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Border Collie
Patronage: Great Britain
Classification:
- FCI Group 1: Sheepdogs and Cattle Dogs (without Swiss Mountain Dogs)
- Section 1: German Shepherds
Height at the withers:
- Males Ideal 52 cm
- bitches a little less
Around the year 800, various sources already speak of 650, the Vikings, who were returning from their campaigns against Britain, also took sheepdogs home with them. The first correct description of how today's border collies work comes from the year 1570. The first reports of working shepherd dogs come from Italy shortly before Christ's birth, after the Romans had invaded Britain and took several of these dogs with them to Italy. Old Hemp (1893) is considered the progenitor of today's Border Collies, which was owned by the farmer Adam Telfer. This dog captivated with its exceptional herding skills, which made it the most important stud dog.
The breed name "Border Collie" goes back to its geographical origin, the borderland (border line) between England and Scotland, and has been used since 1910.
In England there has been a breeders association "International Sheep Dog Society (ISDS)" since 1906, which is not concerned with the appearance of Border Collies but with their working qualities. The Border Collie has been recognized by the FCI since 1976. To date, the International Sheep Dog Society has not issued a breed standard for Border Collies.
Only the dog's work performance on the herding object counts for the breed association.
DescriptionThe physique of the Border Collie is harmonious, more long than high (up to 56 cm), very muscular in working dogs, particularly well suited for speed, agility and endurance. There are three coat variants according to the FCI; Short-haired, moderately long and stock-haired, dense coat with dense undercoat and medium texture, moderately long coat with good mane on the neck and flag on the tail; The face and ears as well as the fore and hind legs from the hock should be smooth.
Many colors are permitted in this breed, white should never predominate; e.g. B. the following colors: black and white, red, blue, blue merle, red merle, mottled black and white, sable, Australian red, lilac. "Tan" (lighter shade of brown) can also be added to all color variants in the form of markings. The dog's head is broad with a pronounced stop, nose black, brown, slate depending on the color of the dog, muzzle moderately short and strong with a full scissor bite. Eyes set wide apart, medium size, oval, brown except in blue merles in which one or both eyes may be partially or wholly blue. Its medium-sized ears are erect or tilted forward.
The tail is moderately long, but should reach at least the hock, well haired, set low, never carried over the back.
The movement should be fluid, free and tireless. The paws should be raised as little as possible so that the border collie can move insidiously and at great speed. As in Collies, the MDR1 defect, which causes hypersensitivity to several drugs, is common in Border Collies.
UsageDue to its intelligence and drive to work, the Border Collie is certainly one of the most fascinating dog breeds in the world. For a long time, the Border Collie was kept almost exclusively as a herding dog for sheep in the British Isles. Due to the rapid rise in popularity of the sport of agility in England and Europe, this breed also became popular off the farm. The dog breed has become increasingly popular as a family dog in recent years, not least because of films such as "A Pig Called Babe".
Many people in Germany also use him as a "cow hauler". Today there are still a few breeders in Germany who breed these hard-working dogs. Sometimes the puppies are given into the wrong hands by these breeders and they don't work enough with them there. Family members (especially children) or recognizable objects (e.g. car) are guarded as a "compensation", which of course has fatal consequences. For this reason, the Border Collie is hardly suitable as a family dog. Even long walks cannot satisfy his innate drive to work. He also needs mental support. This dog breed therefore belongs in the hands of professionals (shepherds, etc.) or people who have a lot of time (at least 3 hours a day), are very sporty/active and are willing to mentally challenge the dog for most of the day.
However, a large number of breeders today are attempting to breed a calmer variant of the breed with just as much charm, just as much intelligence, but a less pronounced drive to work. So it is possible to integrate the Border Collie into a family.
Famous Border CollieRico (born December 1994) is famous for appearing on the TV show Wetten, dass..? in 1999. 77 words to the respective toys and fetch the objects on command from an adjoining room. Appearances on other television programs followed, such as B. Stern TV. Rico can now tell more than 250 different toys apart. His abilities have already been the subject of scientific studies that have been published in the renowned journal Science, among others. The border collie Willi impressed in several talent shows and was allowed to play a talking herding dog in the film Piggy Babe.
