the-cosmic-ray

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While some of it is hereditary, no doubt, I think it has a *lot* to do with owner attitude too. A lot of border collie people start off on the premise that borders absolutely NEED to be stimulated 24/7 else they'll die. And I don’t think this is true except for some marginal cases. I genuinely think it’s learned. People try really really hard, thinking that hey, it’s a puppy, gotta offer constant enrichment, and it builds into a habit that is very hard to change. Esp since borders don’t struggle with lack of stimulation as much as they struggle with fixation.

It’s unfortunate too because if you look up borders, you’re going to find a buttload of precisely this kind of advice. Borders are crazy! Give them something to do constantly or they’ll ruin your life! This, added on top of puppies being a bit of a pain at times, is just terrific. People try it out, and exhaust their puppies by constantly giving them stuff to do, they are pleased with their very tired puppy who eventually falls asleep like a log, but fail to realize that they will build up stamina and will eventually reach a point where they can go all day lol.

My boy is half agility lines (Fetch is his dad, and he tends to produce some crazy puppies) and half ISDS lines. He’s a reactive doofus and tends to be overkill most of the time, but he has a very clear and precise off-switch. Agility-wise, he can go until he’s overheating, and we had days when we were at the training fields all day from morning till sundown, and he never tires. At home? Very chill. Sleeps most of the day, isn’t over the top, doesn’t ask for play and isn’t pushy. I work full time and that’s 12 hours of being away from home and he’s perfectly fine. Ever since he injured his foot, we haven’t been exercising either and frankly? He’s got no problem whatsoever. He gets basic 10 min walks and he’s perfectly fine.

But I’m a very no-nonsense kind of person, so everything has been very clear from the beginning. I never trained for this, I simply made it clear that excitement leads to nothing if it’s out of context, and I never tried to “induce” calmness by offering stimulatory activities because honestly, it seems incredibly counterintuitive to me. Giving a dog a kong (which is exciting in itself) specifically as a way to keep them quiet only teaches them to expect stimulation when it’s quiet time. It offers temporary relief for tired owners, but essentially teaches the opposite of calmness. Giving a kong as a fun activity however, outside of quiet hours, is awesome. My boy simply learned that expectations are directly tied to the present context. Home was always quiet time, so he never expects exercise, and therefore, doesn’t get frustrated over unmet expectations.

Recovering from some mystery illness that kicked my ass for the last 4 days. Today I seemed to have turned a corner, no more fever or any ill-feelings but I'm so weak I can barely clean up the dishes I used while sick.

My mom took care of Arson since I basically could only crawl to the door to let the dogs potty (thank god for flexi leads and good dogs who go right to the grass, pee, and come back in) and he needs a lot more attention and play than I could give at the time. He's coming back tomorrow and I've been able to see him every day, but yeah, not a good time to be on my own with a puppy. I'm glad I have that support system.

It does make me really appreciate a good dog, though. Kai has been all across the country and in just about every living situation imaginable. On acreage, in a tiny 3rd floor apartment, in the suburbs, thousands of hotels of all types, and now again on a bottom floor apartment. She was quite alright with the "sick routine" that consisted of move from the bed to the couch, potty via extenda-leash, chill on the couch all day, potty, dinner, bed. Taro, who is always balls-to-the-walls when she does things, has been equally calm. She has a signature move of pushing people, especially when excited, that she hasn't done once the entire time. She has a whole basket of toys that she has free access to, and yet she only chose a handful to quietly play by herself while I was on the couch. When it was her turn to potty, she went out, did her business, and came right back, and while she waited for Kai (only one flexi), she sat on the couch versus trying to race outside and play. People who meet her only at agility or sports-related functions would never imagine how calm she is when it isn't time for craziness. I think this is an immeasurably valuable asset that is sorely missing in so many sports dogs. Both girls have always been this way. It takes minimal training for me to have them like this, and while i try my best to provide some sort of stimulation or enrichment, they also have recieved basically nothing to "make" them quiet and settled.

