Sykes - Barbara Sykes Training Border Collies

BARBARA SYKES

TRAINING

Border Collies

BARBARA SYKES

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2014 by
The Crowood Press Ltd
Ramsbury, Marlborough
Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2015

Barbara Sykes 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 890 5

Dedication

To all the Border Collies in my life from childhood to present day who have taught me so much about patience, understanding and the value of friendship. From being my confidantes as a child, to being there for my children as they grew up and always being by my side through the dark times, I thank each and every one of you for the precious times we have shared.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Ian and Lucy for their expertise in taking photographs that can tell a story, Gemma and Ben for their help and patience, and special thanks to Diane Jones for all her help and support.

Photographs supplied by Ian Hughes, Lucy Pearson and the author.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

At the end of is a dedication to the Border Collie as a breed, and when I started to write this Introduction I couldnt stop thinking about some of the words it contains: honesty, integrity, loyalty, friend and partner words that really do sum up an exceptional and very special breed of dog. So special, in fact, that I believe it is important to understand as much as possible about their history and about the ancestors of todays Border Collies, which is why I refer to their working instincts and to the shepherds who first gave us this amazing breed. There is a notion that a dog from working lines will not make a good companion but a collie bred from compatible working breed lines is a true Border Collie and will have the temperament, intelligence and loyalty to be a perfect companion, a working dog, or both, as long as he is understood. This book is about training by understanding the instincts, the different characteristics of the variations in the breed and communication. Once you can understand what your dog is thinking, and why he is thinking it, training him will become much easier. But he needs to be able to understand you, and repeated commands or words he doesnt recognize will confuse him, whereas a carefully thought-out movement of your body will explain to him in a few short seconds what wasted minutes of misunderstood words can fail to do.

Throughout the book I use the term guardian, as the word owner does not sit well with me; we dont own our children, we parent them, and no matter how much money may be exchanged for our dogs, we parent and protect them rather than own them. Border Collies need a leader and, whether the term used is pack leader or parent, if not provided a collie will feel lost and unprotected. Pack leaders are not dominant, they do not revel in submission and they do not harm or bully their subordinates; a true leader is a parent with responsibilities, who guides, protects and nurtures if they dont, they become bullies. No dog should ever be submissive but nor should he become dominant; each dog is different, and has distinctive characteristics, and to get a happy, balanced collie the training and communication needs to be equally well balanced.

I am often asked whether it is easier to train male or female Border Collies, but its not about gender its about the dogs nature. By taking a journey back in time in the first two chapters to meet his ancestors, you will have fun working out the character of your own Collie before you start training him. (The word He is used throughout the book as a generic term, as another of my foibles is not to call a dog it unless in a sentence giving general information.)

This book is written purely and simply for the understanding and basic training of Border Collies, to help you to have a well-mannered dog you can be proud to call your best friend.

A NOTE ON TLC THINKING LIKE CANINES

TLC Thinking Like Canines is a home-grown ideology based on years of living with Border Collies and studying their interactions with each other and with people, and honed by allowing them to teach me how to have a better understanding not only of them as a breed but of every other breed of dog I encounter. Rather than having a pre-set idea of how a dog should be trained, and what he should or should not do, the concept of asking the dog what he would like and how he would like to be trained, and of seeing the world through his eyes instead of purely through our own, takes us on an amazing journey to discover not only what dogs are thinking but why.

Training is not about demanding, or even requesting; its about co-operation, and discovering how a relationship can change from man and dog to a true partnership through communication. Thinking Like Canines is about studying each dog as an individual and asking nothing from him but the four marks of respect that he learns from his mother and which he easily recognizes and understands. Dogs by nature are givers, not takers, and TLC is about us learning to converse with and understand them, rather than expecting them to do everything our way. When you study your dog closely, watch his body language, know what he is going to do before he does it, can feel his every emotion and can sit with him quietly, allowing him to simply be himself, you have a true partnership a bond that enables you to converse without words but by simply thinking like a canine.

BORDER COLLIE FACTS AND TIPS

Facts

Tips