Considered highly intelligent, extremely energetic, acrobatic and athletic, they frequently compete with great success in sheepdog trials and dog sports. They are often cited as the most intelligent of all domestic dogs. Border collies continue to be employed in their traditional work of herding livestock throughout the world and are kept as pets.
In general, border collies are medium-sized dogs with a moderate amount of coat, which is more often thick and prone to shedding. They have a double coat that varies from smooth to rough and is occasionally curled. While black and white is the most commonly seen color pattern of the Border Collie, the breed appears in just about any color and pattern known to occur in dogs. Some of these include black tricolor (black/tan/white), liver and white, and red tricolor (red/tan/white) which have also been seen regularly, and other colours such as blue, lilac, red merle, blue merle, brindle, and Australian red (also known as ee red, blonde, recessive red, or gold) which is seen less frequently. Some border collies may also have single-color coats.
Eye color varies from brown to blue, and occasionally eyes of differing color occur; this is usually seen with merles. The ears of the border collie are also variable — some have fully erect ears, some fully dropped ears, and others semi-erect ears (similar to those of the rough collie). Although working border collie handlers sometimes have superstitions about the appearance of their dogs (handlers may avoid mostly white dogs due to the unfounded idea that sheep will not respect a white or almost all white dog), in general, the American Border Collie Association considers a dog's appearance to be irrelevant. Instead, it is considered more useful to identify a working border collie by its attitude and ability.
Dogs bred for show are more homogeneous in appearance than working border collies, since to win in conformation showing they must conform closely to breed club standards that are specific on many points of the structure, coat, and color. Kennel clubs specify, for example, that the border collie must have a "keen and intelligent" expression, and that the preferred eye color is dark brown. In deference to the dog's working origin, scars and broken teeth received in the line of duty are not to be counted against a border collie in the show ring. The males' height from withers comes from 48 to 56 centimetres (19 to 22 in), females from 46 to 53 centimetres (18 to 21 in).
Border Collies require considerably more daily physical exercise and mental stimulation than many other breeds. The border collie is widely considered to be the most intelligent dog breed. The border collie ranks 1st in Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs, being part of the top 10 brightest dogs. Although the primary role of the border collie is to herd livestock, the breed is becoming increasingly popular as a companion animal.
Border Collies require considerably more daily physical exercise and mental stimulation than many other breeds. The border collie is widely considered to be the most intelligent dog breed. The border collie ranks 1st in Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs, being part of the top 10 brightest dogs. Although the primary role of the border collie is to herd livestock, the breed is becoming increasingly popular as a companion animal.
In this role, due to their working heritage, border collies are very demanding, playful, and energetic. They thrive best in households that can provide them with plenty of play and exercise, either with humans or other dogs. Due to their demanding personalities and need for mental stimulation and exercise, many border collies develop problematic behaviors in households that are not able to provide for their needs. They are infamous for chewing holes in walls and furniture, and destructive scraping and hole digging, due to boredom. Border collies may exhibit a strong desire to herd, a trait they may show with small children, cats, and other dogs. The breed's herding trait has been deliberately encouraged, as it was in the dogs from which the border collie was developed, by selective breeding for many generations. However, being eminently trainable, they can live amicably with other pets if given proper socialization training.
p>The American Border Collie Association recommends that potential owners, before taking on the breed as a household pet, should be sure they can provide regular exercise commensurate with the collie's high energy and prodigious stamina. A working collie may run many miles a day, using its experience, personality, and intelligence to control challenging livestock. These dogs will become distressed and frustrated if left in isolation, ignored or inactive. Like many working breeds, border collies can be motion-sensitive and may chase moving vehicles and bicycles, but this behavior can be modified by training.[citation needed] Some of the more difficult behaviors require patience, as they are developmental and may disappear as the dog matures.
The natural life span of the border collie is between 12 and 15 years, with an average lifespan of 12 years. The median longevities of breeds of similar size are usually 12 to 13 years.
Leading causes of death are cancer (23.6%), old age (17.9%) and cerebral vascular afflictions (9.4%).
Collie eye anomaly (CEA) and epilepsy are considered the primary genetic diseases of concern in the breed at this time. CEA is a congenital, inherited eye disease involving the retina, choroid, and sclera that sometimes affects border collies. In border collies, it is generally a mild disease and rarely significantly impairs vision. However, other eye conditions such as PRA slowly disintegrates the retina and can cause border collies to lose almost all of their vision at night which can progress into complete daytime blindness. There is now a DNA test available for CEA and, through its use, breeders can ensure that they will not produce affected pups. There are different types of hip testing available including OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals) and PennHip. Radiographs are taken and sent to these organizations to determine a dog's hip and elbow quality.
Two types of hearing loss occur in the breed. The first type is pigment associated and is found in border collie puppies, although the puppies can have congenital sensorineural deafness from birth as well. The second type is known as adult-onset hearing loss. These dogs have a normal auditory brainstem response test as pups but gradually lose their hearing sometime between one and eight years of age. A study is currently underway at The Translational Genomics Research Institute to identify the genetic cause of adult-onset hearing loss in the breed.
Glaucoma (GLAU) The discovery of a genetic variant on the OLFML3 gene was performed at The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh and the Mater Research Institute-UQ, Brisbane Australia. The individuals credited for this work are Kim M Summers, Ailsa J Carlisle, Carys A Pugh and Lindsay L Farrell. Based on this discovery, Animal Genetics develop an assay to detect the genetic variant associated with border collie glaucoma. A paper will be published outlining all of the work.
Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL) is a rare but serious disease that is limited to show border collies. NCL results in severe neurological impairment and early death; afflicted dogs rarely survive beyond two years of age. The mutation causing the form of the disease found in border collies was identified by Scott Melville in the laboratory of Dr. Alan Wilton of the School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales. There is no treatment or cure, but a DNA test is now available to detect carriers as well as affected dogs.
Trapped Neutrophil Syndrome (TNS) is a hereditary disease in which the bone marrow produces neutrophils (white cells) but is unable to effectively release them into the bloodstream. Affected puppies have an impaired immune system and will eventually die from infections they cannot fight. The mutation responsible for TNS has been found in border collies in English working dogs, in show dogs that had originated in Australia and New Zealand, and in unrelated Australian working dogs. This indicates that the gene is widespread and probably as old as the breed itself. TNS was identified by Jeremy Shearman in the laboratory of Dr. Alan Wilton of the School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales. There is no cure, but a DNA test is now available to detect carriers as well as affected dogs.
Other diseases found less commonly include juvenile cataracts, osteochondritis, hypothyroidism, diabetes mellitus and canine cyclic neutropaenia, carpal soft-tissue injury. A syndrome of exercise induced collapse similar to that seen in Labrador retrievers (otherwise termed Border Collie Collapse) and triggered by episodes of collapse associated with periods of intense exercise has been described in Border Collies in North America, Europe and Australia; and is currently the subject of further investigation.
Elbow dysplasia may also occur in the breed. Dogs homozygous for the merle gene, sometimes referred to as "double merles", are likely to have sight and/or hearing defects.
Border Collie Collapse or "the wobbles" is a disease found in many herding/working breeds. The cause is currently unknown. Border Collie Collapse seems to be related to high-intensity exercises that are found to be particularly exciting to the individual dog. For example, some dogs cannot retrieve a tennis ball, as they find this activity highly stimulating, but can run for several miles with no symptoms of Border Collie Collapse. Symptoms commonly include disorientation, mental dullness, loss of attention, unsteady hind legs, dragging of hind legs, and ultimately the need to sit or lay down. Loss of consciousness and seizure-like trembling/spasms are not characteristics of Border Collie Collapse. There is no current diagnostic test or veterinary workup that can confirm Border Collie Collapse and the diagnosis is often given as a diagnosis of exclusion or based on clinical symptoms. There is no current treatment recommended, and it is advised to limit the episodes by avoiding the activities that trigger the collapse.
The border collie is descended from landrace collies, a type found widely in the British Isles. The name for the breed came from its probable place of origin along the Anglo-Scottish border. Mention of the "collie" or "colley" type first appeared toward the end of the 19th century, although the word "collie" is older than this and has its origin in the Scots language. It is also thought that the word 'collie' comes from the old Celtic word for useful. Many of the best border collies today can be traced back to a dog known as Old Hemp.
In 1915, James Reid, Secretary of the International Sheep Dog Society (ISDS) in the United Kingdom first used the term "border collie" to distinguish those dogs registered by the ISDS from the Kennel Club's collie (or Scotch collie, including the rough collie and smooth collie) which originally came from the same working stock but had developed a different, standardised appearance following introduction to the show ring in 1860 and mixture with different breeds.
Old Hemp, a tricolour dog, was born in Northumberland in September 1893 and died in May 1901.[24] He was bred by Adam Telfer from Roy, a black and tan dog, and Meg, a black-coated, strong-eyed dog. Hemp was a quiet, powerful dog to which sheep responded easily. Many shepherds used him for stud and Hemp's working style became the Border Collie style. All pure border collies alive today can trace an ancestral line back to Old Hemp.[25] He was believed to have sired as many as 200 pups over the span of his life.
Wiston Cap (b. 28 September 1963) is the dog that the International Sheep Dog Society (ISDS) badge portrays in the characteristic border collie herding pose. He was a popular stud dog in the history of the breed, and his bloodline can be seen in most bloodlines of the modern-day collie. Bred by W. S. Hetherington and trained and handled by John Richardson, Cap was a biddable and good-natured dog. His bloodlines all trace back to the early registered dogs of the studbook, and to J. M. Wilson's Cap, whose name occurs 16 times within seven generations in his pedigree. Wiston Cap sired three Supreme Champions and is grand-sire of three others, one of whom was E. W. Edwards' Bill, who won the championship twice.
Collies were listed as imports to New Zealand as early as 1858, but the type was not specified.[28] In the late 1890s James Lilico[29] (1861?–1945) of Christchurch, New Zealand, imported a number of working dogs from the United Kingdom. These included Hindhope Jed, a black, tan and white[30] born in Hindhope, Scotland in 1895, as well as Maudie, Moss of Ancrum, Ness and Old Bob.
It is unclear whether Hindhope Jed was a descendant of Old Hemp. Born two years after him, she is mentioned in a British Hunts and Huntsmen article concerning a Mr John Elliot of Jedburgh:
Mr. Elliot himself is well known for his breed of collies. His father supplied Noble to the late Queen Victoria and it was from our subject that the McLeod got Hindhope Jed, now the champion of New Zealand and Australia.
At the time of her departure to New Zealand, Hindhope Jed was already in pup to Captain, another of the then-new "border" strain. Hindhope Jed had won three trials in her native Scotland, and was considered to be the "best to cross the equator".
In 1901 the King and Mcleod stud, created by Charles Beechworth King (b. 1855, Murrumbidgee, NSW), his brother and Alec McLeod at Canonbar, near Nyngan (north-west of Sydney), brought Hindhope Jed to Australia, where she enjoyed considerable success at sheepdog trials.