Energetic Collie

ProVox

Hi there.

I have a 7month old border collie, full of life and wont stay quiet for a minute, not that i hold that against him :0

Is it wrong to have this type of dog living in a housing estate? Should he be living on a farm or on acres of land where he can run around or is it OK just to walk him everynight and give him free reign of the garden?

Are dogs like this suited to being house-dogs?

Also, when is the best time to get him neutered? Will this calm him down much?

hadook

There's nothing wrong with having a collie in a housing estate as long as he isn't bored. From the sounds of it though your lad needs more than a walk in the evening and free run of the garden.

Can you take him out in the mornings too? Collies are very incredibly intelligent (I reckon I've caught mine plotting world domination more than once) so mental challenges will work along with physical exercise if you can't. You could try kong food toys during the day or hiding his food in the garden (we did this with Loki when he was a pup) to make him work to find it. Someone to take him out mid afternoon to break the routine and run the legs off him would help too.

My collie is the perfect house dog but he's also the perfect dog in pretty much every situation. He's clever enough to adapt to pretty much everything and as long as he's exercised and entertained he's happy no matter where he is.

You can get him neutered anytime from now onwards pretty much. My vet sets a minimum age of 6 months. He will calm a little afterwards but he'll still be a collie and will have boundless energy. Neutering gets rid of the hormonal impulses not the collie enthusiasms.

Whispered

Hi, collies can live very happily in an estate. They need to be mentally stimulated as well as physically stimulated. Teach him loads of tricks, give him little jobs to do - even if it's just teaching him to push open the door for you when you ask and other things like that. (Very handy when your hands are full ) I know someone whos collie would bring things upstairs when told, collected the post, was her personal "spider killer".

One walk a day is not ideal. I'd say 2 for most dogs. Once a week you should try going somewhere that you can go for a long hike or hill climb! Agility training too is great for collies.

He can be neutered now. It might quiten him down a bit, but I doubt if it will do a whole lot.

kerrysgold

Could you take him to the beach or the woods or an open field maybe at the weekends of something to just let him run? maybe get a companion for him to keep him company and play and run with? also, try teaching him something like agility and do obedience with him to keep his mind working, collies are super intelligent and very fast learners IMO.

artieanna

In a perfect world a farm would be nice for this dog and alot of dogs, but you have a good home to offer and food and shelter.

Bring him for walks and play with him and on the weekends bring him for a good run on a beach, or in the country.

He is still young enough will probably settle a bit more when he gets older, its not guaranteed though.



He'll be happy as could be.

Lauragoesmad

Nothing keeps an energetic dog happy as going to the park with a hurl and a tennis ball. No matter how long you stay there bashing the ball for them, they'l still want to play more.