Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
^^^^Yes to this a thousand times. Just because one lives in a rural setting, it does NOT give you the right to let your dogs run all over two counties. Especially if they have any sort of "guard" blood in them to where someone might shoot them first and ask questions later.
My two remaining dogs are the 4-1/2 yr old Catahoula/Pit Bull & the 2yr old Rottweiler. They are house dogs. They have ~1/3 acre back yard that is in five foot chain link to go out when DH or I can't be with them in the real world. I run them every day on our 25 acres, plus they go to the barn every night with us. Their recall stinks when they are in the real world thanks to rabbits, deer, & chickens; that means they wear E-collars so they don't "go off chasing butterflies" in the real world.
The days of letting any old dog roam free in a humane way, are lonnnng gone. Even if the breed is not considered a "threat", keeping it confined when you aren't around ensures its good health .
These are my two current dogs "checking fences". I am fully aware of the responsibility of owning these types of dogs, so I take every precaution to keep them and the rest of the world safe, yet still let them enjoy life. They are both great with the horses. On occasion we will ask the Catahoula/Pit to get the big sorrel moving if he decides he wants to eat grass a little longer at night, when he should be heading to the barn --- that took some training it didn't just happen.
The little black dog is a rescue my neighbor took in -- he has a nice & big back yard, with two other rescues -- he knows how to get out of the fence as soon as his humans leave for work -- he is polite and great around the livestock (including their chickens), so he gets to come and play when I take my dogs out. He does great listening to commands for treats -- he has the smarts to keep himself out of trouble but he is in the minority, lol
^^^^Yes to this a thousand times as well! We don't currently have any dogs of our own but one of our neighbors has 4 large ones that come down to my yard, chase my animals, eat their food and take an aggressive stance when I go outside to yell at them. You know what's coming next. I love animals of all kinds but these ones are continually threatening mine so my patience is running very thin.
Yeah, there’s just something about having someone else’s dog barking and growling at you for being on your own property, which it has trespassed into. My patience is also growing very thin.
I have not shot a dog, but I sympathize with those who have repeatedly tried to deter the dog by other means.
Give me a short haired mixed breed with stand-up ears not floppy, light colored, with a minimum of aggressive traits, medium size. Female or neutered male.
I used to have a poodle and while she was a nearly perfect city dog, when she got in the country, the grass burrs in that thick curly coat were just a nightmare. I would also prefer never to have another dog with floppy earsl, due to ear infections. Especially bad with a thick coat.
A black dog really suffers in the summer sun and heat.
Boy you got that right! I raised and showed Borzoi for 20 years and you could never trust them around a cat or any other little critter, but then I coursed them besides showing at the AKC shows. Truly wonderful dogs to live with, but their prey drive is super strong. Some people know them by their old name of Russian Wolfhound.
Boy you got that right! I raised and showed Borzoi for 20 years and you could never trust them around a cat or any other little critter, but then I coursed them besides showing at the AKC shows. Truly wonderful dogs to live with, but their prey drive is super strong. Some people know them by their old name of Russian Wolfhound.
My favorite Borzoi youtube:
Cool! Makes me miss our dogs again. They weren’t Borzois, but one of them loved jumping. I used to stick my leg out like a hurdle and say, “Jump!” and he would sprint over to me to leap high over it.
They both were singlemindedly prey-driven, so no off-leash walks for them, ever.
Any working dog is good, as they tend to be smart. ( my current dog is a Jack Russell terrier, which were originally bred as 'ratters'. Very energetic, quick, and smart.
Any working dog is good, as they tend to be smart. ( my current dog is a Jack Russell terrier, which were originally bred as 'ratters'. Very energetic, quick, and smart.
Scots Collie are wonderful dogs, but very long fur which needs a LOT of grooming.
As a breeder of Scotch Collies, I would agree with a caveat about grooming as it can vary with the individual dog and how it's kept. They have a very thick undercoat so they can handle very nasty weather, and if they spend a lot of time outdoors, that undercoat can require quite a bit of work during shedding season, but not all Scotch Collies have the really long outer coat like the more common Rough Collie. Most of ours have a medium coat similar to the picture of the Border Collie in your picture.
Medium coat dogs that spend a lot of time in warm house, garages etc will not have as heavy of an undercoat.
I do agree that the Scotch Collie is a fabulous all purpose dog. Ours work stock, hunt, pull and pack loads, serve as therapy dogs and service dogs too. They're unbelievably loyal, very good watch dogs and fearless protecting their people.
Most of the dogs we produce go to ranches and farms, but because of their loyalty and intelligence, several have gone to people that need a service dog to help them by retrieving things the owner can't reach, or other therapy services too. We haven't had one become a full seeing eye dog yet, but one works for a deaf person helping them "hear" things that could be dangerous to them like traffic, smoke alarms, and also helps with alerting them to the doorbell or other sounds.
Yeah they need grooming, but I've never had a better or more versatile dog.
When I was growing up, my first dog was a border collie/aussie shepherd mix. It didn't bother the chickens, was as smart as they come, and pretty protective. My dad tried to spank my little sister in front of the dog once, and the dog took him. No, we didn't punish the dog for it. That was his job. He shed a lot. So get a furminator and do the dog once a day, all spring long.
Yeah, there’s just something about having someone else’s dog barking and growling at you for being on your own property, which it has trespassed into. My patience is also growing very thin.
I have not shot a dog, but I sympathize with those who have repeatedly tried to deter the dog by other means.
Have never had that happen, but had a serious bicycle crash once when a dog that was not contained chased on the roadway. Still dealing with the injuries from that years later. Even in rural areas you can't just let your dog run free.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
