So, you want to buy a koolie,
here are some things to consider first.
As we have written over and over again here, koolies are smart, active, intelligent dogs who if not handled well, will either train you to be their slave or will become very unmanageable and even destructive if left to their own devises for prolonged periods. This must be taken seriously into consideration before purchase.
Do not purchase a koolie from a Pet Shop. You do not know the origins of the dog or if it is even only koolie bred. Cute little pups can be all sorts of crosses and grow into very different dogs. Koolies have been used by disreputable breeders to cross with such breeds as Great Dane to introduce the merle colouring. Obviously breeders will keep the pup that is most like the Dane at 6 weeks and flog the rest to a pet shop for quick cash. Well that cute little thing may grow into something 3/4 the size of a Great Dane and you still have a huge dog by comparison to a normal Koolie. Koolies have also been crossed with Staffordshire Bull Terriers on a monotonously regular basis (whoever you are, stop it - many of your dogs are ending up in pounds across NSW). This can be difficult to pick as young puppies and that cute little thing in the pet shop again can turn into a totally different dog personality wise, with a very strong set of jaws. By purchasing from a pet shop, even if the puppy is straight koolie, you are encouraging disreputable breeders who are either breeding to make quick cash or unloading puppies they can't find suitable homes for. It may be that they are unwell, poor examples of the breed or (and you must be very careful of this) blind or deaf which can be very hard to tell at the age of 6 - 8 weeks, but when the little cutie reaches 3 months and the kids are so attached and you finally realize he just can't hear you, what sort of predicament are you in then? Note that koolies that have a lot of white on them, particularly over the ears and eyes are candidates to be either blind or deaf or both. This is a result of them inheriting the merle gene from both parents, known as homozygous merle. Pet shops do not refund.
Be careful of purchasing from breeders who advertise in newspapers, are they also members of the Koolie Club of Australia, if not be careful. If they spend a lot of time running down other breeders, think carefully about what they will say or do if you have a problem. If they claim to be members and you go to look at the puppies ask to see the registration certificates for the parents. Each certificate has details in regard to the colouring and coat length of each dog, check that these match up. Check that the certificate is issued by the Koolie Club of Australia, signed and stamped by the registrar. Yes we have breeders in America that register with us. Check the pedigree for what sections the parents are registered in, the Koolie Register has a Section for cross bred koolies, which is because this is primarily a working breed and at times owners have not had access to good working koolies to breed their bitches to. Their only option has been to breed usually to a Kelpie or Border Collie. This section is only for crosses with other working breeds and does not cater for such crosses as Dingo, or other non working breeds. If you are looking for a working dog this may be to your advantage as the line has been bred to work foremost. Having this section gives a breeder the opportunity to breed their good working dogs back to straight koolie and those working genes are not lost to the gene pool. Our sections are not a class system, do not assume that a parent registered in one section is in anyway better or worse than a dog registered in another - you are purchasing a dog to spend the next 15 years with, it is far more important that his character is correct than his pedigree is long. Ask questions of the breeder, is the puppy vaccinated, has it been wormed, if you don't you cannot accuse a breeder later of not telling you something, they are under no obligation to do so. Remember that many of our breeders are farmers and for generations they have dealt in livestock where a handshake seals a deal and all rights and responsibilities are handed to the new owner, such as with sheep at a sale. Once the stock are passed to their new owners it is their full responsibility for the welfare, health and safety of the animals - don't expect to be able to come back 6 months later and get your money back because you didn't get what you expected. Don't then try exact revenge on a breeder because you feel you have been slighted, by trying to discredit them or making false or exaggerated claims against them in a public forum because all you will do is embarrass yourself and warn other breeders not to deal with you. Take responsibility for your own actions. Sometimes you just have to move on and mark it up to experience. Misunderstandings and mistakes happen.
Ask breeders if you can meet each of the parents, generally koolies are welcoming of visitors once they realize their owner has welcomed you into their home, if both parents show a good welcoming calm nature the puppies should grow into the same type of temperament with good handling. If you are looking for a working dog discuss the parents abilities and maybe ask if it is possible to see one or both working. Puppies that have potential to be good workers are usually rounding up or blocking up their litter mates and are the outgoing boisterous types. If you want a companion dog or lounge lizard do not buy these pups, they will constantly be feeling the urge to work and will have energy and brain power to burn and could be very difficult to keep occupied and out of mischief.
