The border collie is a very special dog; If you have already had the opportunity to look into their eyes, you will know the unique energy they transmit. They stand out not only for leading the ranking of most intelligent dogs, but also for their versatility, high capacity for memorization, charisma and willingness to work. When properly stimulated, they can easily learn and perform a huge range of tasks, tricks and sports activities to perfection.
However, we must be clear that the border collie is like a long-lasting rechargeable battery. If we don't teach him or don't allow him to positively channel and express all this energy, we favor the development of undesirable behaviors and symptoms related to the accumulation of tension, stress and boredom. Therefore, if you are thinking of adopting a furry of this breed, our site invites you to learn some key tips to know how to train a border collie
Knowing them is the first step to educating them
Although we can talk about basic dog training guidelines and criteria, it is important to understand that each dog is a unique individual. When learning, each animal will require its own time and must have the dedication and knowledge of its tutor to correctly absorb and reproduce the proposed commands. For this reason, knowing your dog is a fundamental step in knowing how to train him.
The border collie is a medium-sized dog, with a long and athletic body, strong, wide and well-muscled legs. His physical build allows him to reach high speeds when running and register remarkable heights in his jumps. That is why this breed is very successful in sports competitions and obtains unbeatable performances in agility.
It is a true working dog, with excellent predisposition for herding functions. His character is naturally active, focused and obedient In the field, he spends much of the day observing sheep or cattle and taking care of their territory. This allows him to expend a large amount of energy and maintain a balanced behavior. In home life, needs to exercise constantly to stay he althy, active and happy. Otherwise, you can show symptoms of stress and boredom very easily.
Getting ready to train a border collie
Training a dog as intelligent and active as a border collie requires more than good will. Before starting to educate your furry, you will need to get started in dog training to know the basic guidelines, methods and fundamentals of it. In addition, to facilitate the learning of your best friend and optimize your time, we recommend knowing the "5 training tricks that every owner should know".
After positioning yourself well in the context of canine education, it will also be important to put together your own training team with the following basic items:
- Collar/harness.
- Regulatory belt.
- Long strap.
- Fan bag.
- Prizes or snacks.
- Toys.
- Clicker (optional).
Of course, we must clarify that the clicker is not considered an essential item for dog training. However, if you learn to use it properly, you will find that it often makes the trainer's job easier. If you have never used the clicker to teach your furry, be sure to read our tips in the article "Clicker for dogs - everything you need to know about it".
Border collie training according to its age
The training and physical training of any dog must be subject to its age, state of he alth and physical power. We cannot start the education of a puppy starting from complex tasks or commands. Just like children, puppies must learn progressively, starting with the basic concepts of obedience that will be the foundation of their learning. Little by little, you will be able to increase the difficulty of the proposed tasks and, surely, you will be surprised with how quickly your border collie will memorize each order.
Regardless of when you start training a border collie, remember to use positive reinforcement to stimulate learning. Unlike the traditional method, positive education rejects any type of physical or emotional abuse, such as punishment or scolding. Instead of punishing misbehavior, which is detrimental to the animal's mental he alth and learning, positive reinforcement invests in the recognition of appropriate behaviors to stimulate the dog's cognitive, social and emotional capacity.
Training a border collie puppy
The ideal is to start training your border collie from 3 months of age, when we can separate him from his mother respecting her weaning period. A furry that is separated from its parents before the right time usually shows learning and socialization difficulties. If you want to encourage the physical, emotional and cognitive abilities of your border collie from its first weeks of life, we recommend using early stimulation maneuvers.
But if the puppies were born in your home, you will need to educate them from birth. Even if you can't teach them the basic obedience exercises yet, you will need to pass on the rules of your home. For example: puppies should not climb on the couch or sleep in our bed. Remember that if we do not feed unwanted behaviors in puppies, we will not need to correct them in adult dogs. It is also important to learn to recognize your name.
Remember that puppies should engage in moderate activities and low-impact exercises, which include a high dose of entertainment. The game works as a playful element in the education of dogs, and it is by playing that we stimulate the curiosity, and physical and cognitive capacity of our best friends.
Stages of training a border collie puppy
So you know how to train your border collie puppy, below we show the most suitable division by stages:
- 3 to 6 months: We begin to teach him basic canine obedience commands such as sit, come, lie down, stay, get up, walk next to you and not pull on the leash. The idea is to propose simple and unitary orders, which do not lead to the execution of multiple tasks to achieve success. Exaggerating the complexity of the exercises during this stage can confuse the puppy and generate a feeling of frustration, which will harm their learning. It is also advisable to teach your border collie puppy to relieve himself on the street, as well as not neglecting his socializationso that he learns to interact with other animals, people and environment. We will discuss the importance of this point later.
- 6 to 12 months: Once your puppy has learned the basic commands, you can include new commands. At this time, we recommend teaching him to fetch objects, "speak" and "shut up". These last commands are essential because, being an excellent herding dog, the border collie can become a constantbarker. For this reason, the commands to "speak" and "shut up" guide him to bark only at appropriate times. In addition, you can include other tricks that you like, such as "roll" or "give the paw", always respecting the times of your best friend.
