Congrats on the new dog!
The only downside will be the constant high energy level - he will need exercise. (I would also recommend having him castrated so that he will socialize better and not be so worried about domination over other dogs - dog fights).
The poor little lad went into the vet this morning to have his procedure, so that's done.
I'm very much looking forward to getting this 2nd dog - our present dog is probably going to wet herself with joy at the prospect of having a full-time playmate.
I've also read that male Aussies tend to be a bit more easy-going or cuddly than the females, and based on the descriptions his first owner has given us, he's more of a laid-back dude than a frenzied busy bee.
OK - picked up the newest member of our pack yesterday and so far (knock on wood) it's going great. His name is Gus.
He's *very* different as compared with my other dog Lexi - I guess Aussies tend to be reserved with strangers which is worlds away from my Lab/Shepherd mix dog (aka Bull in a China Shop).
We spent a good 6 hours in the car yesterday together so now I am his new mom, in a huge way. He sticks to me like glue, and will go to others (including the kids and my husband) when he's called but won't stay there for long - he'll quietly leave them to find me and meld his body to me. It's endearing of course - he's the cutest thing ever. A real cuddlebug.
I am so impressed with the way he moves - I'm not sure if all Aussies are like this but he's so silently agile it's scary. He jumped over me onto the bed (which is a very tall/high bed) with little to no effort and made no sound. Walking him is like having a fluff of cloud on the end of the leash, gliding in zigzag patterns in front of me down the street.
I haven't introduced the two dogs yet - that'll happen this evening on more neutral territory. I'm worried for the poor little soul - our other dog is bound to be so super enthusiastic in her efforts to say hi and play with the new guy that he may be shellshocked. Not to mention that I swooped in there and took him from his home that he'd known all his life (he's 1 year) - it's a huge adjustment period for him. I was joking to my sister that I was tempted to get one or both of them some Valium to take the edge off the meeting...! Or maybe I'll just mix a margarita for me to take the edge off the meeting - that sounds like more fun.
Only 3.5 weeks left before we take off for sunny Florida and leave all this bloody snow behind. Gus has moved up in life with Airstreams and Palm trees... I should have named him George Jefferson!
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Michelle & family
(2 lively boys, 2 dogs & a hubby)
2005 25' International CCD
He sounds like a real doll! Good luck with the introductions. It's taken a month for Alki, our older eskie, to get used to the idea that Barclay puppy is here to stay, but our dalmatian (who has that happy-go-lucky attitude anyway) took to having a new buddy right away! I don't know what we'd do without Chester wearing him out for us! They wrestle and play until they both collapse and take a nap
In honor of Alki and her battle with cancer we will be participating in the 2008 American Cancer Society Relay For Life. Please click here if you would like to see her page and donate to the cause: Donate
Congrats. I had an Aussy for 13 years. She was the smartest dog we've ever had. Easy to train and always wanted to be in contact with one of us when sitting. She was a great watch/guard dog and great with kids. We have had several german shepherds over the years (I'm in my 50s) but none were as smart as our Aussy.
In honor of Alki and her battle with cancer we will be participating in the 2008 American Cancer Society Relay For Life. Please click here if you would like to see her page and donate to the cause: Donate
Anyone else have an Aussie? Or experience in agility?
Congrats on your new addition to your family! What a cutie! I don't know anything about Aussie's as we adopt Golden Retrievers. I do have experience in agility as I trained one of my Golden's in it. The Golden's are too big to ever win an agility run but they sure have fun trying! I have found that clicker training is the way to go with agility training. You need a means to quickly acknowledge to the dog that he did a good thing as you are sometimes too far apart to quickly give him a treat. Clicker training is used successfully on all sorts of critters including dolphins. It doesn't work well on husbands.
Michelle,
God luck with your new puppy (almost adult). May you have many years of fun and companionship.
Aussies are adorable and should do well in agility training. A friend of ours, who lives in Canada, has been going to agility training for 2 years with her Shelty and both seem to be enjoying it.
Marie
__________________ Slow down, and listen to the music, you don't have to be first in everything being done.
Finally introduced the younger, enthusiastic long-term resident to the newbie Aussie this evening.
Seems Gus (Aussie) didn't want to play with Lexi (lab/shep), at all. He ignored her like no one's business, and if she got too energetic he snapped a few times. I'm sure it'll take a bit for them to fall in love (or to accept their fate in life!) but in the meantime it'll take some patience and time.
I'll see about posting some pictures tomorrow - if I can get him to step away from me for a bit. I'm not sure if all Aussies latch onto one of their humans but it seems to be the case with us so far. Have to be careful not to let it get out of hand...
After all this dies down we're going to see about this agility thing - it's easy to see how Aussies could be good at this! I can't imagine six of them though - wow... Must keep you very busy Melody. I think I can see blue merles, red merles and black tris, right? Beautiful family!
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Michelle & family
(2 lively boys, 2 dogs & a hubby)
2005 25' International CCD
How's it going with the new pup, Michelle? It sounds like he's a velcro-dog and already very attached to you. I hope things work out for you with Gus and Lexi.
Well happy to report that after a week, things are going much better now than I had anticipated. The new guy (Gus) would rush at my lab Lexi and snap at her whenever she would get excited (which if you know Lab pups it's pretty much 100% of the time). I was beginning to worry.
I called a well-known canine behavior company to see if they could help, but I squawked when they quoted me a price of $745 plus tax - good for the lifetime of my pets... But I couldn't stomach that pricetag.
Ended up getting terrific advice for integrating a 2nd dog from an Aussie breeder/Agility trainer in the area. For free. Great info (don't put the dogs in the same crates all the time, keep switching them around so the new guy doesn't territorialize his sleeping quarters; don't feed them in their crates; feed the Lab first, etc...) - it worked for us anyway for the most part.
I've acquired a real shadow - he literally follows me everywhere, every time. No privacy left!! And it's almost impossible to take a picture of him because of that - he's either so close to me or else when I call him to look up at the camera he pops up to come over.
Should be interesting when trying to move around in the AS!
I'm going to try to take some pictures of the two goofs playing tug of war - great to watch!
__________________
Michelle & family
(2 lively boys, 2 dogs & a hubby)
2005 25' International CCD
I'm so glad to hear things are looking better. Look at that grin on Gus! And I completely understand Lexi's energy. I have an over-energetic GSD/Lab trying to crawl into my lap right now.
Yeah, I hadn't thought about a velcro dog in the Airstream. Ought to be interesting.
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In honor of Alki and her battle with cancer we will be participating in the 2008 American Cancer Society Relay For Life. Please click here if you would like to see her page and donate to the cause: 
Slow down, and listen to the music, you don't have to be first in everything being done.
And it's almost impossible to take a picture of him because of that - he's either so close to me or else when I call him to look up at the camera he pops up to come over. 
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