We have a chance to get an 8 month old Australian Shepard that has not been trained to work with animals yet. The owner is giving her away because he will be traveling. Is this dog too old to train? We do not want another older dog that is set in its ways and hard to train.

Can anyone tell me their experiences with them? Are they hyper? Will they overwork our animals-we have chickens, rabbits, ducks, geese, goats.

What are the best books on training?

-- Lynn (johnnypfc@yahoo.com), June 12, 2001

Answers

There really isn't an easy answer to your question. First, the dog is not too old to train, but may already have formed some really bad habits. Be prepared to train it. There are lots of good books and tapes, but the best way is to find someone local who can help. There are workshops all over the country at various times, there are stockdog clubs, all sorts of good resources out there. Contact ASCA, australian shepherd club of America for information. They have a websiteat www.asca.org. Most folks will tell you your dog is not old enough to really get into stock training yet, but you should be working on flawless obedience. The dog has to be able to sit and stay on command while sheep or cattle are running circles all around them. To answer your question about being hyper, yes they are. They are a very high energy dog that needs a job. If you don't give them one, they will find one, probably something you wish they wouldn't do, like dig to China, chase cars up and down the fence, eat the ducks, chew siding off the house, etc. Be very willing to spend lots of time with this dog. As for the stock, you will not be able to just leave the dog with the stock. You will probably have dead stock. The herding instinct is simply the stalking instinct highly refined, with a good command to stop added. In fact, most pros will tell you that the dog should never be in contact with or even within sight of the stock except when they are actually working it. The herding instinct is so pronounced that they will sit for hours and stare at the stock, or spend the whole day trying to herd them around. Frustrating for the dog, to say the least. This is definitely not a situation where you can just put the dog in the yard and expect everything to work itself out. Now, the upside. If you take the time to train the dog, you will have a tireless hired hand, a loveable companion, and a fearless defender of your property. If you don't take the time, you'll have a troublemaker that will take a toll on your stock and your patience. The dog at 8 months is infinitely trainable, but she may have already started doing some things the owner doesn't like and that may be the real reason she's going to a new home. Play with her, observe her, and be very sure you are willing to spend LOTS of time with her.

-- melina b. (goatgalmjb1@hotmail.com), June 12, 2001.

Our dog is half Australian Shepard / Chow. He is pretty hyper, our front yard has a track beaten down almost a foot from him running back and forth. Can't comment on the herding instinct (no outside animals but a turtle and he doesn't herd very well), but my near three year old son gives the dog quite a workout. My wife and I were really cautious introducing the boy to the dog; chow breed temperment in the news and all. Have been gratified to find the dog tolerates the kid pulling his hair, dumping dirt on him, attempts to ride him, and other youngin' behavior(yes, both of us stop the kid from going to far; cruelty to man or beast is not permitted).

Dog is very protective about the property, nothing comes near us without us knowing, but he doesn't bark if there isn't a reason, i.e. when other dogs in the neighborhood bark, he has a look see to find the reason before he sounds off. When strangers approach, he barks up a storm. He doesn't allow anyone to get to close to him, but backs off when the person enters the property. Might be a fear biter though; when the person turns his back, the dog comes closer.

Hope this helps some.

-- j.r. guerra (jrguerra@boultinghousesimpson.com), June 14, 2001.

Melina B has some very good advice, no need to repeat it. You may want to check on the dog's breeding to determine if it comes from working stock. The Australian Shepherd has been shown in the AKC breed ring long enough for two types of the breed to have developed: working and show. In this area,the show type have very little if any herding instinct. A book I recomend for training is The Farmer's Dog by John Holmes. Just be sure to read the whole book, not just the last few chapters on training!

-- Nancy Bakke-McGonigle Mn. Sunset (dmcgonig@smig.net), June 14, 2001.

The dumbest Australian Shepherd is smarter than your average dog. Need I say more? You could probably train them to set the table if you wanted to. I have had three (two I have now) and they all have different energy levels. The absolutely most hyper ones make the absolutely best working dogs, but they will all work for you depending upon what you need. The exception may be from breeders who are very into the American Kennel Club Dog Show Circuit. These dogs are bred to look "good" and are often not as smart, and are too big with too big of bones. They can't work in the same way or keep up with the animals.

I love my dogs, and they are intense, but mine are both indoors with me a lot as well as outside. Inside they are mellow jello. My first dog I get at 8 weeks promptly (I had known him since week one!) and from start to finish he was the absolutly best puppy I ever knew. Mellow indoors, attentive. No problems. My Aussie friends all same the same thing. My other two dogs, both older when I got them, have never been a problem either, for the most part. None of them chewed up things or were hyper like labs. Still, they are intense, due to their intelligence.

The most important thing to keep in mind: THEY NEED COMPANY. If you work full time or are rarely home or around your dog, either don't get it, or get two. That's my opinion. Maybe I would have had trouble with Bob when I had him alone if he hadn't been with me all the time. These dogs really need to be useful and have a friend. If you don't they truly display behavior that I can only describe as "going nuts". I can't really imagine having any other type of dog now that I have had an Aussie. My friend describes them as "potato chip dogs"....you can't have just one. You get hooked on them. These are truly dogs! One litter can have all different colors and sizes, making each completely unique. Oh, and keep in mind they are natural herders. They will try and herd anything on their own...kids included. Yep, they'll nip a butt...not breaking skin...to make someone running change directions, so make sure they have work. My two now don't do this, but my last one did. These two do grab onto shirt sleeves or tails, though, and try to move you that one. One will try to block you from the front sometimes to move you back. It is funny!

-- Marcee King (thathope@mwt.net), June 16, 2001.