Australian Cattle Dog
Australian Cattle Dog Training
Australian Cattle Dogs are a herding breed, meaning that they have a natural instinct to occasional nip at the heels of people or animals like they do to herd cows. The best way to train the “nip” out of your Australian Cattle Dog is to ignore it completely when it happens and turn your body away from the dog. This teaches the dog that nipping results in zero attention. Australian Cattle Dogs are protective, so early socialization with people and other dogs as well as obedience training is important for this highly intelligent breed. Incorporating physical activity with training works well for Australian Cattle Dogs, who love to run and move around. They also respond well to training with positive reinforcement (i.e. treats!) and clicker-based training.
Selecting a Australian Cattle Dog Puppy
Australian Cattle Dog Puppy Ears
Australian Cattle Dog puppies are born with folded ears, which will eventually stiffen and become erect within six months. Healthy puppies will have clean ears with no signs of discharge, redness, inflammation or pungent odour. If the puppy is aggressively scratching or pawing their ear, tilting their head or excessively flipping their head, it may also be a sign of discomfort. Breeds with floppy ears are more prone to infection or disease.