While they are rightly considered to be one of the most intelligent dog breeds, training Border Collies can be quite a frustrating task if you don’t understand their particular traits and idiosyncrasies. It is often said about the breed that you should never teach a Border Collie puppy a trick that you are not prepared to live with for the rest of the 12-15 years they will be with you.
The trick to training Border Collies is to be absolutely consistent. Because they can be so perceptive, they are often given commands based on verbal communications AND hand signals combined. Let me give you an example.
If the first time you teach a border collie to sit, imagine the scenario, you say sit down and without registering it you hold out your right hand with the index finger pointing at the dog. The dog sits down and you call him good boy and give him a treat.
The next day you tell him to sit down and instead of extending your right hand you hold out your left hand showing him the palm of your hand. Most dogs sit, but because the particular breed is so perceptive, they turn their heads the way dogs do when trying to figure out what you want.
This is a simplified example but it does give a general idea of how frustrated you can be with your dog if you don’t adopt consistency in your training methods.