Getting a sheltie?

[Cass C]

I am and have always been a border collie person, however my DH partial to Shelties. We currently have 2 border collies a 1 year old purebred and 1 1/2 year old border/mix. My DH has his heart set on adding a sheltie to the family, but I am not so sure.

1) My biggest fear is that they will be harder to train, and since I am the one who does the majority of the dog training it will fall on me to train a new dog.

2) I am also worried about the grooming of a dog with a fluffy coat.

3) Would a sheltie be able to play safely with my border collies or will all playtimes have to be strictly supervised? The mix is just over 50 lbs.

4) My DH does not want to do agility or any of the high energy activities I play with the collies with the sheltie, and I don't have the time to work with 3 high energy dogs. So is not doing a high energy activity with a sheltie going to negatively impact the dog? (I.E make them a terror like a bored border collie?)

5) Border collies tend to be a one person dog. They will interact with other people, but you know who their 'person' is. Are Shelties also this way, because my DH would like a dog that loves the entire family and hangs out with everyone, not just their favorite person.

Any help or additional advice would be greatly appreciated! Also don't get me wrong I love all animals, but I need to know a lot more about Shelties before adding one to the family.

 

[Silaria]

1) My biggest fear is that they will be harder to train, and since I am the one who does the majority of the dog training it will fall on me to train a new dog.

Shelties are one of the smartest breeds of dog; number 5 on the most recent list I saw a few months ago. They normally learn a behavior within three repetitions, if not faster, and are often the start of any obedience class.

I, personally, use clicker training with mine and find they learn a new behavior faster with the clicker the verbal markers.

2) I am also worried about the grooming of a dog with a fluffy coat.

Ideally a Sheltie should be line brushed once a week; twice a week if blowing coat. The brushing doesn't take that long if you do it regularly. I also have mine professionally groomed every other month. (I'd do it myself but I don't have a space to set up grooming station.)

3) Would a sheltie be able to play safely with my border collies or will all playtimes have to be strictly supervised? The mix is just over 50 lbs.

Mine occasionally stay with a friend from my agility club who has three border collies and frequently has a foster for the rescue she works with. They all got along great. If the Shelties wanted to run and play, they played. If they wanted to just lay down, the BCs left them alone.

I had another dog friend of mine comment that over the years she's observed that herding dogs tend to have a similar style of play that mixes well together. (I don't have personal experience here so take that information as offered.)

4) My DH does not want to do agility or any of the high energy activities I play with the collies with the sheltie, and I don't have the time to work with 3 high energy dogs. So is not doing a high energy activity with a sheltie going to negatively impact the dog? (I.E make them a terror like a bored border collie?)

As with all dogs, some are more active, others are more laid back and happy to be couch potatoes. Edan is my worker-bee dog. He'll do anything I ask of him without question to the best of his ability. At home, he'll lay around and relax most of the time. (After dinner is play time with the toys. He waits until we finish eating then brings over a toy to play with for about 30 minutes.) CJ, she's my couch-potato. She'll work (rally, agility, etc.) but would rather just lay around and be adored.

If you work with a good, reputable breeder and/or rescue, and are honest about what you plan to do with the dog, they should pair you with the correct one.

5) Border collies tend to be a one person dog. They will interact with other people, but you know who their 'person' is. Are Shelties also this way, because my DH would like a dog that loves the entire family and hangs out with everyone, not just their favorite person.

Again, this is going to depend on the dog's individual personality. My girl, CJ, is an equal opportunity snuggler but she's definitely "Daddy's girl". My boy, Edan, is snuggly when he wants to be but is always close by where he can keep an eye on his "sheeple".

By the way, Edan and CJ are litter-mates so you can see the differences in personality between the dogs quite clearly.

 

[SheepOfBlue]

I am and have always been a border collie person, however my DH partial to Shelties. We currently have 2 border collies a 1 year old purebred and 1 1/2 year old border/mix. My DH has his heart set on adding a sheltie to the family, but I am not so sure.

1) My biggest fear is that they will be harder to train, and since I am the one who does the majority of the dog training it will fall on me to train a new dog.

2) I am also worried about the grooming of a dog with a fluffy coat.

3) Would a sheltie be able to play safely with my border collies or will all playtimes have to be strictly supervised? The mix is just over 50 lbs.

4) My DH does not want to do agility or any of the high energy activities I play with the collies with the sheltie, and I don't have the time to work with 3 high energy dogs. So is not doing a high energy activity with a sheltie going to negatively impact the dog? (I.E make them a terror like a bored border collie?)

5) Border collies tend to be a one person dog. They will interact with other people, but you know who their 'person' is. Are Shelties also this way, because my DH would like a dog that loves the entire family and hangs out with everyone, not just their favorite person.

Any help or additional advice would be greatly appreciated! Also don't get me wrong I love all animals, but I need to know a lot more about Shelties before adding one to the family.

IMO
1) Likely a little different to train but not hard Shelties are also smart
2) I am guessing more work than a BC
3) Nope my guys hang out with the BCs on the flyball team just fine. Sca does hate the BC puppy screech bark they have (thankfully it goes away as I agree with him)
4) Not to the degree of a BC but some. I imagine the play time with BCs will help this a bunch. Though expect some time.
5) Shelties for the most part are people dogs if it is their people. They do have a favorite like most dogs though.

