to fetch and they are as obsessive about it as any BC you've seen (visitors who have met 13 year old Ben can attest to that).  But their daily activity doesn't revolve around it.  Usually, it's fetch "and" something.  Frisbee "and" something.

When I describe a dog to a potential adopter with the intention of helping them understand what living with that dog would be like, I tell them what the minimum level of activity is going to be for that dog.  But I'm also clear that it's a minimum, and it's not a guarantee that the dog will never turn into a dog that requires something more.  However, with Border Collies it is often true that their energy needs will expand to fill anything the home offers.  But just because they can doesn't mean they should.   Personally I don't think hours of short range fetch on the flat are good for any dog.

Most Border Collies aren't hyper, nor do they need hours of play or miles of running to be happy.  What they need most of all is to be needed.  That's the thing that makes them not really the dog for Joe Six Pack.  They are a 24x7 dog - not in the sense that they are "on" that whole time, but in the sense that they need to know their "place" at all times.  Even if it's just keeping an eye on you while you do your taxes, or feed the baby, or make dinner (especially while making dinner!).

This thread gives me hope that someday (:::glances wistfully to the future:::) Honor will have an off-switch.  At almost 1.5 years old, she is more energetic than ever!  Seriously, Honor's day consists of:

"zzzzzzzzzzzzzooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOmmmmmm...OMGIMUSTGOHERENOW!!!!!!!....TOYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.....

vrrrrrrooooooooooOOOOOmmmm...NIKE!!!!nomnomnomnom...there's lint on the floor, WHEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!"

And so on.

Everything excites her.  And she gets at least a 3 mile walk every day, coupled with gratuitous off-leash time in the backyard, training, mind games, kongs, RMBs, and toys galore to name a few.  When she was in Rally, I had to take her to the dog park for an hour just so that she was at MACH 1 instead of MACH 2-3 for class.  

Ah, the joy of a breed that is truly meant to go-go-go!  And I wouldn't have it any other way.

huskymom

Before Onyx, Crusher was go go go.  He still is, but he's happy to play with her when I'm not available.  And she's always up for anything.

brookcove

What they need most of all is to be needed.  That's the thing that makes them not really the dog for Joe Six Pack.  They are a 24x7 dog - not in the sense that they are "on" that whole time, but in the sense that they need to know their "place" at all times.  Even if it's just keeping an eye on you while you do your taxes, or feed the baby, or make dinner (especially while making dinner!).

 See my experience sadly with border collies is limited to the interaction I had with ones I groomed.  I groomed in Suburbia where owners liked the prestige of owning a border collie than actually doing much with them - so when I saw them they were sadly on the neurotic side.  I've met some great ones too though!  Well if that's the case of the border collie, well then maybe I wouldn't be too bad of a fit.  Ari is my shadow.  She makes sure I'm doing things right after all - making dinner, getting changed (hoping I drop a sock for her to run off with...), heck if she was allowed she'd help me go the bathroom! 

I actually really love Ari's energy and zest - my only issues are refocusing on entirely inappropiate behavior that we have been working on since she came home with us - which is play biting.  She's really come a long way with her "commands" (sit, stay, down, down stay, kennel up) and I just taught her to shake - and now working on roll over (just for fun) and upping distractions.  She's also capable of longer training sessions now which is great - but I still keep them short and sweet, and as often as possible. 

Once she's older and more trustworthy, I'm going to give her jobs around the house just for giggles (and I think Ari will love it too!).  Once she learns to solidly retrieve and "drop it" I'm thinking we'll be training her to go get and bring me the remote control, my shoes, and if she weren't so darn food crazy I'd teach her to open the refrigerator and go get me a beverage!  But I suspect if I taught her the latter, we'd be paying out a lot more for groceries

Infiniti

This thread gives me hope that someday (:::glances wistfully to the future:::) Honor will have an off-switch.  At almost 1.5 years old, she is more energetic than ever!  Seriously, Honor's day consists of:

"zzzzzzzzzzzzzooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOmmmmmm...OMGIMUSTGOHERENOW!!!!!!!....TOYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.....

vrrrrrrooooooooooOOOOOmmmm...NIKE!!!!nomnomnomnom...there's lint on the floor, WHEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!"

And so on.

Everything excites her.  And she gets at least a 3 mile walk every day, coupled with gratuitous off-leash time in the backyard, training, mind games, kongs, RMBs, and toys galore to name a few.  When she was in Rally, I had to take her to the dog park for an hour just so that she was at MACH 1 instead of MACH 2-3 for class.  

Ah, the joy of a breed that is truly meant to go-go-go!  And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Hmm this sounds very very familiar lol!  Ari is very much a zoomer and excited by everything and ANYTHING.  I wish we had a backyard to safely let Ari burn off steam, but she is fairly trustworthy on the walking path we take and on the river beach by our house - I say fairly b/c I can only do this if there's no one else there or she'll be all over them in a second going OOOOOMMMMMMGGGGGG HELLOOOOO!!!  Thankfully, no one around here really uses either very much so I get to do this very often for some off leash action.  

I'm worried about our upcoming training (finally got a trainer squared away yaaaay) b/c it's RIGHT after work and I'll have NO TIME to let Ari burn off steam which was my original hope.  Like you do for Honor bring it down to Mach 1 hehe.

Of my three BC's Kya is the one I have had to use different training methods with because she is very sound and sight sensitive. She sees and hears EVERYTHING that is going on.

Because of this I thought she was blowing me off or was too hyper to learn anything. What I discovered was when I work with her I have to keep my voice soft and not excited. I have to remain calm even when she does the most amazing thing. I also have to be ever mindful of how I praise her or give treats for a job well done. Petting with a VERY slow hand and giving treats and praise with no high squeaky voice is a must.

I started training with Kya at 10 weeks in a formal setting but didn't figure out she had sensitivities until she was about 4 months old. She is now 1 1/2 and doing so much better. I also had to find a good quality treat so she wasn't getting more amped from the the treats.

So by retraining myself in how I work Kya is a big part of helping her to calm down. These are some of the things that worked for us so I thought it couldn't hurt to pass them on. 

The exercise that I do with my dogs (who don't work) is more to keep up their physical condition than to "wear them out."  I'm a big believer that mental interaction and structured activities are way more important than mindless physical activity for any dog,

this is indeed an important point- if you engage in a lot of mindless physical activity what you will probably end up with is a very fit very hyperactive restless dog. Especially with young dogs it's important to avoid doing the same gait for long periods of time- no long walks, no trotting, no backpacks, no treadmills until their growth plates close.

If you put some structure into your fetch game it will work your dog and satisfy him much more than mindless run and get. Make him work for each throw. Make him exhibit self-control by holding a stay until sent after the toy.

mudpuppy

this is indeed an important point- if you engage in a lot of mindless physical activity what you will probably end up with is a very fit very hyperactive restless dog. Especially with young dogs it's important to avoid doing the same gait for long periods of time- no long walks, no trotting, no backpacks, no treadmills until their growth plates close.

If you put some structure into your fetch game it will work your dog and satisfy him much more than mindless run and get. Make him work for each throw. Make him exhibit self-control by holding a stay until sent after the toy.

I cannot agree more with this!  We use this on Ari - when we play we ask for a sit-stay or a down stay and she NEEDS to be in the stay (I do allow a butt wiggle in the sit lol as she's wagging her tail ferociously). 

Ari NEEDS to be physically excercised a bit just to burn off steam.  We found trying to train when her muscles are screaming to go go go just isn't pretty.  So cutting the edge off just a bit with mindless excercise THEN doing things that require her to think works out much better