Border collie is an extremely energetic dog. He needs open space to exercise and being a working sheep herding dog, he always performs tasks happily. He will get too bored and perhaps destructive when you make him sit in a place. Border Collie Obedience Training is very easy to carry out as the dog is extremely agile and intelligent.
The dog will be able to squat, spring and corner adeptly for the function of driving the disobedient cattle or sheep into line. The Border's coat should be thick enough so that he can survive in cold days but excessive growth has to be cut.
Border collie obedience training includes grooming the dog with care. The water resistant coat of the dog needs to be brushed every other day. He should not be bathed often as the strips of the coat will lose its protective oils. Brushing will maintain the coat clean and healthy and also you should strengthen the emotional bonding with your pet to keep her healthy.
Border collie obedience training is not much difficult when compared to training other dogs since he does well in rally obedience, sheep herding trials and agility. Also, because of his medium size and higher intelligence level, he can be trained as rescue and search dogs. Normally, these dogs display stable temperament and they don't shy away from the people. Those who are into Border collie obedience training will find that the dog is a faithful and loyal friend. He responds eagerly to the commands given by his owner and willingly performs the tasks.
During Border collie obedience training, you need to praise him a lot. Because, lots of praise makes him happy and he will perform excellently. You have to train him to mingle with people right from his young age. Then, there will be no problem in socializing and he will live fine with other dogs and children. When you bring this dog home, you have to pay him lot of attention and should keep him busy with lot of exercise and tasks.
Border collie lives for serving his owner and hence he may not like to lie idle in a corner of the house. Also, you should know that he can be destructive when he gets bored.
If you live in a small house, then you should not get Border collie. He needs lot of space to run and play. Border collie obedience training can be done efficiently only when you have lot of open space and time to train the dog. He always need your constant attention and will become neurotic if ignored. Border collies are normally pretty healthy but may suffer from eye disease, epilepsy, allergies to fleas' and deafness.
A smooth collie has shorter hair like that of a Labrador or Dalmatian. The hair is short and smooth with a thick undercoat. Rough collies have a long and flowing topcoat and a dense undercoat. You can keep your collie looking good, no matter what the variety, with regular brushing.
You'll need a pin brush, a slicker brush, a comb, scissors and a spray bottle filled with a conditioner spray. You can buy a commercial conditioner spray, or make your own using 1 to 2 tablespoons of dog conditioner diluted with water. Make sure it is diluted well or the spray will make your Collie's coat greasy.
Make sure to spray your dog's hair thoroughly before you start to brush. Never brush a Collie's coat dry because it will break their hair. If you have a rough collie, part the dog's hair and brush from the roots out. The pin brush can be used if your dog is not shedding and is free of matting.
The slicker brush and comb are helpful for shedding dogs and for removing mats. If a mat cannot be brushed out of the Collie's hair, you can cut it out. Collies most often have matted hair behind their ears, underneath the front legs and on their underbelly so make sure to check those areas carefully. For a smooth collie, a slicker brush will suffice for both the undercoat and outer coat.
You should brush your collie everyday during shedding seasons, and at least once a week when they are not shedding. Regular brushing is important to remove the dead hair. If left alone, the dead hair will cause hot spots on your dog's skin.
Collies generally do not require all over trimming, but you might want to keep their feet trimmed. With a small pair of scissors, carefully trim the hair around each footpad.
This will keep your collie's feet clean. While you are working with your collie's feet, you can also trim the nails. This should be done every 1 to 2 weeks to keep the nails from getting too long.
If your collie is a puppy, you can train them to be used to a Dremel tool with a sandpaper attachment. Apply light pressure with the Dremel and grind down to just before the pink quick.
The alternative to using the Dremel is to use a standard dog nail trimmer. Before you clip the dog's nails, find the pink quick and cut just before that point. Cutting into the quick will make the dog's nail bleed. If this happens, styptic powder is helpful to have on hand to stop the bleeding.
Finally, remember to clean your Collie's ears about once a week. You can purchase a canine ear cleaner at any pet store. Squirt the ear cleaner into your dog's ear canal and then rub the base of the ear. This will help the ear cleaner coat the inside of the ear canal. You can use a cotton ball to remove the excess cleaner and then allow the ear canal to dry naturally.