We've been considered a Collie cross from the dog shelter as a family pet but last time we walked him, he approached another dog and they both went crazy so I yelped and pulled back on his lead so neither would get hurt (maybe not the right response but I freaked out and I did it before I had time to think of a better response). In his description we were told he was good with other dogs, which doesn't describe his antisocial behaviour- then again we don't know what dog intiated the aggression, do I don't know if the dog we were walking was at fault.
Another issue we were having was that he was really anxious in the car and kept pacing and had heavy breathing. I kept getting the giggles but I felt really sorry for him because he was in the back and wasn't really tied in. I think keeping him in a crate for car trips could help if the backseat isn't available but I'm not really sure. The last issue was after we opened the boot to let him out he rushed out before I could grab him instead of keeping put and nearly ran out onto the busy road where he would have got hit by a car.
The dog is seven and watching him behave like that has made me anxious. His previous owner was an alcoholic and I don't know how much training the dog recieved. This will be my first dog and I have noticed that most of the shelter dogs have issues which has made me want to adopt a Border Collie puppy so I can start with a clean state but a few people have reccommended only adopting a BC pup if you have had previous experiance with them or have extensive experiance with dogs in general. We had a dog for about ten years before that but she wasn't exactly obediant- she would spent all day barking, didn't like being outside and nip if touched in sensitive places.
The dog at the shelter has a lovely personality and is very playful but its obvious he needs some training and some socialisation. How hard would it be to train him? Should I get him or a puppy?
I can walk the dog two hours a day and my parents will walk him one hour a day, and in the weekends we'll take him somewhere he can run. I will also see about taking him to agility classes but I think he needs some training first.
He didn't ''bark'' at another dog on the walk, they lunged towards each other. I want to know solutions to these behavioural issues, not people telling me I don't deserve a dog. I was only a kid when we got our first one, I'm 21 now and willing to learn!
Another issue we were having was that he was really anxious in the car and kept pacing and had heavy breathing. I kept getting the giggles but I felt really sorry for him because he was in the back and wasn't really tied in. I think keeping him in a crate for car trips could help if the backseat isn't available but I'm not really sure. The last issue was after we opened the boot to let him out he rushed out before I could grab him instead of keeping put and nearly ran out onto the busy road where he would have got hit by a car.
The dog is seven and watching him behave like that has made me anxious. His previous owner was an alcoholic and I don't know how much training the dog recieved. This will be my first dog and I have noticed that most of the shelter dogs have issues which has made me want to adopt a Border Collie puppy so I can start with a clean state but a few people have reccommended only adopting a BC pup if you have had previous experiance with them or have extensive experiance with dogs in general. We had a dog for about ten years before that but she wasn't exactly obediant- she would spent all day barking, didn't like being outside and nip if touched in sensitive places.
The dog at the shelter has a lovely personality and is very playful but its obvious he needs some training and some socialisation. How hard would it be to train him? Should I get him or a puppy?
I can walk the dog two hours a day and my parents will walk him one hour a day, and in the weekends we'll take him somewhere he can run. I will also see about taking him to agility classes but I think he needs some training first.
He didn't ''bark'' at another dog on the walk, they lunged towards each other. I want to know solutions to these behavioural issues, not people telling me I don't deserve a dog. I was only a kid when we got our first one, I'm 21 now and willing to learn!