Aussies are considerably more intelligent than many other dog breeds. They have a tendency to be hesitant to do things they dont understand, and understand alot
more than most people think. They also respond based on relationship more than any other dog breed i’ve encountered.
Our last was a golden German shepherd mix and was absolutely epic. The problem is it's been 14 yrs since we had a puppy and no we have two young kids in the mix. It's just growing pains.
She isn't the most confident dog but is getting better. I get her down by the water at the beach on the weekends and she slowly warming up to it. I had to take treat and put them on automatic sprinklers, running vacuums and mops for her to get comfortable with them. She has the intelligence and emotional intelligence of a young child.
She's doing much better. I've been doing a lot of recall training with her and taking her off leash. She has responded so far to the extra trust in her really well and you can see it's matured her. When she gets tired though holy crap watch out lol. Luckily we've broken the nipping at my kids pretty much and easier than I expected.
Is this a good dog to get if you’ve never had a dog before
Be ready to walk them alot, dogs like this need a lot of exercise.
I don’t like to walk
You can tell if she has too much mental and physical energy and when it gets pent up they get very destructive. The smarter the dog the crazier and weirder the destruction lol
She gets 2-3 walks a day and you 100% need to engage them mentally. You can slack on the exercise if you wear their minds out. A good balance is key though.
Are you really active? We travel alot and when we do we generally go where we camp, hike or spend a lot of time outdoors. That's why I went with this breed to try.
I will you I'm tempted to get a second dog and will get either a golden Aussie mix or a golden shepherd mix.
Too much walking for me
Do you live near water?
Not right now but could change
A water dog may be a good idea if there's dog parks or water somewhat near you. You can always go and swim them. Mine would retrieve training toys in any body of water for 30-45 min when younger and would be good for the day.
Current dog I'm trying to get to become comfortable with water. Other dog just took to it instinctively