Also IMO Shelties have a MUCH broader size/personality variance than BCs. I love the team BCs but they are all a bit hyper focused. In Shelties I have Sca the laid back and Spitfire the reactive who also vary from oversized to barely in size. So I guess my point is there is less the 'typical' Sheltie than there is the typical BC.

Good luck.

 

[Greenepony]

1) My biggest fear is that they will be harder to train, and since I am the one who does the majority of the dog training it will fall on me to train a new dog.
2) I am also worried about the grooming of a dog with a fluffy coat.
3) Would a Sheltie be able to play safely with my border collies or will all playtimes have to be strictly supervised? The mix is just over 50 lbs.
4) My DH does not want to do agility or any of the high energy activities I play with the collies with the Sheltie, and I don't have the time to work with 3 high energy dogs. So is not doing a high energy activity with a Sheltie going to negatively impact the dog? (I.E make them a terror like a bored border collie?)
5) Border collies tend to be a one person dog. They will interact with other people, but you know who their 'person' is. Are Shelties also this way, because my DH would like a dog that loves the entire family and hangs out with everyone, not just their favorite person.

1. While less intelligent shelties exist, I would say the difference between working with a BC and a Sheltie will be far less than if you were to work with a non-herding breed dog (Shelties are still in the top 10 of that dog intelligence list)
2. Others have covered this pretty well. I have a fairly flat coated Sheltie now and she requires about the same time grooming (15 minutes once or twice a week, I typically just use a greyhound brush and a spray like CC Ice on Ice) as my parents' fuller coated Sheltie. Clipping and grinding nails takes longer than brushing out her coat.
3. My Sheltie (13" and finer boned) prefers playing with other herding breeds if they're going to be bigger than her. They tend to have the same attitude towards play, at least in our neighborhood.
4. While I take my Sheltie for runs, she is very happy with just a box of toys and a couch to sleep on. We do feed in puzzles on occasion to give her brain more to do, especially when we can get to the gym to get a good long obedience training session in.
5. While I'm Olive's "person", she is very happy to hang out with DH in his office. She was far more attached to me when I was the only person she saw during the day. When I'm out of the house more and DH works from home she gets more equal exposure and latches on less.

 

[Lunatic59]

1) My biggest fear is that they will be harder to train.

Not at all. The problem might be how long it takes the Sheltie to train you.

2) I am also worried about the grooming of a dog with a fluffy coat.

Not really that much different from a BC. Brush once a week, watch for matting, especially behind the ears and check the back end, especially if they are really thick back there because things can get stuck.

3) Would a sheltie be able to play safely with my border collies or will all playtimes have to be strictly supervised? The mix is just over 50 lbs.

I don't see why not. It would probably depend on the size of the Sheltie. They do vary a bit. Jackson is getting close to 40 lbs, while Franklin is probably not going over 30. They play just fine together and with other dogs.

4) My DH does not want to do agility or any of the high energy activities I play with the collies with the sheltie, and I don't have the time to work with 3 high energy dogs. So is not doing a high energy activity with a sheltie going to negatively impact the dog? (I.E make them a terror like a bored border collie?)

Shelties will adapt to their owner's activity levels, but they need mental activity possibly more. A bored Sheltie is a troublemaker.

5) Border collies tend to be a one person dog. They will interact with other people, but you know who their 'person' is. Are Shelties also this way, because my DH would like a dog that loves the entire family and hangs out with everyone, not just their favorite person.

Our boys are willing to snuggle with anyone providing treats are involved.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is that Shelties can be sensitive. While they will give you 110% of their devotion but you have to earn it.

 

[Cass C]

I am used to sensitive dogs as the majority of border collies crumple like a wet paper sack if you so much as look at them in what they perceive as discontent.

 

[Caro]

I think in adolescence you may even find a sheltie easier to train than a BC because Shelties don't go through that crazy phase so much and get their focus much earlier.

I think BCs are one of the best playmate matches for Shelties (after BCs go through that crazy adolescent phase). They certainly have similar styles. Overall, Shelties are similar to BC in temperament, but less intense.

IMO
Also IMO Shelties have a MUCH broader size/personality variance than BCs. I love the team BCs but they are all a bit hyper focused. In Shelties I have Sca the laid back and Spitfire the reactive who also vary from oversized to barely in size. So I guess my point is there is less the 'typical' Sheltie than there is the typical BC.

Definitely agree with this. If my Shelties aren't walked twice a day they go stir crazy. But there are other people on this forum who seem to have much quieter shelties. If you're looking for a laid back one you may be better off getting a male. Females are more likely to throw up some high energy ones.

 

[pixiepurls]

I think it really depends on the particular dog, but the BC's I've met have been much more intense and required much more exercise. A sheltie can get exercise by you sitting in a carpeted room and playing fetch while you watch tv with a soft frisbee. This was so fun, I did it all the time. My boy just loved it, his absolute favorite thing.

My favorite was I would stand in place and clap and my sheltie would run around me like crazy until he was tired. Too me that seemed super low maintenance! I would observe the energy level of the parents. They also like soccer with a soft plush ball.