Having a dog at home should be a thoughtful decision. Adopting it means that, from that moment, you will be the maximum responsible for the dog: the care, the food, the love and affection that it will need. You will have to provide it. These factors are essential, so I am aware of the responsibility that it implies and, in no case do you welcome it at home on a whim. In the same way, it is also important that you educate your little furry to enhance his abilities and avoid behaviors that are not beneficial for both parties. If you want it to be a balanced dog, you should invest time in it. Let’s discover how to train a border collie?
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The training process can change according to the type of breed and, above all, each case. For example, it is not the same to educate a border collie and teach him some tricks to do it with a chihuahua or a pit bull. Here are differences between educating a puppy and teaching new things to an adult dog or a dog that has directly lived alone in your home then to another that has passed through several houses or has suffered abuse.
How to train a border collie?
The intelligence of the border collie is one of its main characteristics. However, it is also a dog with a great concentration capacity, with a lot of memory, very active and obedient. It is ideal for field tasks and herding due to its good predisposition to work. Thanks to the rapid learning that it can assume and thanks also to its instincts, it will help you observe and control cattle and sheep.
Its great work capacity causes it to expend a lot of energy, thus balancing its behavior. In this way, your impulsiveness is more controlled. In your day-to-day domestic life, you require exercises with great frequency to be active, healthy, and full of happiness. Otherwise, you will accumulate excess energy that causes you stress, boredom and frustration, leading to complicated and negative behaviors.
When to start training a border collie puppy?
The ideal time to train a Border Collie puppy is when he is 3 months old. At that moment, you can separate him from the mother without fear that his socialization and learning abilities will be affected. If you separate him before his parents, the risk increases that they do not quite relate that they are dogs and how dogs behave. Thus, any puppy must spend at least the first 3 months with its mother.
The behavior of a border collie puppy that was born in your house will be different and will require other periods to educate him. In this case, you can start from the little furry’s birth while also learning from its mother. Still, you must follow these recommendations:
- You can transmit basic rules of coexistence.
- Don’t start obedience exercises within a few days or weeks of the puppy being born.
- Prevent him from getting on the sofa or sleeping in your bed, making sure he is with his mother and the other puppies, and his father if he also lives in the house.
- Work on identifying his name: try to get him to answer or look at you every time you call him to check that he is assuming his name.
What can you teach a border collie?
Their age conditions the teachings that you should give a Border Collie. As you go through stages, you will be better able to understand more complex learning. We give you the following dog training tips depending on the months the dog is:
Stage 3 to 6 months: Teach your puppy the most basic things: to come to you when you call him by name, to get up, lie down, not to pull on the leash, to walk by your side and more simple commands from understanding.
Stage from 6 to 12 months: In this period, teach him to talk (bark), roll, and even bring you something. By knowing the basic commands of the first stage, your Border Collie will be prepared to learn new indications of slightly greater difficulty.
After 1 year: After reaching its first 12 months of life, the dog should be ready to learn all kinds of teachings, such as bringing a pair of slippers. If you have completed the two previous stages successfully, you will have no problem continuing with the border collie education.
How to train a border collie puppy?
Border Collie puppies need moderate activity and exercise. If you saturate them with orders and instructions, they will take time to assimilate all the concepts: bet on entertainment as part of the positive educational process. Playing, you will stimulate the cognitive and physical capacity of the canines. Also, you will enhance their curiosity. Mental stimulation is as important as orders since by walking with you daily and teaching them tricks, you will gain confidence and obedience on their part. Another important aspect of a border collie puppy is to follow a routine. Try to meet a series of schedules in walks, games, and training to not get bored and deplete much of the energy you have.
If you’ve tried, follow these steps to get him to stop:
- Strap him on only when he’s calm and sitting.
- If he gets excited again with the leash on, wait for him to calm down. When he’s calm again, open the front door to go for a walk.
- To the minimum that you pull on the leash while on the street, slow down. Make him calm down and sit down: this way, he will learn that you walk when you decide and where you want and that he should not pull on the leash.
- Repeat the previous steps every time you go out for a walk. The rest of the family will also have to do it when you walk it.
- Finally, make sure your border collie is attentive to your orders when you want to train with him. To do this, avoid places with distractions that can distract you. In any case, always bet on positive reinforcement: if it takes a little longer to understand an indication, be patient and reward him in the form of a treat or a game once he has assumed the teaching and every time he repeats it, or almost every time, at least until you see that he has fully assumed over time.
How to train an adult border collie?
To finish knowing how to train a Border Collie, it is important to also know about training during adulthood. You may have adopted one with more than a year, but that does not prevent you from educating her. First, you will have to discover their behavior in the first days of living together.
If you spot a problem, immediately work positively with it to resolve it as soon as possible. Get their trust so that they see you as their family and a positive reference. After that, you can focus on the socialization process and the basic teachings at home.
As with puppies, the adult border collie will require your maximum patience and, above all, positive reinforcement to complete the education process. If you notice that he is afraid of something in particular or very strange behavior in certain circumstances, go to a canine ethologist to find the best solution.