Thinking of bringing a puppy home? Before you do so, you should know some Border Collie facts.
Border Collies are among the most intelligent dog breeds in the world. The dogs are quick at learning new things (like tricks and commands) and are sure of making great pets for people who can handle them. However, if you don’t know how to handle and care for the dogs, they can be very challenging.
Border Collies are certainly not a breed for everyone. But if you can care and provide for all their needs, you are sure of having an intelligent, loyal and healthy companion.
Breed Personality and Temperament
The Border Collie breed needs a lot of physical and mental stimulation. Border Collies that are not given the required stimulation get bored quickly. Moreover, they will be forced to find alternative ways of entertaining themselves. These ways may include chewing of furniture, clothes and other destructive behaviors.
Border Collies like being busy at all times. They are not the kind of dogs that will just lazy around doing nothing. As a Border Collie owner, you have to come up with activities that will keep your dog occupied while you’re away from home. Otherwise, they will have made a huge mess around the house by the time you get back.
Training Border Collies
As we already know, Border Collies are very intelligent dogs. With the right approach, they can easily learn elaborate tricks. This is one of the traits that make this breed quite popular with trainers. The breed also requires a lot of physical and mental stimulation. If your Border Collie is not trained properly, he is bound to develop some bad habits such as constant barking and destructive chewing.
Exercising a Border Collie
Border Collies were originally bred to herd large groups of sheep. This allowed them to have enough space where they could stay active for long periods of time. Although they were previously known as the “sheepdogs”, they are now more than that. Many dog lovers around the world have embraced the Border Collie breed and are inviting the dogs into their homes.
Border Collies are not the kind of dogs that can be kept enclosed in apartments. They require a lot of space to play and run around. Adequate exercise is important for their health and happiness. If you would like to own a Border Collie, you should be willing to give enough time for exercise.
Border Collie Grooming
The Border Collie breed is very easy to groom. The dogs don’t need frequent baths but require weekly brushing to remove all the extra fur that sticks to their coats. Similar to other dogs, Collies shed fur because they have long hair.
Border Collie Health
For most parts of their lives, Border Collies are normally healthy. The pets will live to reach an old age as long as all their requirements are catered for accordingly. Enough physical activity and a good diet is basically all it takes to have a happy and healthy Border Collie. Collies can live up to 17 years. However, majority of them usually reach 13 or 14 years of age.
Border Collie as Family Pets
Border Collies are the best family pets to have. However, you’ll have to provide for their needs. The high intelligence in these dogs could work against an owner who is not familiar with training and caring for the breed. Border Collies are quick at learning new things like opening the door, fetching the newspaper and getting to places which are out of limits to them. Therefore, adequate training is necessary for this breed.
