border collie life

Question
Hi,
A friends of mine is part of an animal association and she came across this scenario.  I was just wondering what the future holds for this animal and a justification scientifically of the way the animal is being trated.

The scenario is:
Dax is a 7 year old border collie who lives in suburban Brisbane with the Reinholt family.  They purchased him from a pet shop when he was about 6 weeks old and from the very beginning he has beeen an outdoor dog.  They have a fenced back yard (about 300 square metres in area) and Dax sleeps in a dog house that is in a dry protected spot.  The mother of the family feeds the dog each night out on the back veranda, placing his bowl down and then heading back inside immediately.  The father of the family walks him for about half an hour once or twice a week.  Occassionally the 14 year old son Gordon will throw a ball for him.  Gordon is at school and both parents work, so Dax is alone wach day from 7:30am to 6pm.

You help is very much appreciated,
Tia

Answer
A Border Collie is a working dog, and needs something to do, a "job" if you will.  Without seeing the dog, it's hard to say how this is affecting him, but in general, dogs detest isolation, and are capable of becoming depressed.  If the dog was never socialized, and is somehow taken out of the environment he is in, he may have difficulty coping with meeting new people and dogs.  I find this dog's lifestyle sad, especially when a fourteen year old is in the home.  A kid that old could train the dog, maybe compete in agility or flyball.  They could have had a ball together.  Sad.