Do not rush into purchasing a puppy on a whim, look around, visit several breeders, if possible attend a couple of meetings and get to know a few koolies. Carefully consider the consequences of the purchase, you must be prepared for 12 months of puppy training, naughtiness and mess before your little whim turns into a young dog you can rely on not messing in the house, coming consistently when called and not chewing up everything in sight. Koolies are generally extremely healthy and live regularly to the age of 15 some quite a bit longer, if you are not prepared to have a dog that long - don't buy it! Dogs of any breed have expenses, annual vaccinations and even though koolies are general healthy dogs accidents happen and vets are sometimes needed. If you are not prepared to pay for these essentials - don't buy it.
If you think that you can make quick money by breeding a few litters of these little cuties - forget it, the average price of a registered koolie ($250 - $300) when compared to the cost of feeding, veterinary care, vaccination, micro-chipping and worming for 8 weeks just doesn't cover it. Consider also that koolies are a limited market, they are a supply and demand game, often when the supply is there the demand isn't. To find your puppies good homes you may have to keep them for 3 or 4 months and consider starting their training as a working dog, again the return on purchase price won't cover the costs involved. Genuine koolie breeders, breed for the love of the breed not cash returns, there is probably more money to be made growing potatoes for McDonalds.
Consider, particularly if a long puppy hood does not appeal, offering a mature koolie a home. Some wonderful koolies are, due to no fault of their own, looking for a new home while waiting in rescue organizations. Many koolies have been re-homed successfully through Koolie Rescue. Koolies love people and being with them, it turns out though, they are probably not as fussy as we are, if someone they are comfortable with offers them a new home off they will go and settle in very well to their new environment. Also koolies re-homed through Koolie Rescue have a settling in period, if it's not working they can go back no questions asked, not a bad option when faced with 12 months or so of chewing and pooing...
Many of our breeders are farmers or in a rural situation, if you find when you arrive that dogs are penned or chained and making a lot of noise do not immediately assume they are suffering...please. Koolies are extremely active dogs that at times have to be penned up or chained to get them to rest and to stop them from working (some will sneak off to the sheep yards or chook shed just to keep working as soon as your back is turned, or try to work the delivery trucks and milk tankers) . In a farming community if your dogs are known to be kept under good control they cannot be blamed for killing sheep 5km away or getting the neighbour's best retriever bitch in pup, thus saving neighbourly disputes. Remember the dogs are kicking up a racket for a very good reason...you. You are a stranger to them that has arrived unexpectedly. Farm dogs are not socialized the same as many city dogs, they don't attend obedience school or the local park where they can get used to meeting people or dogs they don't know. Their immediate thought on your arrival is to give warning that a stranger is about, mostly you will find they will settle once their owner is present. If you are concerned about the welfare of the dogs first check, do they look healthy, bright eyed and happy. Do they have shade and a water supply. Remember that working koolies are very active, do not assume because you can see some rib that they are not being fed, are they well muscled and glossy? A well fed working koolie will be lean, but well muscled, bright eyed and active.
If you are from the country and see a breeder who is in the city, please do not assume the dogs cannot work. Koolies have retained a very good natural instinct, due to the fact that they have been bred for their working instincts as a priority over colour and looks. Many koolies in the city take part in obedience and agility and other pastimes that require the dog to be able to take direction, be very active and agile and think for itself, there is no reason why a puppy from parents in this situation cannot go on to be good working dogs. Be prepared that the breeder will most likely now see you as part of their 'family' and enjoy follow up contact and reports on how the dog is going. Feedback to your breeder is a great thing as it allows them to understand the results of their breeding decision and may guide them in future decisions.