Training an adult border collie: from 12 months
Welcome to the wonderful world of the thousand possibilities of a border collie! Having completed the basic obedience stage, you can enjoy the intelligence and versatility of your furry for a advanced trainingStarting him in agility will be an excellent decision to keep him physically and mentally stimulated during his adulthood. On the other hand, searching is highly recommended to stimulate your sensory and cognitive capacity. In addition, you can teach him fun tricks, dog sports or memory games.
Because the border collie demonstrates great learning ability and a great memory, his mind will need to be constantly stimulated, which is often a challenge for their tutors. Therefore, we recommend you attend a training circuit to have the guidance of a professional in advanced training.
Training an adopted adult border collie
If you've just adopted an adult border collie and don't know how to train him, the first thing you should do is analyze the situation. In this way, try to know the character of the dog that has just arrived at your home and find out if it shows symptoms of fear of abuse, some trauma, phobia or stereotypy. In case of presenting any behavioral problem, you must treat it before starting the education period, because if, for example, you do not work on his fears, you will not be able to advance in his training. You must make him trust you and see you as something positive and, above all, safe.
Once you have addressed the previous points, you can start working on their socialization and practice the basic commands at home. Consistency, patience, and positive reinforcement are the key to successfully training an adult border collie. Depending on the fears or traumas that the animal presents, do not hesitate to go to a dog trainer or ethologist.
Socializing your border collie is crucial for his training
Socialization is a key element to achieve an obedient dog, well behaved and with a balanced character. The socialization process will teach your furry to relate positively with people, with other animals and even with his toys. The ideal is to start socializing the border collie when he is still a puppy, from his 6 months of life (after completing his first cycle of vaccination and deworming).
In the specific case of the border collie, socialization and high physical activity will be essential to guide its predisposition to grazing. Although it is true that if we do not educate the border collie puppy to herd, it may not present any related instinct, it is also true that, in case of having adopted an adult who has been in contact with this type of work, it can be inconvenient. if we do not learn to guide it correctly. This learned behavior is so marked in this breed that, if we don't educate it, our furry will end up herding small animals or children in parks and squares, which is really dangerous. We must teach him to live with children as part of his family and not as a member of a herd to be herded.
Now, as we said, if the border collie has never been trained for grazing, nor has he had any contact with cattle or sheep, he does not have to perform this function if we let him, for example, in the middle of a flock of sheep. Although it is still being studied, it has not yet been shown that herding is part of the instinctive behaviors of certain breeds of dogs, so it is most likely that if we leave an uneducated border collie among sheep, he will not know what to do and end up seriously injured.
Border collie physical activity and mental stimulation
As we told you, the border collie is a veritable stack of renewable energy. Your body and mind need to receive a high dose of stimulation to remain in perfect balance. A sedentary dog or one with an excess of accumulated tension will show concentration problems and learning difficulties. Therefore, the training of your border collie should include daily physical activity and cognitive training To do this, we reaffirm the idea of starting him in a dog sport and we indicate some games of intelligence that you can practice in your own home, such as the shell game or the use of food-dispensing toys.
These dogs feel more comfortable when they live in large environments, where they can run freely. Raising a border collie in a small apartment or flat is very difficult, since in real life it is almost impossible to meet their daily need for physical activity. They would need 3 to 4 walks, 40 to 60 minutes each to provide them with optimal energy expenditure.
As you can see, the border collie is a dog that needs to be accompanied by an active and patient guardian, with good availability of time and space. In addition, they must receive adequate preventive medicine to stay he althy, active and happy. Therefore, remember to take your border collie to the vet every 6 months, respect his vaccination card and internal and external deworming, and provide him with the specific care that this breed requires.
Tips for training your border collie
- Training requires consistency: Your border collie will need your commitment and patience to absorb the commands, one by one. Training is a constant and gradual process, where each exercise must be properly absorbed, memorized and executed perfectly. If you don't have enough time to train your border collie, don't hesitate to consult a professional trainer.
- Know when to teach: Obedience drills should be trained daily, in short sections, counting on 10 or 15 minutes in duration. Overloading your furry facilitates his distraction and is counterproductive for his learning.
- Understand how to teach: The exercises must be trained one by one to allow their comprehensive understanding and not confuse the animal. Typically, each exercise takes between 3 and 10 days to fully internalize, absorb, memorize, and execute. The assimilation time depends on each animal and the complexity of each task.
- Choosing the ideal place: Thinking about the place to teach is as fundamental as knowing how and when to teach. We must avoid noisy places or with an excess of stimuli, such as aromas, music or many dogs, so as not to impair our border collie's concentration.
- Apply positive reinforcement: Positive reinforcement is the best method to stimulate our border collie's learning. By contrast, physical and emotional violence is counterproductive and dangerous. Remember to offer your furry a prize for each successfully executed task, to recognize their effort and stimulate their cognitive capacity.
- Review Learned Commands: Each taught command should be reviewed to reinforce your learning and avoid forgetting. We recommend dedicating 1 or 2 days per week to remember the tasks already memorized.
