I do!! She is about 4 or 5 years old and is she ever stubborn!! She is an indoor dog and when she has to go out to go potty, she will bop me with her nose, whapp me with her paw or bark and growl at me if I make her wait a few minutes in order to get my shoes on. She does this every few hours all day long and I take her out and she just walks around sniffing and only a few times does she go potty. It's like she is bossing me around. What do you other Aussie owners do with your dogs. I just adopted Ellie about a month ago and I love her madly but for the life of me I can't understand what she is doing. I'd love to have some tips from you other owners.

Thanks a bunch,
Dar S. and Ellie

[wishbone]

Can you consider enrolling her to a obedience class? Aussies are very intelligent, they love challenges, you just need to supervise her and don't encourage bad behaviors.

[AuntieDale]

Hi! I have a golden retriever, and his best friend is an Aussie - yes, they have a LOT of energy! They are herders, so they need a lot of exercise - any chance you can join an agility class somewhere? I agree with Wishbone, they are very intelligent and love challenges...I think an agility class would really drain a lot of your dogs energy & Aussie's seem to really enjoy them.

I'd love to see a picture of your dog - I'm attaching one of my dog Kramer with his buddy Nomad - they both look so happy!

[DoggieVogue]

Originally Posted by AuntieDale

I'd love to see a picture of your dog - I'm attaching one of my dog Kramer with his buddy Nomad - they both look so happy!

what pretty pups!

[chevy & karen]

They both look like they are smiling... I love that picture.

I think she is so beautiful!!

I hope it comes through OK.

Dar S. and Ellie

[AuntieDale]

She is beautiful! And, I see that look in her eye...she wants to play!

[DoggieVogue]

Originally Posted by AuntieDale

She is beautiful! And, I see that look in her eye...she wants to play!

yea, she has that mischievous look in her eye@

WOW!! Is Ellie ever strong!! I took her outside last night before bed and there under the bird feeders was a pretty big racoon!! Ellie didn't give any warning at all -- just lunged at this racoon. It's a good thing that I had a leash on her. The racoon turned and ran and Ellie just kept pulling on that leash. Needless to say -- I've got a very sore arm today!! I hope that doesn't happen too often. Ellie knows the commands for stay and stop but she just ignored them. I hope I can get her to listen next time that happens -- which I'm sure it will. We live in a rural area with 7 acres of land. There are dense woods to the West of us so I haven't let her off her leash yet. I've only had her a month and I sure don't want to lose her. I would never be able to find her in the dark. Ellie is becoming more and more used to her surroundings but I would like to work with her more before trusting her off her leash. I don't think anyone has trained her very well. Well, I'll check back with you in a few days to catch up on things. Goodnight, Dar S. and Ellie

My dog is border collie and aussie shepard or blue heeler, they are smart pets, they will talk back and like to be active, my dog likes to play ball, she always was active, even now at 11.

Hello!

I have an Aussie who is 7 years old. With him I train tracking, obedience and agility a few times a week. We go at least one long walk per day.

An Aussie require much exercise but not forgetting, they need to use their brain as well. Just exercise is not enough for an Aussie, it is an active working dog that needs to get mental activation also to feel as good as possible. For example tracking, obedience exercises, tricks or whatever. You can practice short moments each day, let the dog search for candy, for example, just let the dog to use the head sometime in between