Once you have decided on a puppy or a re-homed koolie please do not expect too much from your new friend too soon. Remember he has been picked up from a situation he knows so well and is comfortable with and dropped into a whole new environment, with different smells, sounds and people. He may not have had any contact with children before, you have no lines of communication and frankly he doesn't know if he can trust you or not. If possible visit with him a couple of times before you bring him home so he gets to know and trust you a little first. When you bring him home give him his own space, it is a good idea to bring some bedding he is used to, maybe supply an old blanket to the breeder so the litter and mother can put their own smells on it and he will be comforted by it in his new home. Show him where his bed is, let him settle in and just take things in for a while and get used to everything about his new home before expecting him to interact with you, family or other pets. It may take a few days before he is truly comfortable, putting pressure on him at this stage or expecting too much can be disastrous for the long term future as much as you may have envisioned yourself with a top working dog or the perfect companion dog, they are not made overnight and have to have a chance to evolve over months at least. Please....take responsibility for this stage of development, koolies respond to encouragement and pleasure, yelling, hitting, or kicking are extremely poor training methods that will break your koolies spirit and create a very confused dog. Koolies love people, generally what they do, whether work or play is solely to please you. Their greatest pleasure is your pleasure and they will respond incredibly when lavished praise. Repetitive mundane exercises will be looked upon with contempt and you will soon get the message 'why bother, this is so below me'. Beware of this if you are attending basic obedience classes, many koolies have been labeled naughty or disruptive when they are simply bored, they can excel in higher levels. If this is your first koolie, consider looking for an obedience or training group with koolies already amongst it's membership, or look for a trainer who has experienced koolies before. Don't assume the same methods used for kelpies or border collies will automatically work for your koolie.
Do not expect all koolies to be working stock by 3 months (yes some people do), some take longer, take him with you when working around the property or on stock. A young pup can be safely housed near the action of the day so that he can observe what goes on and what other dogs do. Leaving him tied up at home gives him no idea of what is normal or expected of him when you finally do give him a chance. Some koolies can take time to start to work but when the light comes on, their instincts are so strong they can be just as good a long term worker as the little guy who wouldn't come away from the chickens.
Take control, you must be pack leader because if you don't take the position he will. You will find yourself being very well trained by your dog. Don't fall for, oh he is so cute I'll teach him not to chew on me later...when it starts to hurt. Set precedents straight away, koolies like consistency and routine for example if you are going to pen your dog, when the time comes for him to be penned call him in and make a fuss, pat him, tell him he is a good boy and make it a pleasant experience. Soon he will be skipping ahead of you and waiting inside with a 'how good am I' look on his face. Even if he has been naughty and you are penning him because of it, if he goes in of his own free will pat him and tell him he is a good boy. That is his space and he should feel safe there, if he does then at those times when he can't be right by your side he is comfortable and not feeling punished.
Take responsibility, taking your puppy home at eight weeks is the most important time of his life, he is ready to bond to you (truth be told he would have 2 or 3 weeks ago given the chance, koolies are early bloomers) and is ready to be molded by you. If you are having problems, seek advise and be prepared to listen to the advise, do not dismiss it out of hand just because what you have done might be seen as incorrect. If you feel the advise is not correct ask someone else, if they concur be big enough to accept the advise and take responsibility for your actions and remedy them. Please do not continue as the situation will only worsen and you may well end up very unhappy with a very unhappy dog. Do not then try and take the easy way out and blame someone else, do not just blame the breeder. The breeder has handed over to you in good faith a healthy happy little puppy at a most vulnerable time of it's life, the results are purely of your doing. Do not expect the breeder to pick up the pieces and take back the results of your ignorance and bad management and don't add the insult of expecting them to refund your money. The only time you should expect this is if the puppy has a health condition that should have been noted by the breeder prior to your purchase. When sending a puppy off at 8 weeks of age it can be nearly impossible to tell what conditions such as congenital defects the puppy may have that will only come to light as it grows up. Blame can not always be apportioned for such problems and you sometimes have to accept that this is the luck of the draw, just as some people are afflicted with complaints such as cystic fibrosis or asthma, they are not apparent always in the very young but come to light with time.
When considering bringing a pet of any sort into your home you must accept that we outlive most of our pets and at some stage you will go through the trauma of losing him, sometimes sooner rather than later, it is no ones fault. Enjoy your lives together, be grateful you have had the chance to be together, but when you have parted accept that your koolie was one of a kind who will always have his own corner of your heart and move on. By all means seek out another koolie to bring home but please don't attempt to replicate you lost friend as you are setting yourself and your dog an impossible task, much better that you see him as your 'new' friend and let him burrow his own place in your heart.
Enjoy life with your koolie and he will enjoy his life with you - and live with you for ever.
