SIMON
Simon was surrendered as a border collie cross but seems to be all BC to us! About 18 months old, Simon is an athletic dog with unlimited potential to be anything you want him to be.
Simon is an all around great dog. He has loved all the people and dogs that he has met. He is definitely a less intense Border Collie. When he is out, he will happily go the entire time (he is in great shape), but he doesn't pace in the house demanding exercise. He does play with and watch the other dogs in the house a lot, though, so that might be what's tiring him out. At this point he'd much rather run around with other dogs on a field than play fetch, and I think he would make a really good dog park dog. He is polite with all other dogs and meets them confidently. He also matches his play style to suit the other dog, which is nice. He does show some interest in chasing a ball or a Frisbee, but his main goal in the game is to entice the other dogs to chase him and play.
He ignores cats completely. He met my parents' dog-aggressive cat, and the cat was so shocked at being ignored that he didn't try to go after Simon.
He is very handler focused, and would make a great agility dog once he has been desensitized to all the noises and activity of an agility trial. He came with me to a trial today, and the frantic barking and yelling sent him running into his crate with his tail down. At the end of the day, though, after lots of treats, he was walking around happily greeting everyone and wagging his tail.
Simon has been very easily corrected the few times that he's needed a correction. A quiet "uh uh" as he started to jump on the counter has kept him from ever trying it again. He has impeccable house manners. He settles immediately on a bed, rarely jumps on people, only chews appropriate toys, and loves to cuddle.
He is very good about being handled (I was able to trim his nails with no problem) and he doesn't guard food or toys from people. He does guard his toys from the other dogs a little bit too much, but this doesn't seem too hard to work with. He also tried to resource guard me from the other dogs at the very beginning, but once he learned that that behaviour lost him the privilege of being near me, he didn't try it again.
He likes his crate a lot, and frequently goes in there for naps. He does cry quietly when he's left in there, but he's getting better about it. He is a Velcro dog and he follows me diligently every time I move around the house.
Simon walks nicely on a leash. He isn't used to city noises like buses and trucks, but he doesn't get so scared that he isn't able to respond to commands. I don't think he will take much time at all to get used to living in the city. In fact, he's a joy to walk in crowded places as he sticks close and doesn't get over excited about seeing other dogs. He would make a perfect running partner.
Simon is going to make someone an awesome companion. He is the kind of dog that you can take anywhere with you and he has a ton of potential to do basically anything.
