Pet Help Urgent!!?

Question

Me and my family have a 7year old border collie. Were at out wits end he is very agressive when we try to leave the house or when were having fun.

He has ben like this since a early age , and we bielieve somin may have happened to him as a very young pup, we got him at 2 months.

He was fine until the first year he then flipped out. We can control him but he has bit us several times and being smacked has had no effect on him.Does anyone have anythin like this?

We know he is very old but is there any way we could control him now, he went bezerk 20 minutes ago and i said my dad " I hate him i wish he was dead" he said " We will get him put down"

He has tested out paitence to the end, what can we do about him?
PLEASE,PLEASE,HELP!!

I Live In Kent (UK)

Answer 1

Collies need a lot of mental stimulation and physical exercise, they're working dogs not pets really. He's most likely frustrated and needs training. Find a reputable trainer in your area, and take him to classes. 7 is not old for a Collie. Get some help now, and give the dog some quality of life!

Answer 2

This is your typical Border Collie, they have that herding instinct in them and him being hit, beat, yelled at, etc will have zero effect on him because he is a herding dog. Cattle kick these dogs to no end and still they come back for more, so discipline that way is not the answer.
Something that should help is long long walks. These dogs require a lot of excercise. I'd recommend walking him for an hour to two hours. If this isn't possible, I'd take him outside in a fenced in area and play games like tug-o-war and fetch. He just has a lot of energy that needs released.
I'd also think about training him to lay down and stay. These dogs love to be challenged and have someone that keeps them in their place. I know that your dog has had this temperment for 7years but you can teach an old dog new tricks. Also, never let him get by with nipping or biting. Speak in a loud tone "NO". All I can say is that he needs some training. They're never too old to learn.

Answer 3

You really need to find an animal behaviourist in your area who is very good with aggressive dogs. Ask you vet for advise and who is the best. This is a serious problem and it need to be sorted out by a professional.

But there is almost certainly something that can be done to help, these cases are common, and with the correct help will be fine. But sadly there is no quick fix and things may take time.

I would be very careful about any advise on this site, what works for one dag may well make another one worse.

PS. where are you from? I maybe able to recommend someone

Edit: I have noticed some people saying your dog is too dominant. this is the kind of thing you need to careful about as your dig may well be scared. Treatments are completely different.
Be very very careful, I really recommend you get professional help, as the wrong treatment could make things worse.

EDIT 2: Really sorry, but don't know the animal behaviourists in your area. But your vet will almost certainly know. If by any chance they don't then try phoning other vets, I'm sure they will help too.

Hope all works out for you :)

Answer 4

To be honest I think this is not his fault.

Border collies,particularly those from working not show stock,have enormous energy and need great amounts of physical exercise.They also need a lot of mental stimulation. Also hitting is not a good way to train any dog and is illegal.

First thing to do is get him neutered if he isn't already as this may help.

Try taking him on MUCH longer walks-at least 5 miles a day,more if possible.And training him to do more things-sit,stay and roll over etc as they enjoy learning and doing things.

If walking 5 miles a day is not an option for you then you could train him to fetch and then throw a tennis ball for him to fetch for you-do this for a good hr a day throwing it as far as you can each time.Only stop when he is clearly very tired.

If your family don't have time for this rehome him with someone who does and get a breed with less high maintenance needs.

Answer 5

Take a look in the yellow pages and get onto a dog trainer.

I doubt now that he is 7 that anything that happened in the first 2 months of his life would effect him this badly and for this long.

The problem lies with the treatment he has recieved from your family, this is obvious and you probably realise how silly it sounds that you are blaming his behaviour on the two months after he was born before you got him instead of stepping up and taking responsibility.

All dogs expecially collies need plenty of stimulation and exercise, if they dont get this release of energy they will become attention seeking and mabe tear things up, become aggressive etc.

If you want to see improvement, you and your whole family will have to agree to make sure he gets plenty of exercise and gets played with.
Also dogs are pack animals, he obviously doesnt think you, or anyone in your family is the pack leader because he is treating you with no respect.
To show him you are the boss you need to take certain measures such as not feeing him food scraps from you dinner, not letting him upstairs or on the sofa. Teaching him certain behavioural tricks such at to sit, roll over, fetch, not to jump up at people, not to pull on his lead while you walk him etc.

Basically stop blaming him and start investing some time into your dog and you will see great improvements i promise.
btw 7 is not old and i personally think its cruel for your dog to be smaked when you have caused the problem and not him.

