Raising my first ever Border Collie

It may surprise you to know that I am not a Border Collie fan. Your question will surely be ''then why are you choosing to raise a Border Collie pup?''
Most of us are aware that the Border Collie is the 'smartest' type of dog in the dog world. Less of us are aware that smartness doesn't always make the best pet. Sadly some people go out and buy a farm Border Collie thinking that a dog is a dog.
I am a dog trainer (http://www.dundeedogtrainer.co.uk/) and have been involved with many Border Collie cases, and they are on the increase. Mostly resource guarding or herding-the-children issues, but in all cases the owners call for help because of their bad or problem dog. I woke up one Saturday morning and the thought came to me that I should know more about this working dog, and what better way than to raise my own, and keep a diary of his progress, which would hopefully help me to understand and therefore benefit future clients and their dogs.

So 'Louis' was to be my experiement - a glimpse into Border Collie, and a test to find out whether I too would fail at raising a well-rounded Border Collie.

As we dog trainers joke; there are dogs then there are collies.

This is not a totally vaild experiment; I have experience with training many types of dogs and of course would be training and socialising this pup from day one. Also he is just one individual and could be a fluke.

The purpose of writing this diary is for you, if you were to come across the same road blocks when you’re raising your pup (any breed, but obviously especially a border collie).