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Countrified as opposed to citified2007-11-25 3:00:28

I have a lovely small breed Border Collie. He's 2 1/2 years old. For the first year I tried to relocate him to a ranch for cowdogging, which is in his blood as it is with all Border Collies. By the end of the year though, he has settled well into small town life [I have a large fenced yard] and I have obedience trained him and taught him to retrieve etc. etc. Yesterday I ran into a rancher who wanted him - he was completely impressed with him, and Theo would have the life of a working dog, which is what he is.

However, we are so close, and he is the only family I have, and I love him heart and soul, so even the thought of giving him up brings me to tears. Am I doing him a disservice by keeping him?

Answers:

I have a 10 year old Border Collie, had him since he was 4 months old. he is not or never has been interested in herding, playing frisbee or retrieving anything, he prefers the big leather chair in the living room rather than a walk. border collies are smart, sometimes smarter than you think. if he has settled in and is comfortable where he is and plays, has fun and is not doing anything destructive because he is bored. you are not doing any disservice to him by keeping him. border collies are bonded to their owner-they tend to be a one person dog-i think you will break your heart, his heart and even my heart if you gave him away to a farm (now i am in tears). keep loving your pup with your heart and soul! God Bless you both.

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Keep the dog. He's a small breed collie, he'll do fine in the city. Dogs are VERY versatile. Sounds like you have a nice place for your dog to play and he gets lots of attention. There is no sense in getting rid of him sinec you seem to take good care of him and love him. I have an American Rat Terrier, and they were bred to hunt rats and other small rodents, but I live in town and my dog is PERFECTLY fine. My dog doesn't care one way or the other where he is, in town, in the country he doesn't care. He wags his stubby tain no matter what. So I say.keep the dog. If he's part of the family you wouldnt' just give him up.

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No. Is your dog happy with you? Are you happy with your dog? If the answer is yes to both of these questions than keep your dog. Just because someone wants to "have" your dog doesn't mean he'd be happy or that the rancher would be happy; your dog might not work for him the way he works for you, the rancher may have different expectations of a working dog than your dog is use to experiencing. You say you tried to relocate him to a ranch for cowdogging, did it succeed? It sounds like you both would be happy staying the way you are .

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no you are not, as long as he is being loved by you he won't care what he is doing, you seem to take very good care of your dog, he doesn't need to be working everyday of his life to be happy, he just needs to be loved, feed, taken care of, challenaged, and by the sounds of it with you. KEEP HIM!