Answer 6

I don't know if this helps, but I will give you my opinion about it. First, is he neutered, and if not....get him neutered to see if that helps. However, it is highly unlikely that his aggression is due to any trauma at a young age since you got him at 2 months. Also, try to look back and see if a trauma occurred at the age that the dog changed....it could just be bad breeding..which unfortunately happens alot. Definitely have your vet take a look..tell him your issues..but you have been living with this aggression quite sometime..so ...now it is an acceptable pattern of behavior in your dog's eyes. Next..make sure you are the leaders in the family..the pack leader. You have to be dominant in order to get respect, and that is not established through any type of physical abuse. Check out the 'Dog Whisperer'...on TV or website...he deals with alot of aggressive issues...I don't advise euthanasia unless every other option has been put to use, and when all else fails...tis true some dogs have to be put down when the endanger the people around them...but try other options first...i wish you wisdom and patience in your journey.

Answer 7

Did you have him neutered previous to a year old?

Its a border collie. Simple research on the breed you will figure out the problem. Border collies are herding animals they try to round you up. I have a foster that was very used to a very seditary lifestyle now with all the dogs and teeneagers running around she is having issues. She wants to be the one to guide you where to go when and biting is how they do this.

We always forwarn anyone that adopts a herder of little children because they will herd them in the yard while playing outside. Everyone seems to be older in your house so try to control her before she nips. Such as when you are leaving make her stay back in sit till you get out the door. Its a bc it probably wants to go with you.

You are going to get several people here tell you to neuter if he's not. It should be done but it will not help at the age of seven. Its already. You will have to have him on a regimented training schedule.

Answer 8

You need proffesional help with your dog,your vet will be able to give you a referal to a dog behaviourist who will come and see you and work with you and your dog.It's doubtfall something happened to him before 2months old,im afraid its something thats happened while beeing with you that has made him aggresive.What happened at a year old to make him flip?was he attacked by another dog?did someone smack him hard?was he well socilised as a young pup?There is normally always an explanation for sudden behaviour changes.The more you smack a dog the more they learn that beeing aggresive is ok,it winds them up more so i suggest you stop doing this,instead fill an empty bottle up with water,when he shows negative behaviour squirt him in the face,this should shock him into stopping,or you can fill the bottle with stones then shake it when he's aggresive.Border collies are very high active working dogs untill old age some of his behaviour could be due to boredom,how many times do you walk him?have training periods?play with him?etc.Dont put him down,get proffesional help someone who can change your dogs ways so you can enjoy his later years with out feeling stressed out and hating him.Good luck.

Answer 9

Hi, I've had 3 border collies and the breed is reknowned for being boisterous and mischievous if not trained properly. They are highly intelligent dogs and respond well and loyally to their owner.

Having said that, my second dog sounded just like yours. He was a really handsome dog, extremelly fit, responded 'quite well' to training but as soon as you turned your back he was trying to snap at the back of your neck. It was often scratched and 'nipped'. It got progressively worse, he was also badly behaved by running water e.g. rivers, streams and became insensed when near people wearing white coats.

My mother took him to the RSPCA and on the way in, he attacked a cleaner. Sadly the vet had to put him to sleep.

I later discovered that when he was a tiny puppy, the mother and pups were kept in a side entry to the owners house and my puppy was shut in there, in a corner, trapped behind a bicycle...all night. I'm sure the fear and seperation from his mother, did some lasting damage to his mind.

There are dog behavourists you can be referred to by your own primary vet. It's worth a try. Failing that, if you know that you have done all you can do, there may only be one alternative.

He may hurt you or someone else badly, so be careful my friend and good luck.

Answer 10

Contact Cesar Milan ASAP!! Watch his programs and get his books. (I've listed his website at the bottom..go to it to save your doggies life)
Your dog is being dominant because you have not established yourself as dominant...this is a bit of an extreme case, but can still be taken care of..if you follow Cesars advice explicitly.
Don't worry about what happened to him in the past...people put much more stock in past experiences than dogs do...what matters is the leader/follower order that YOU have established since you have had him....
I could tell you what to do, but I'm not as good describing things over email like he is...give him a try before making such a sad decision.
Also, some good herding training would be a big help. BC's are working dogs, if they don't have a job they will develop bad behaviors to counter that stress that not working will cause...up the walks and excercise, and get him into agility or herding...this will be good for you and for your dog.