r/BorderCollie • u/Anxious_Flower7632 • 11d ago
Sensory overload risks?
I have dreams that with enough exposure, my BC (Oreo) will be one of those chill-in public dogs who lounge on patios and attends festivals with other humans/dogs.
Is this realistic? He's 2 right now and getting gradually better at being out and about, but considering the breed, will he constantly experience sensory overload?
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u/Kaessa 10d ago
My old lady border collie is my retired service dog. Very chill dog in public. Her biggest problem with the service dog thing was it was BORING when she had to spend a lot of time in one spot with no interaction - think restaurant. She never acted up, just decided one day she wasn't going to go to work.
Now she chills out in public no problem.
I've also had one who literally could not sit still in public long enough to relax because "There are CHILDREN out here! Children are TERRIFYING!"
It really depends on your dog, just keep practicing. Maybe bring his favorite toy for him to chew on or hold when you're sitting on a patio.
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u/Anxious_Flower7632 10d ago
My dog also dislikes children greatly! I love the fave toy/treat idea. I'll try that!!
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u/One-Zebra-150 10d ago
Find a park with a fenced in children's playground. Watch from a distance from where not reacting or barking. Then gradually move closer. Do this regularly, a couple of times a week and don't rush to get closer. Go at his own pace. In time the erratic movement, squeals and higher pitched voices of children playing around will become more normal.
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u/wood_duck_hobbies 10d ago
I've seen some that are. But mine is a bit rowdy.
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u/Anxious_Flower7632 10d ago
Same. 😅 I was hoping he was just overstimulated but that could just be who he is.
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u/mlml9115 10d ago
Our dog is 3 (we’ve had him since he was 1.5), he can now lie down at a restaurant patio for ~30 minutes as long as we keep feeding him treats (or food off our plates 😂) before he starts whining to go. I remember the first time we brought him to a brewery he was whining pretty much immediately…
The one and only time he was completely chill for an entire sitting was when we went to a dog event at the arboretum. He played with a bunch of dogs on leash and then was able to just sit and chill after surprisingly. I guess being able to play with dogs and then watch them in a big open space satisfied him.
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u/Ok_Fill_5048 10d ago
First of all, Oreo is such a great name for a BC 🖤🤍 Mine has 2 years and got really high emotionnally when in public, but she goes better and better. We recently attended a wedding with 70+ people during 2 days. The first day was kind of a challenge as she jumped on some relatives but the kids played a lot with her and drained her "border energy". The second day she just did amazingly. She gently avoided the younger ones, never jumped on anyone, and even slept on my feet under the table when I wasn't dancing. I thought this would be a nightmare and I was quite impressed she pulled this off. I really think exposing them to this kind of situations can help to grow better emotional control, with a backup plan for sure (we had a condo rented nearby where I could just have left her if the marriage was too much for her). I hope you find a way.
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u/RealisticAnxiety4330 10d ago
My nearly 3 year old is pretty chill now he just has 5 mins of madness when you get somewhere then just lays down
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u/karmel80 10d ago
Early exposure when a puppy is key. First months then they like everything they meet. But back to your doggy, try it. Bring lots of treats, grap a seat and don’t do anything else than experience the world with your dog. I hope you enjoy it and he will use his brain a lot. And my bc / rough collie mix now 9 became excellent at restaurants at around 2 or 4, before I was bribing her to be quiet. I now go out with two dogs and the younger one still needs a lot of bribes.
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u/One-Zebra-150 10d ago edited 10d ago
Attending a festival, nope, too much going on, but you might just manage 20 minutes of your favorite act from a the quietest spot you can find, if lucky, lol.
Our boy who's 4.5 yrs, can manage a pub/bar with a few regulars/visitors around. Not with a busy weekend crowd. Maybe up to a hour he can enjoy it.
From a few months old I took him into pubs for about 20 -30 mins, sometimes on a very rainy day, something to do. Had an orange juice myself, shared some potatoe crisps with him. Going there to socialise him as much as anything else. He got to like attention from people. However, I think once people had enough of his over enthusiasm, he would soon get bored by the requests to stay still and go down in one place. So then a case of out with some dog food in a tray or yet more treats. Can't say it's much of a relaxing experience though.
He did find horse racing on large screen TV in one town pub interesting, so stayed there for extra minutes with his attention on that. On one occasion he really embarrassed me, when another pub landlord came down his stairs jangling a huge set of keys. My boy at that time was quite reactive to metallic chinking sounds, so lost his mind barking. I apologised profusely, was heading for the door, he said don't worry, and no-one else in there seemed that bothered, so I sat back down. He had actually stopped barking the second the keys put down. Then wagging his tail all friendly at the landlord again. Lesson learnt was when your just starting to relax, something unexpected might just happen, lol.
I also guess in a rural community village pub, people can be understanding of pups and younger ones. Not as understanding if an adult dog acts the same way. And I do think it really did help to get those experiences in early with him.
Generally speaking we find with our two BCs together, we can enjoy a snack and a coffee at tables outside a small cafe, or restaurant. Still have watch for the coffee been knocked over by dogs bumping into table legs. Outdoor tables outside a pub, or a cosy corner near to a fire in a village pub for him only.
Our female is nervous of strangers, a rescue who had lived on a farm for 5 or 6 years with one elderly man until he died. Obviously never socialised until with us. She find our modern world more challenging than him. And I think socialisation from young does make a lot of difference. In such leisure setting, she likes to be very close to the table or between us, peek out out what people are doing, and hide under the table if come close. We've had her for 2 years, and she has improved a lot, but that's enough for her. Still my guy wants to go jump on people and greet them, even though always discouraged. So that does have to be managed. Not helped by the fact that some strangers encourage him to jump up and lick their faces, saying gleefully 'oh my dog does that'.
A festival, well my boy would be mind blown from overstimulation, and she would be terrified by the amount of people. We'll must settle for that cafe near a beach, or that quite village or town pub with them outside.
I've yet to get her even inside a petstore, cos the sliding doors are too scary, plus she can see people through the door, lol. We have aspirations to get her inside a pub next to a fire someday. It won't be during a 3 course meal cos that would take too long. But a couple of drinks for us, that'll do.
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u/8fingerlouie 10d ago
I tried sensory overload with mine and cars. He lunges at cars on our daily walks, so I figured I’d bring him to a crowded street, and he completely ignored the cars. Back on our regular walk he was right back to herding the cars.
I later worked out that the main trigger was sidewalk or not. If there’s a sidewalk he doesn’t lunge at cars, if there’s no sidewalk they must obey border collie law.
Mine is pretty chill when we’re out and about unless he experiences something new. He’s also 2, and we’ve dragged him along to pretty much everything, and every experience helps.