Pastimes
chasing
Fetch
Walks
Running
My walk with a Border Collie was much different than the temperament description that was stated above. Although normally an agile breed, the dog I walked was very careful to not move too quickly. Whether it was due to his bad hips or whatever other breed he had mixed in him, he was high energy but slow mobility. I wouldn’t use the statement “natural born athlete” to describe Ollie, the dog I was able to walk. Although he was high energy, he enjoyed to play, and became very excited to go on a walk together. As I was told, he is a very dependent and protectant of his owner. He doesn’t do well when separated from people for too long, requiring him to be locked in a kennel when gone from long periods of time. The owners describe him as ‘longterm separation anxious’, which is similar to the website description of separation anxiety. Dog aggressive and yard aggressive, he would use every opportunity to defend his owner against any other animals or people. Although this is a learned bad habit, he seemed to be very easy to train and control otherwise. For me, he listed and didn’t show any signs of aggression. However, I did not let him in contact with any other people or animals on our walk. He understood how to behave on a walk, telling me that he was easy to train, and if not he was at the least obedient of the training he had previously learned. He was leash trained, as well as trained with all of the common commands such as “sit”, “lay”, “shake”, ect. Although he did enjoy chasing after the occasional squirrel or moving car, he was adequate at listening when being called back closer. When coming in contact with one of these, he tends to hold eye contact or stare at them until they are completely out of view. A tad bit annoying, it is a harmless of his. He is walked daily to keep up with his active background and enjoys every minute of it, as he did not have a fenced in backyard. His owners have him in a very stimulating environment, providing many different new toys, including two cats that are always there to play with him. In my opinion, getting a cat is the best option if you feel your dog is lonely. They strive for and want different attention, therefore not causing any friction or fighting.
5 years, 3 months ago