Hi, I have a year old Australian Shepherd. He's very sweet and lovable and for the most part seems like a happy guy. But, everything I've read about this breed is that they need a job. He gets a decent amount of exercise, but my boyfriend and I work full time so during the day he's home alone. I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions about "jobs" we can give him around the house to keep him occupied. I'd love to have him to do the laundry and vacuum! Does anyone have any practical jobs we can give him? We live in a suburban area and unfortunately he can't be outside by himself without being on a leash.
I have an Australian Shepherd and she will be a year old next month. She is a very good dog as well. We have come to find that walking and jogging with her are not enough. She even gets bored with us trying to play in our backyard. We have started Doggie day care, which she LOVES! She wants to be with other dogs and she needs to run. We also started teaching her basic tricks. She learns very quickly. She knows sit, down, but we are trying to make it interesting. She is extremely attentive when we are trying to teach her something new and go over the old tricks. Something easy has "where is the TV" or "Go to the ottoman". My Husband made the neighborhood playground an obstacle course for her, small jumps and so on. We also got some inexpensive agility hoops for our yard. We are looking at getting a dog back pack. But mostly it's the doggie day care that has made her happy. She needs to be with other dogs and run. Please let me know how your pup is doing.
Hi, Shepherds are fabulous dogs.....I have a mix named Petey (see profile). He's believed to be Aussie Shepherd mixed with something else (has to be another shepherd breed) We have a large fenced in yard. However, even the fence fell victim to Petey's endless energy, he broke through a board in order to herd the dogs next door! I'm working with him now to try to alleviate his need for constant stimulation. I don't have a solution for you, but I sure understand your problem. Sounds like Doggy Day Care is a good solution (if expensive) Maybe some agility training would help him? I'm home all day (disabled) so I'm starting to train Petey to do some things for me. Hopefully, that will give him enough mental stimulation to help.
Thanks, everyone. Unfortunately chew toys and kongs filled with things don't seem to last him very long. I did buy a Waggle from the Busy Buddy dog toy line but if he can't get the treats out after like 2 minutes he gets bored with it. I think I have a high energy dog with ADD! I did break down and started taking him to doggy daycare a couple days of week. He LOVES it there and comes home absolutely exhausted after playing all day.
I usually will give my dogs Kongs stuffed with peanut butter. There are also other toys that you fill with kibble and a little falls out here and there when they play with it. Look at http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2751743&lmdn=Dog for an idea of what I mean.
I thought you might like the suggestion in this article about boredom, too. There's an idea in there about making a scent trail. It sounded neat:
http://www.pets.com/petcare/articles/tricks-beat-boredom.
Good luck! :-)
My sister had an Australian Shepherd and she didn't have a specific job.....guarding the house was enough :-) As long as you're giving him adequate exercise like good long walks or jogs and on the weekends maybe a trip to a dog park where he can chase frisbees or something I think he'll do fine. During the day make sure you leave him some yummy things to chew on that he can't choke on. The Kongs that you stuff with "yummies" are good.
One more thing.....bully sticks and marrow bones will last longer and are better for your pup. Willow loves them!