Wow, so much great info... we currently have 4 working border Collies for herding our sheep, they aren’t all great at it, but some of that is due to age and upbringing/training. They are excellent defenders against Raccoons, can climb trees, and could probably drive the truck on their own if given enough time to learn it.
Amazing dogs but they have no understanding of when to stop. Celti would chase and retrieve toys until he dropped if the human would just keep throwing it, please? Please??? He has also been known, if left to his own devices, to walk himself two or three miles down to the beach looking for some entertainment (the small humans are often there, and they will throw things I bring them!) he can pick up a paper clip or a single piece of hay from the floor and deposit it on your lap to throw for him... please? Which is pretty good for an un-neutered male for behavior and roaming on a very large property.
Boots is aggressively bonded to just one person, and if that person isn’t there will defend her house quite viciously. If that person doesn’t really like you, she is even more aggressive. She is a biter. She is also almost completely blind and half deaf with age. She had a rougher start to her life and never quite got over it completely, even after all her years here. She can’t see the sheep, but she
still wants/
needs to help herd them.
Alice gets hot spots and has to get a belly shave in the summer, and it isn’t even particularly hot here. She has some hip problems and severe arthritis, again, mostly an age thing. Both the girls are mostly “retired”, but just
try telling them that when the feel up to “working”.
Delta is taking after his Father, but is more heavyset with longer silky fur, yes it’s long enough to braid, but he doesn’t like to talk about
that incident, though our female WWOOFers thought it was quite giggle worthy at the time! His only real “training” at herding is coming from watching Dad Celti work, and all things considered, he is learning it fairly well. A bad habit he shares with his Father and Alice is rolling in Poop, preferably horse, but sheep, chicken, and cow will also do (in that order).
Chasing and catching birdies is his (IMO) worst habit, though he’s fascinated with baby chicks, and will try to herd (unsuccessfully) the grown chickens. He will catch ravens, swallows, and such, and took on a Bald Eagle once; he almost got it, there were feathers everywhere, but the Eagle escaped (it was feeding on a deer carcass when he caught it, and they are a prolific pest animal here that greatly damages livestock, though for his safety I would not encourage
that particular behavior) He also will dig up buried lambs that didn’t make it, and likes to lick the poopy lamb bottoms.
So,
No doggy kisses, thank you very much! Delta is the newest generation here and will probably help train a few new dogs in the coming years, once Alice and Boots pass on. Wonderful dogs to have around, but they must have “work” or they tend to get a little neurotic. Mere mention of the “R” word and they are climbing trees to get it, say “sheep” and they are ready to bring them, and if they manage to get into a truck, you had better take them
somewhere so they can help you do
something... because why else would you have opened the door?
They are stubborn little dogs.
I should have just mentioned that first.
