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Our collie is a male, 101 pounds and a sable. He is so handsome and is a good boy....except that he is a chewer.
He will be 5 on Monday so the chew issue is going away.
However, he has destroyed all the window treatments in our home that he can reach and we experienced this first hand the other day.
For some reason, the pool guy drives him wild. We've had him meet the pool guy and he wagged his tail and was friendly. So was the pool guy who feels bad that our collie behaves as he does.
When the lawn guy comes, he's fine. Snoozefest.
So, on Friday, we were there. He came kind of early; my husband was in the shower and I was in the other side of the home. By the time I got to the master bedroom, he had ripped out all the vertical blinds and the thing above the sliding glass door also - whole thing came down; totally ripped it out of the wall.
He did this in less than 30 seconds - strong dog!
Anyway, I'm glad he barks and he's a really good talker but has anyone dealt with this kind of behavior?
BTW, our other 2 dogs (Shelties) are fine with the pool guy. They do not chew either.
For this breed it is extremely important to keep them engaged in some sort of mental and physical activity. Lack of activity is the main reason why people find it difficult to handle their Border Collie dogs."
Just waking them is not going to cut it. They need to run and run often.
Yes, I have dealt with it. I got rid of all blinds (they can get caught up in them - and can be dangerous). And I replaced 2 curtain rods.
Small price to pay for a safe home.
Mine only did it if someone stared at him, and didn’t back away. It was, after all, my dog’s “job” to protect his house.
No way would I try to train that out of a dog... he was never a chewer, but protector - oh yah. At 5 if your boy destroys something, it’s probably not because he is bored.
My neighbor saw a guy do it, lol like I needed someone to verify the disaster I had asked this guy not to go to my house without me there to work up a quote - for building a deck, he said all dogs love me.... needless to say I didn’t hire him for the job.
I’m guessing that the pool guy did “something” that your dog interpreted as “not right” when you weren’t around. They don’t soon forget!
Or.... maybe it is just his pole? Don’t dismiss how your dog feels about the pool guy, since he accepts the lawn guys. There may be a sense he has.
Whatever the reason, I would keep the dog in a room where he can’t see the pool action on pool days maybe with a tv or music playing.
Yea, sounds like a collie to me. Wait till your window sills get gouged from collie jumping up at the window to go nuts when someone rides past on a bike. LOL.
Just waking them is not going to cut it. They need to run and run often.
Running might be helpful, but I'm pretty sure this is not a working bloodline collie - most likely she has a rough collie (used to be "Standard"). At 100 lbs it is not a BC. Technically, there is a faction that is trying to revive the working instincts in the Standard collies, but AFAIC, those working genes were gone by the time I was a young man.
But more exercise might be helpful with that energy that goes into chewing. Or redirecting to chew appropriate toys.
Maybe the pool guy is carrying a skimmer - a stick - and the collie reacts to "man with stick". It really doesn't matter - the collie doesn't trust the pool man to approach the house without a fuss. That isn't likely to change. I'll go with Katie's advice. Katie's advice is solid here.
My parents had a mutt that went crazy when the mail lady came and did damage blinds or drapes in her intense excitement. She sounded like she wanted to kill the mail lady. This is in So CA so the house has a mail slot next to the front door. My parents thought maybe it was the mail dropping into the slot so they got a mail box and attached on the porch nope did not make a difference. If she was outside and saw mail truck she would get all worked up too. Funny part is the mail lady lived in the neighborhood 2 blocks away. If she was out walking the neighborhood as a neighbor the dog loved her and never even barked. The lady use to stop and talk with my mom and pet the dog but put on that mail outfit and no go the dog would go nuts!
The rooms with no access are small and he'd feel so cramped; probably claw at the door to get out.
He does not do this with anyone else; just the pool guy.
I know it's insane but he's such a good dog otherwise. Even the chewing seems to have subsided.
Thanks for all the replies; nice to know others have experienced something like this.
My husband just adores this dog. My husband is tall and I think he feels he is a real companion.
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I had asked this guy not to go to my house without me there to work up a quote - for building a deck, he said all dogs love me.... needless to say I didn’t hire him for the job.
maybe with a tv or music playing.
I think it's the pool skimmer
