Help with Collie Behaviours!!!

Ok I adopted Dizzy from the dogs trust in September and she is now 9 months. When I adopted her they told me she was a foxhound x. So I went away and researched foxhounds and decided I could happily cope with the breed. However, Dizzy has no foxhound in her and is a full on collie.

I am finding her obsessive full on behaviour a lot to cope with at the moment. She is a 24/7 bundle of lunacy

I am working on the training element of things to do although I have only done this to a basic level before. However, I am not sure of the best way to deal with stalking and rounding up behaviour.

I know lots of you on here give your collies jobs and I am so impressed with some of the things your guys do but I have no idea where to start with these things.

So could anyone offer any advise or point me in the right direction of helpful information. It would be sooo gratefully received, thank u!

aliwin

i found that a change in diet helped with my dogs behaviour changing it from super market food to special list food is also better as the food is beter quality and doesnt contain unessarry aditives try this web site as the food is the same as james welbeloved and is cheeper to buy


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Why is stalking and rounding up behaviour a problem??? Its normal Collie stuff and you would do very well indeed to stop it.

However, luckily it is often easily divertable. Give her somethign that she can stalk or round up. Ball work. Lots of it is usually good.

Get her to fetch a ball and then when that is going well. Teach her to lie down on approach to it, then walk on toward it and lie down again, before finally given the releast to get the ball.

Make sure that you are not feeding her any foods with aritifical colourants or flavourings in it as these are likely to promote obsessive behaviours. Definatly avoid Bakers for instanace.

Any mental stimulation is great for collies and a must for a restful owner life. Agility is probably the easiest and most rewarding for dog and owner - is there a club near you.


As far as possible try to enjoy the supreme being that you have in your life. Collies are just amazing in so many ways and given the right outlet, will in my experince bring joy like no other breed! Good luck and enjoy your dog...

Thank you I will have a look at her diet.

I don't really mean it in a totally negative way but she has become totally focused on one of my cats. It is the redirecting I need to do. Don't get me wrong I totally adore Dizzy and she is great on so many levels but I just hadn't done enough collie research as I wasn't expecting one, if you get what I mean.

She is totally ball obsessed and will happily play fetch for hours. How do you teach a dog that is going full pelt to fetch a ball to stop on approach??? Do you need to not throw it far so you can give the command?? I can see how I can work that in with cats, thanks.

She is too young for agility yet but we have been practising on walks by weaving in and out of posts and going up and over little fences so I would really love to do this with her.

You teach her to lie down (or sit) and then lie down to a voice command only, Then teach her to lie down without any visual clue - throw say a sausage out in fron tof her, with her on a lead, she will face the sausage - ask for the action, wait whilst she thinks it throughm, if she doesnt respond , keep repeating.

Now oyu have a dog that can accept a sit or down without looking at you. Hopefully

Now hold her collar, throw the ball toward a friend who satnds impassive, neart where the ball alnds. Release her, immediatly ask for her command sit/down, is she ignores and continues on to the ball then get your friend to impassivly pick it up and pocket it, ignoring any attempt by the dog to get it. Repeat until eventuially she realises that her failure to respond to you, means she loses cess to the ball. The same training can be doen with food if your dog is less motivatred by food as many collies are (start with the least motivating).

When she does finally accept your request to sit or down on comman, then immediatly praise and release her to the ball and then have a good game.

Hope that all made sense. ??

collies are fun but hard work
It is a shame that the dogs trust got her breed wrong, good on you for researching the breed you thought you had
In many ways a dog is a dog, much of what you read for foxhounds is good for collies - you just need to give her plenty to do while at the same time teaching her chilling is good

Agility will be great!! In the meantime are you going to any classes?? any kind of training class (as long as it is reward based) would be great for you both to get you ready for agility, one that teaches tricks would be great too as I am sure she will get the hang of basic obedience v quick and get bored

You tube is a great place to learn how to train things too, search for positive training, clicker training, agility foundation training, 101 things to do with a box, free shaping

I agree that focus on the cat isnt the best thing for the poor cat, keep her on the lead and reward her any time she takes her focus off the cat, be v rewarding but dont ask for anything, just sit with her, every time she stops looking at the cat give her lots of treats, ignore her when she is looking at the cat and you will find she will start spending more time NOT fixating on the cat

Yes that makes sense thank you. I will get going with that!

Yes it is a shame, it wouldn't have put me off but I would have been better prepared I think. I was expecting a high energy dog and having previously owned a springer knew what to expect. I think it's the never wanting to chill out that seems so different. I have taught her to chill on her bed but if she is awake she will amuse herself if I don't lay on activities

I have been doing training classes with her but haven't been for a few weeks because they are not quick enough pace for her and she gets bored! But then I obviously need to persevere with these as perhaps she needs to learn that life isn't always fast pace!!! And her obedience needs to be spot on to progress to agility. Back we go on Wednesday then!

I will have a look on youtube and hopefully that will give me the visual idea of what I should be doing

She is chilling next to me at the moment so I will pop the lead on and wait for passing cats


Thanks for your replies.