I get the feeling Arson also possesses this trait, as he is already easing into a calmer tempo when he is inside. He reads a room well and catches on to what is allowable or favorable behavior quickly just from observation. I would not and do not expect him to have the "off switch" the same way Kai and Taro do at his current age, nor will I until he is perhaps two, and even then, he is his own dog and may not be able to settle quite like the others. But having only been this "level" of sick once before in my life, I am just so immensely appreciative of dogs that have the built-in ability to just be calm, and then have the life experience and training to maintain calmness and "easiness" for long periods of very boring and empty time.

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LOL yeah. I still have the piece of Unrecognized Material™ that caused an intestinal obstruction and a very painful and dirty week for my dog. It’s locked up in a jar. I asked to see it after they surgically removed it and they let me keep it.

I just saw on a breed fb group I'm apart of one of the members has a friend with the breed who keeps the testicles in a jar after his dogs are neutered and displays them in his garage.... like..... wtf....

I guess I’m not the right person to tell that story to because I’m not overly weirded out by that idea. It’s not something I’d do but plenty of people keep wet specimens of pieces of themselves or their animals that were removed for one reason or another. I wanted my tooth that was pulled, but the dentist wouldn’t let me keep it (rude, it came out of my mouth and it was hurting me so I should be able to keep a keepsake at least).

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I’m an e-collar user and not afraid to admit it, because in the right hands, they’re very powerful tools that can and will assure your dog’s safety in critical moments. Hilariously, I was also once an avid hater @ the subject and would judge anyone even contemplating one instantly lol. But then I witnessed my dog bolt out of the yard and nearly straight into the street (back when he had extreme car reactivity and wanted nothing but to jump in front of passing cars)

They’re also typically not as horrifying or aversive as the average pet-lover makes them out to be. I also tested mine on myself before putting it on the dog and can vouch @ the idea that it just feels like a gentle stim, kinda like when someone rubs on the couch and then touches you (except much softer imo). I have seen people practically strangle their dog with flat collars, so yeet, by all means any tool can become horrifying in the wrong hands.

I have a soft dog as well, he typically responds to voice alone, but have used one to reinforce our training, heeling, and general responsiveness, especially in triggering situations, and can definitely say it’s a better choice than the alternatives (I have short patience, so even when I try not to get upset, it’s noticeable in my voice and he is a soft dog, so he gets increasingly more anxious just by feeding off of me. With the e-collar, I never need to use my voice, nor my body, to control his response, so there’s never any pressure from me. He responds 20 times better, without getting more aroused or anxious about triggering situations). 

I think the best thing about them as a tool is the complete lack of pressure. Any sort of leash puts pressure on the dog, especially when used to control them. If you pull on a leash, regardless where or to what it’s attached, you’re causing bodily pressure. Voice can cause pressure to a sensitive dog, especially if, like me, you get frustrated and anxious easily. Even treats can cause pressure, particularly if you’re rewarding a behavior you ask for (but not if you reward a behavior that is already happening). I can vouch for this one because my boy is definitely aroused when learning and practicing new things. Extra arousal on top of anxiety never truly helps. 

I’m saying this because Cosmo is a pressure sensitive dog, so when his car reactivity was at its peak, neither positive reinforcement, nor corrections truly worked. You could see that the more pressure you’d put on him, the more anxious and frantic he would become. He was a dog that was under control, but visibly stressed out and anxious. The only instance I saw the opposite was with the e-collar, when a low stim would remind him to keep his reactions in check before they escalated, clearly and concisely, and thus there would never be any leash pressure, nor any pressure from my voice or body language. His anxiety would noticeably go down, not up. It’s all about communication imo. It’s a tool that communicates what you wants effectively, clearly, and without emotional bleeding. There’s no “I’m frustrated now” or “I’m anxious now”, just an always stable and unchanging stim to remind them to focus.

And I’m happy to say my boy is very stable nowadays. His car reactivity is fully gone and his recall is extremely reliable. He can walk off-leash without me worrying about anything. I very rarely use it at this point, typically only as a safety net when a situation feels too stressful for me, because I know myself and how  easily I get frustrated and how unhelpful that is, if something does happen. And really, It’s just on the dog and not getting used because nothing has really happened anywhere near recently lol. It just makes me feel calmer, which in turn keeps anxiety levels low.

I'm probably either going to get shit from Some People for this, or just lose some followers (couldn't care less about the latter), but talk to me about e-collars.

