Worried

[MrBusy]

Good Afternoon all,

We have a 21mth old de-sexed Border Collie. He is quite a lovely dog but has been displaying some worring behaviour. We have moved to a small acerage estate with what I call farm fences that is they a wooden poles with mesh so he can see everyting around him, we are currently in the process of planting full hedges all around the yard.

Our dogs behaviour has never been a problem but over the past few weeks he has been barking quite agressively at people passing by, I normally tell him no and make him go inside. Yesterday we were in the front yard working and a fellow with his dog (on lead) was walking pass, well our little darling darted out the front gate and bailed up the other dog by barking really aggressively at it.

This behaviour seems to be some sort of protective/garding thing but it is someting we do not want him to do as I believe it could become a real problem.

Would apprecite any suggestions anyone may have that will help in addressing this situation.

Thank you

[persephone]

Hi.

Firstly - you need to securely confine your dog - for his, and passersby safety.

Can you leave him indoors when you are not home ..and closely supervise short outside times otherwise?Can you borrow/purchase a secure run ?

Secondly - help from a professional would provide you with reasons WHY, and support/tools/training for managing your dog.

tell us the area in which you live, and someone here will probably suggest a suitable professional who can help you

Edited December 14, 2010 by persephone

[Ms James]

^^^ Yep, what she said. Make sure doggy is well contained so he can't bail anyone up for the time being and get someone in to assess his behaviour. They'll be able to tell you why he is doing it and then work on a plan to help him stop. There are heaps of really good behaviourists out there

[Rainy]

^^^ Yep, what she said. Make sure doggy is well contained so he can't bail anyone up for the time being and get someone in to assess his behaviour. They'll be able to tell you why he is doing it and then work on a plan to help him stop. There are heaps of really good behaviourists out there

As above but be aware there are a lot of dodgy behvioursts out there too so get some recomendations ;)

[corvus]

Google "counter-conditioning". You could theoretically turn people passing the fence into a cue to do something less anti-social, like laying down on a mat, for example. Just takes a lot of consistency and rewards.

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

It's good that you are looking for help - you cannot have a dog who behaves like that with access to get to people/kids/other dogs/cats etc.

People in my street on the corner had the same problem. Dog could jump the fence, got a behaviouralist in but it didn't stop the dog which was very aggressive to people passing by. Lots of complaints to council and the dog had to go.

If your front yard doesn't have a gate, get one organised but tether the dog or keep it separate from the front yard until it is completely secure.

All fencing needs to be made dog proof - ie he can't climb/leap over it to get to what he wants.

Another option until your hedge is grown which may take a while, is to get a dog run but you must still ensure that when he's not in there, he cannot gain access to outside of your property.

You just need to understand how seriously his behaviour can affect someone else - he could give them a heart attack, cause a fall etc etc.

[Clyde]

It's quite a common Border Collie thing.

Perhaps have a think about a containment system. Unless you've got high fencing your Border can jump farm fencing anyway and the hedge will take some time to grow.

My brothers Border used to this. After years of me nagging them they have finally invested in one and couldn't be happier.

[Crazy Daisy]

Have you moved from a smaller place? When my friend moved to acreage after a 600m2 suburban block her border collie went nuts trying to protect such a large area. Also, at the old place he had solid wood fences but with post and wire fencing on acreage he can see everything and was getting very over stimulated.

They ended up building a dog run with a solid side facing the street for when they were out and got a containment system for when they were home.

I agree that talking to a good behaviourist would be beneficial.

[dancinbcs]

It is pretty normal for lots of dogs to bark aggressively at anyone passing by their front fence, especially if they have a dog with them. They are just guarding their property. Some Borders have a guarding instinct and others none. Often it develops as they get older.

The problem here is that the dog isn't contained. Sorry, but leaving the gate open so your dog can rush out is just irresponsible and stupid. What did you expect him to do? You really need to keep the dog fenced in securely. All Borders are capable of jumping 4' rural fencing but most don't realise it and many stay safely contained in these fences. If you have a jumper you need to fence off an area with higher fences but otherwise, always keep the gate shut whenever the dog has access to the front yard. It probably would be safer if the dog was fenced into an area that prevented him getting to the front fence at all. If you don't want your dog to bark at the front fence, don't give it access to that area.

Border Collies should never, ever be left in any yard they can escape from. When not under direct supervision they should be safely confined. The one thing you cannot teach them is road sense and many get run over trying to head off cars and motor bikes and tractors. Also in rural areas there is the very real risk of them taking off to herd the neighbours stock, ending up with them getting a bullet. Just because they are a breed that doesn't "run away", it doesn't mean they don't need to fenced in.

[JulesP]

It sounds like the dog was only not contained because the owners were with him. Understandable if he has not shown such behavior before. Now they know not to do that again.

I would get a trainer to help you and one that will use all methods. What state are you in and we can suggest someone.

If you are growing hedges I assume you don't want to see out so how about using some of that brush fencing stuff to block off your dog's view.

Are people walking past the side fence or just the front fence? Can you block him off from were people are walking?

[dogbesotted]

you say rural block ?/ what size is your house yard???

i am assuming that the house/yard is at the road front of your property.

so here are my suggestions:

1. you can double fence the front section quite cheaply ( have the shrubs planted between teh origninal fence and the temporary second fence.

The secon fence can be made using star pickets, straining wires some cheap mesh plus shade cloth or brush f4encing or even weed matting.. you can clip the shade cloth/ weed matting using maspro clips.

2. is it possible to section of the rear of the house?? thus giving your dog a smaller area that is his. again this can be quite inexpensive.

3. add in what others have said about a behaviourist...

I do not think that it is abnormal for a dog to be protective of his area. You need to ensure that the front gates are securely close at all times that the dog had access to the front area.

H

[silentchild]

You sound a lot like my neighbour who has a Border Collie, haha. OH and I were walking our dog past their house on leash, we had actually gone past the house when their border collie suddenly rushed out of nowhere, leapt clean over the hedge and went straight to attack my dog.

OH freaked out and tried to shield our dog with his body (stupid I know, but we were panicking at the time), dog's owners came running out and grabbed their border, didn't even apologize for leaving the front door open and their dog free to rush out.

A very traumatic incident for us, so please please try to keep your dog contained, and get a behaviourist if possible. You can get some great recommendations from here if you let us know your area.

[MrBusy]

Dear All,

Thank you all for your help and suggestions.

Gate was unfortunatley left ajar as we were going in an out, stupid I know as I have been told.

He is now on restricted access to yard particulary the front and is not allowed out the back unless one of us is with him.

We moved from smaller yard (750m) which had solid colourbond fencing all round to rural block abt 1.5 acres with the farm fencing so he seems to have become over stimilated by lots to see.

Live in the Newcastle/Hunter Valley area so any help with good behaviourist.