You’re going to be committed to him or her for life!
I’ll be committed to helping you in any way, shape or form for the life of your puppy/dog, therefore it’s critical that you assume the responsibility to see to his or her needs, which means physically, mentally and emotionally. I’ll be providing you with ample training information; please read it and apply it daily.
If you have any questions at any time call or email me. Don’t wait X number of weeks or months to address the issue. I expect you to teach your puppy to be a well balanced good canine citizen, which entails taking him or her to obedience school, and socializing him or her consistently.
Your puppy is a living individual that deserves daily care in every respect!
He or she is not a passing fancy, but a lifelong commitment. I believe in a tremendous amount of positive reinforcement for good behavior, and I also believe in not accepting negative behavior. Negative behavior is unacceptable, and should be dealt with immediately. If, you don’t understand this call or email me or better yet discuss it with me at the time you get your puppy, assuming you fully intend to commit to the message above. I stand behind our dogs for life, and I want good relationships with their owners.
Take No Behavior Lightly
Keep in mind, and take it to heart, that the border collie is by far the most clever of canines, which means they get in the good, the bad and the ugly in equal proportions. Performed one time, it’s a behavior. Performed the second time, it’s a habit/pattern! For example, when bored they can start chasing shadows, which initially can appear amusing. Trust me it will become obsessive, and be very detrimental to the individual dog not to mention your life. By the way, I’ve never had one of my personally raised dogs ever have this trait or any other obsessive compulsive behavior. Why? Because I don’t allow my dogs to become bored. Note: that the operative statement is “don’t allow..!”
There is a fine line between brilliancy and idiocy!
I tell people that the border collie has a “mozart temperament”, which means they are very audio & visually oriented, and they can become very introverted if not properly socialized the first year and a half of their life. Therefore, the traits that make them an outstanding working (i.E.: herding/sports) dog can also make them an obsessive compulsive neurotic nut case. Additional examples of such inexcusable behavior are:
- chasing all sorts of engine related vehicles
- chasing other animals such as cats
- staring at flies
- spinning
- staring at cobwebs
- the list can go on and on
Finally, do not buy a border collie puppy from me, if you’re not willing to crate train, socialize, and do manners training with your new 4 legged family member. Training and shaping his or her behavior starts from day one.
Folks, I don’t want my pups/dogs to become a passing fancy, a spur of the moment, or compulsive addition to your family. A puppy is like a block of clay for you, the sculptor to mold, therefore think long and hard before you contact me about a puppy.
Thompsons Border Collies 