I used to be a jumped-up little shit who spoke out about how BAD e-collars, prong collars, and choke chains all are. I still think these are all easily misused, but I want to learn about how people them responsibly instead of just sitting on a high horse slating them like I used to.

There's a HUGE cultural difference in opinion of these tools. Here in the UK you're treated as an animal abuser for even thinking about using an e-collar, but it seems very routine in the states. I'm genuinely uneducated in how balanced trainers use them effectively, and have no idea where to start learning about it.

I have no intention of using an e-collar on Mack. He doesn't need one and is a very soft dog.

If anyone has any educational e-collar links for me to follow, hit me up! I understand learning theory and the four quadrants, just not how the collars are commonly utilised.

Please don't bother to interact if you're just going to tell me that they're outright abusive in all circumstances. I've been that person and it helps no-one.

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That’s super cool! :O

I wanted to work on this with Cosmo but in the end it kinda didn;t happen lol

YALL I TAUGHT LILY TO JUMP OFF WALLS IN 7 MINUTES FLAT!!

Seriously!! I can’t believe my formerly obese beagle who couldn’t go for long walks before is so happy, food motivated, and biddable! Beagles are so freaking smart!

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Border collie here too and he’s a working type. He can go forever and has crazy drive... IF he’s working. Outside of that, he’s got an incredibly good off-switch and has no problem over whether he gets exercise or not. He hurt his paw (suspected broken toe) 2 weeks ago and has been on forced “bed-rest” the entire time, and that means not even walks, just potty outings. He’s not going stir crazy, nor is he showing any signs of needing any exercise, despite being an agility working dog :). I think I miss agility days more than he does.

I’m not chronically ill, but I have ADHD and the energy level of a newborn baby, so I have days when I simply can’t handle doing more than waking up and eating, and he’s very forgiving about it.

hey! ignore these idiots, arlo is a super well trained little angel! if you don't mind me asking, how energetic is arlo, and how do you keep him stimulated and happy? i'm chronically ill, and while i've always wanted a bc/aussie mix, i never thought i had a chance at handling one til i saw you and arlo!

You’re sweet, thank you :)

I think I might have gotten super lucky with Arlo. There are a lot of ways in which he is super standard for the breed(s), but on a normal day to day basis, he’s not extremely energetic.

He can be! He’s willing to be! He just has a freakishly fantastic off switch. He’s happy to lay around with me on my lay around days, and he’s happy to be released into a field to run and run and run and chase squirrels and catch a frisbee. Or to go from napping to having a wrestling match with me. He rarely runs around our yard though, and prefers to just graze around monching weeds and sniffing stuff.

We used to do a lot of trick training, but he didn’t really seem to enjoy it except for when he finally got it down, so now we just play with tricks he already knows. It seems like he gets a little frustrated or defeated if he’s learning something new and doesn’t pick it up in two seconds; he doesn’t like not knowing what I’m asking of him. But he does love cycling through all the stuff he has down :)

We usually drive to the old cemetery in the neighborhood everyday, but haven’t been lately. We will again. There he just ruuuns around releasing energy and finding sticks while I follow him. He’s usually worn out in 15-20.

At home he has a job, and he loves his job very much. He’s trained to alert me if a cat nears a rodent’s cage, and to herd the cats away himself if I’m not home or don’t respond, and then guard the cages/keep the cats corralled until they lose interest. I didn’t train the herding at all, but I did encourage it. Him and the Problem Cat are very good friends and his job doesn’t hinder that at all. I have rodents in every room of the house, pretty much. I just started keeping the lady rat’s bedroom door open to make his job a lil harder. (The cats aren’t actively pursuing the rodents & the rodents are safe from danger, but sometimes Rory does express interest in Finch the hamster. She for the most part leaves them all alone nowadays, but Arlo doesn’t wanna take any chances.) She doesn’t get within 5 feet of the rat cages. We all (Me, Arlo, the cats) sleep together, so it’s not really a concern when he’s out.

Besides that, he’s honestly happy to just play catch all day. He loves nothing more than to play catch with his tennis balls.

I think maybe it’s possible to have an Aussie and/or BC and be chronically ill if you have a yard and can give them a job in the house and a lot of attention? Arlo and I are very close and rarely apart. If you ever go for it I’d just recommend getting to know the parents and their energy level/off switch situation if possible. But, like I said, I think I might have just gotten lucky with Arlo, so you should definitely ask around with others. @malociraptor might have some insight?? Fizz is a BC!

