Collie Collie

The Collie is a friendly, intelligent, loyal, faithful, and sensitive breed. This is a highly intelligent dog, with the best training results achieved with a gentler approach; they do not respond well to harsh training methods. They get along well with other dogs, other pets, and children.

The Collie comes in two types, the Rough Collie and the Smooth Collie. The coat care and grooming requirements of the two hair types are quite unique. The Rough Collie needs a large amount of brushing; it is important to brush right down to the undercoat or you will have a matted and uncomfortable dog very quickly. The Smooth Collie's grooming requirements are very minimal.

If you are purchasing an adult dog, it is essential that he is secured in the yard until he is comfortable with his new environment; they are known to escape and try to make their way to their previous home. The Collie is a herding dog that still requires ample amounts of exercise, and don't forget that this dog loves to retrieve.

The Collie dates back hundreds of years to the Scottish Highlands, where he was used for guarding the flock and herding. The early breeders kept no records, so the earlyhistoric details are somewhat muddy. There is speculation that the Rough Collie and the Smooth Collie had different origins, though they are presently classified as a long and short-haired version of the same breed.

In the early days he was called the Scots Colley Dog, Colley being a black sheep. The Rough Collie's lineage was especially influenced by a dog name Old Cockie, born in 1867 whose sable coloured coat can be seen in the modern Collie. Every Rough and Smooth Collie can also trace their ancestry back to a tricolour dog named Trefoil, born in 1873. The Rough Collie has been extremely popular, but not so with the Smooth Collie. The Smooth Collie may have died out, in fact, if it had not been for the efforts of a number of dedicated breeders. By the 1930's the Collie was thought to have been bred with the Borzoi, which gave it more nobility but also made it somewhat melancholy.

The early ancestors were brought to England and Scotland over 400 years ago. Queen Victoria kept a Rough Collie at Balmoral in 1860, and thanks to her enthusiasm for the breed, his popularity sky-rocketed in the herding circles and amongst the upper class. This popularity continued many years later with the writings of Albert Payson Terhune and the infamous television show "Lassie". The breed's popularity was so immense at one time, that huge sums of money would exchange hands for the best of the dogs. The highest price ever reputed to have been paid for a Rough Collie was for Ch. Parbold Piccolo to an American. Upon arriving at his new home in Milwaukee, Piccolo was allowed to freely roam around the property. He tragically disappeared that same day.