You have decided to enrich your life by getting one four-legged furry friend. Australian Shepherd seems to be a good choice. This breed is cheerful, looks like a friendly medium-sized dog with beautiful blue eyes. But does Australian Shepard is really a good choice for the first-time owner?
Australian Shepherd requires a lot of daily activities which include both physical and mental stimulation and training. This is a working breed, that can become very dominant in case the owner doesn’t know how to impose his power. All these challenges might be too difficult for inexperienced owners. Australian Shepherds need a firm and confident but positive owner with previous experience. So Australian Shepherds are not really a good choice for novice owners.
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Why Australian Shepherd Is Not the Best Choice for the First-Time Owner?
All working breeds require a lot of everyday physical training along with mental stimulation. Australian Shepards are no exception. These dogs are super smart so therefore you need to keep their mind occupied.
They are also highly energetic dogs which means that 30 min walk around the block won’t fulfill their exercise needs, not even close.
Australian Shepherd Need A Lot of Exercise
Since they are working dogs, Aussies need a lot of daily physical activity. They like to be occupied and active. The inexperienced owner won’t know to plan all the necessary dog’s daily activities.
Herding breeds require extensive physical activity plus serious mental stimulation. Even if you owned one Golden Retriever in your childhood, that experience won’t be enough to prepare you properly for owing one Aussie.
Bear in mind that Aussies need some high-energy exercise ( like playing Frisbee or fetch) in a duration of at least 30-60 min a day.
These dogs also like to run, you should let them run every day in some fenced area for an hour or even more. And that’s not it.
Don’t forget to give some kind of ”job” to your dog. That can be obedience training or agility courses.
Australian Shepherd Need To Have Job
Herding breeds like Australian Shepherd were bred to have stamina and they need a ”daily job” to be happy.
The big disadvantage in an inexperienced owner is that he doesn’t know what his dog needs to be happy, he doesn’t know to read Aussie’s body language, he misses some signs which can tell him that the dog is bored or upset …
When it comes to working, what kind of job one Aussies can have? Aussies can be a perfect farm dog, there will have a full-time job. Apart from that, Aussie can achieve amazing results in agility trials.
He will be happy to attend obedience classes or some type of training. Australian Shepard can find his role working as a service or therapy dog.
Aussie can be a great police dog specialized in detecting narcotics. Of course, Aussie is capable to capture your heart forever and can be a loving and loyal family pet.
Australian Shepherd Are Not Bred To Be Everyone’s Buddy
Aussies are highly intelligent dogs. They have immense energy. Unless both their energy and intelligence are directed into something positive, these dogs are capable to invent their own jobs you wouldn’t like for sure.
So families or individuals with limited free time should consider some other dog breed. Aussies require a lot of attention and devotion so if you are not able to give that, better to look for another dog.
Very Smart Dogs With Dominance Spirit
Australian Shepards are defiantly smart dogs and some of them are pretty stubborn and like to be dominant. That dominant spirit is reflected in the fact they like to chase cats, cars, to impose their will on other dogs.
If you, as a dog parent don’t impose yourself as a leader, there is a risk your dog will take on that role. As you assume, this is not good. That’s why Respect training is mandatory for young Aussie.
While some Australian Shepards are eager to please their owners, others are not. Some Aussies are pretty manipulative ( especially females) and smart enough to know how to get what they need.
What Experienced Owners Know About Australian Shepherd?
When we say that someone is an experienced dog owner, it means that he owned at least three dogs of different breeds in his adulthood.
For having an Australian Shepherd, it’s even better if you have already dealt with some herding dog breed in the past.
Experienced Owner Understands Aussie’s Body Language, Behavior and Communication
There is a lot more Aussie’s communication than just understanding when your dog needs to go potty or wants to play.
The experienced owner knows to read the signs in order to prevent issues with other dogs for example.
He is capable to identify specific behaviors which might be considered protective, obsessive, or prey-driven.
The experienced owner will recognize the displacement behavior. It’s kind of normal behavior but displayed out of context. It shows that Aussie really wants to do something but he is suppressing that desire.
Suppressed behavior might be licking the lips or yawning, shaking off, sniffing… So next time your Aussie yawns, don’t jump to the conclusion that he is tired.
He might find himself in a threatening situation ( for example in the vet’s waiting room) and now he tries to calm himself down, to lower his stress.
The experienced owner is able to recognize avoidance behavior ( dog is avoiding some situations or withdrawing from something), destructive behavior (excessive barking, chewing, digging…)
The secret an experienced owner knows is that Aussie is not a human being dressed in fur, he doesn’t expect the dog to behave like one.
On the other hand, he is well acquainted with meta signals and how dogs communicate. Meta signals are a combination of gestures, behavior patterns, and actions that form a part of dogs’ language without words.
Experienced Owner Is Skilled In Dog’s Training and Understand How Aussie Learns
An experienced owner knows that Aussie needs to be socialized as early as possible. Australian Shepards are known to be reserved with strangers.
It’s important to expose your Aussie puppy to a variety of new sounds, unusual sights, situations, and people at an early age otherwise he might become either very unfriendly and suspicious or even shy.
Learning your Aussie basic commands such as sit or lie down is good but it’s not sufficient. Aussie must go through multiple levels of training classes. Puppy kindergarten is a must and then Obedience course, Respect training, Agility courses …
An experienced owner knows which is the best way to teach Aussie important life skills and that using positive reinforcement he will get a confident and well-behaved dog.
He will also be capable to prevent common mistakes and anticipate common behavioral concerns which can grow into more serious problems.
An experienced owner knows that he won’t achieve anything with harsh training, yelling, punishments. Aussies will learn better and faster if positive reinforcement, kindness, play, and treats are involved.
Experienced Owner Will Provide Quality Mental and Physical Activity for Australian Shepherd
You cannot provide the same activities for two different breeds.
For example, while herding dogs need a lot of physical exercise along with mental stimulation on daily basis, hound breeds ( Basset Hound or Beagle) are not made for long and hard jogs, walks, or hiking.
With Australian Shepard, you have no limitations. You can try different sports like hiking, running, kayaking. You can play Frisbee, fetch, enroll him in agility training. These dogs simply like to be active.
In case you want to know more about mental stimulation for your Aussie please read our article ”How to Mentally Stimulate My Australian Shepherd”
Conclusion
Australian Shepherd is not the right choice for a first-time owner. He requires a lot of time, knowledge, and devotion. Aussies like to be outside, to be active but you cannot just let them run, you have to plan their daily activities and enrichment.
You have to know how to stimulate their intelligent brains and keep them occupied. These dogs are happy only if they have some job to do. They are not couch potatoes. If you don’t keep them busy, they will think out some ”job” and you won’t like it.
You have to be able to read their body language signals, to predict behavioral issues and common mistakes.
You need to understand that your pup will need a lot of different training throughout his life and that learning basic skills is not enough to convert him into a well-behaved, socialized Australian Shepard.