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AHH, my boy!! He is babbi 😍 I love this so much, thank you!!! ❤❤❤

Dogblr Inktober Day 2 - “A dogblr of a breed you really want to own”

Today’s picture is of @the-cosmic-ray !

While I already know my next dog is going to be another Chinese Crested or another German Shepherd, I wanted to draw something a little different than those comfort zone dogs. I’m also really interested in a Border Collie! Moreso a sporty version rather than am. showline. Cosmo is a handsome boy I recommend following!

(Side note, my editing to try to color match my photos reallly shows off imperfections lol. It looks better irl)

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Cosmo fits this criteria...ish. He’s 58cm tall, and weighs 18-19kg 

polling dogblr:

how many of you have dogs that are ~20” tall and 40-45lbs?

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PRETTY!!! 🤩 This is one of the reasons I hate living in the city. No fun man, no fun whatsoever. Dad found this cool hog skull on our last mountain adventure, and I gotta say, I live for this stuff!!

Kai found some bones today. I think they belonged to a fox but I couldn't find a skull to confirm

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OMG 😂😂😂. I'm literally dying, Taro's face represents how everyone feels @ those type of encounters. Cosmo feels exactly the same. We had one vet visit (which he LOVES, he loves vets, they're a source of love and attention and hes Gay for it) and all was fine and jolly, until this extraordinarily loud husky came in and proceeded to walk back and forth HOWLING and SCREAMING the entire time, in true husky fashion, while his owner laughed and “comforted” him the entire time. Needless to say my jolly happy dog deflated into the saddest puddle of depression within 1 second flat.

Traumatized children at the vet. Some dude brought an adolescent husky who was pulling him everywhere and as they walked towards us, he says "Oh let's not bother those dogs. Maybe you should be more like them," and the husky projectile-coughed in our direction as he dragged it away laughing.

The husky then sat on the other side of the benches and coughed on my shoulder while it peered over looking at Kai (having a screamy meltdown on the floor) and Taro (whose soul has left this dimension)

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Same!!!! This is the pinnacle of our selfie attempts 😂

weirdo

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Agility seminary with Dasa Zakotnik <3

Love my boy and our improvement as a team. We’re doing so good! It’s hard to believe I nearly quit agility at the beginning of this year!

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Is he the bestest boy? Yes he is! Should I upload videos more often? Yes I should. Will I? Hard to say 😂

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Honestly, debatable. Big big effect? Probably not. But from what I understand, dew claws (front ones) are used often for stabilizing during tight turns, when running. In the absence of dew claws, the joint is far more prone to twisting and either pulling ligaments (leading to weakness) or breakage. Dew claws should, in my opinion, never be removed unless they’re not attached by bone/functional, or unless the activity the dog will do is known for ripping dew claws. Sporting dogs especially should keep them. I can’t imagine doing agility with a declawed dog, I’d be worried about the constant twisting and the result, in time.

Lol ok you don’t think testicular neoplasia or pyometra is a big health problem that says pretty much all that needs to be said. By hormone related problems I mean literally everything I just said - health issues caused by hormones. But we can add in the behavioural issues caused by hormones too for a complete list of why you should desex! Glad you’re such a responsible dog owner, hope your dogs never get entirely preventable life threatening illnesses!

Wow, you’re cute. :)

First of all, testicular neoplasia is not common, and only a small percentage of testicular tumors are malignant. Pyo is more common, but you know what? I’ve had intact bitches for 15 years and I’ve never had a case of pyo. I’m sure someday I will, but I’ll cross that bridge when I reach it.

Dogs have hormones for a reason. Pardon me for believing in letting dogs keep their hormones.

You have a nice day. :)

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Agility art y’all <3

A commission from an agility friend and ex mentor/instructor of her two dogs, Bookie and Feel

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things like this make me cry because i went so long before realizing there was actually a reason for these things and that i’m not just a failure of a person

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You ever just... yell about #dog sports??

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Where’s the lie tho 😂

#training and Other Things That Ruined My Life: An Autobiography by the-cosmic-ray