Introduction
About Border Collies
The Border Collie is one of the most intelligent dogs on the planet, ranking number one out of seventy-nine other breeds.
For generations, the Border Collie has worked alongside shepherds both here in the UK and elsewhere in the world and have always been highly prized for being supreme working and companion dogs more especially suited to people who lead active outdoor lives. Border Collies are tenacious while at the same time being one of the most versatile breeds in the world.
Known to be the finest herding dog on the planet, Border collies are athletic and energetic characters that like nothing better than being given things to do, even in a home environment. Interestingly, all modern-day Border Collies are direct descendants of one tri-colour dog called Old Hemp, a Border Collie bred by Adam Telfer that gained himself the reputation of being supremely good at the job he was bred to do.
The Border Collie breed is also commonly known by the names Scottish Sheepdog, Collie. Lifespan: 10 – 14 years.
- Pedigree Breed: Kennel Club recognised in the Pastoral Group.
- Height: Males 48 – 56 cm | Females 46 – 53 cm at the withers
- Weight: Males 14 – 20 kg | Females 12 – 19 kg
Positives
- Most intelligent breed on the planet
- In the right hands, Border Collies are extremely easy to train
- Good with children, although they can herd them
Negatives
- High maintenance on all fronts
- Require a tremendous amount of exercise and mental stimulation
- Strong herding drive
Additional Infomation
About The Border Collie
Training Tips
FAQs
Border Collies do enjoy exercising, but they require much more than just space to run. Border collies like to play games, work and interact with their owners. They love to have a job to do and require a little more training than other breeds. Border collies tend to be busy dogs that need to have their curiosity and energy channelled into positive behaviour.
Well, not every border collie will have pricked years! It depends on genetic! Even from two pricked years you could still have a puppy with bended or floppy years so really you never know until they are old enough and the ears are settled. Usually they go up and down while they are changing teeth and then they settle. Some puppies if they are meant to have pricked years they will have them at 3 months and usually those have very light and small ears.
The answer is NO SHAVING! Border Collies have a double coat: a top coat to protect from the sun and the rain and an undercoat to keep them warm in winter. They don’t need shaving, they need protecting against too hot temperatures as any dog but their coat is a working dog coat and has been bred for generation to be functional.
They need grooming when they are changing their coat, loosing the winter one that is thicker and preparing for the summer lighter coat. Females will start loosing the coat after their season so they will need more grooming and once spayed they will develop a thicker coat that will tend to mat sometimes. The quality of the coat will change after neutering or spaying. If well fed and kept Border Collies usually don’t smell much as a breed.
Yes you can and you have to play tug with your puppy! Tugging is a great way to spend quality time with your puppy. It’s bonding time! Your pup will “growl” if the playing get a bit exciting for them, it’s just the way the communicate excitement. Some dogs will never growl when playing. Sometimes growling when playing is also a sing of a insecurity, so try not to put too much pressure on your pup bending down or tugging too hard. They could also hurt when teething so make sure you are not too strong between 4 and 6 months. If tugging is done properly it can be a great tool to reinforce behaviours and to teach a cue like “leave” or to channel prey drive.
There is no right or wrong for this question, there is only what you decide is your rule. Dogs won’t suffer from not sleeping on furnitures but they do enjoy to snuggle up with you for a cuddle. You can deliver that cuddle by sitting on the floor with them no problem. As long as you can ask them to get back on the floor when you need them to and they know what you mean by it so you don’t have to start an argument. A dog that doesn’t want to get off the sofa or bed and starts growling is not a dominant dog; he is not trying to establish dominance on you! He is just trying to guard a resource he finds valuable and doesn’t want to share. When that’s the case you have a problem; you have a dog that doesn’t trust you and doesn’t want to share things with you so you need to find a positive trainer to help you with that.
It’s true, there are many nasty diseases out there and we don’t know how much immunity our puppy has. This means checking how much our pup is already protected against the viruses that can potentially cause harm. Our puppies have the mum immunity until they are a bit older so chances are that as soon as you take your pup home they will have immunity for a couple of months. The booster you give them will “boost” that immunity to make it last longer. When your vet say don’t take you puppy out they don’t mean keep your pup indoor. You can have them in the garden but you can also get organised and take your pup out in a puppy carrier bag or for little walks on pavement to see the world. The risk of not doing that is that your pup will be undersocialised as not used to noises, movement and other living being until after the socialisation window is closed.
Yes they can! Make sure they it’s not toxic food but apart from those they more your dog diet is varied the more his immune system will work better as his good bacteria in the intestine will be nicely fed.
The best food you can add to your dog diet once tried first in small quantities to get them used to and providing they have no intolerance are fresh whole food, nothing too refined:
Eggs, sardines (fresh or canned), cooked vegetables, fruits without the core and the seeds, vegetable or animal fats, wholemeal grain, yogurt, any meat including offal’s (liver to be fed in small quantities), raw bones (under supervision). You can add these to their food or use these ingredients to make some tasty treats to use for training.
NO! Absolutely not… they are not puppy behaviours, they are abnormal behaviours caused by neglect, bad habit, fear, and stress.
Ignoring a behaviour is not going to make it fade in general, but we are talking about fear, frustration or other strong emotions the answer is definitively no. The only way to cope with those behaviour is a good training plan. You need a positive trainer that understand dog’s behaviour very well and knows exactly what is causing it and how to help you. If you are dealing with stalking, chasing and nipping things that move you need a trainer that is expert in herding breed and those behaviours need a deep knowledge of the breed attitude and DNA tools.
Border collies learn new things very quickly, but this should not be mistaken for being easy to train. Border collies can pick up bad habits just as easily as good ones! It is important to train your Border collie to behave properly right from the start so that they do not pick up bad habits. Although Border collies learn new things quickly it is not as easy to train them not to do things that they have learned to enjoy.
No, what you do need is to have the time and desire to spend time with your dog. Border collies learn quickly and if they are not receiving attention and training from their owners they will seek out other ways to amuse themselves. What amuses them may not be what amuses you!
Generally, yes, Border collies can live in harmony with a great number of other animals. Our dogs have lived peacefully with goats, ducks, donkeys, horses, cats, potbellied pigs, sheep and other livestock.
There are several colours that border collies commonly come in: Black and white, Tri-coloured, Red and white, Gold, Blue Merle and Red Merle as well as Lilac . There is an old saying that there is no such thing as a good dog in a bad colour. Colour should be a secondary concern, getting a good dog should be the primary concern.
