The objective of the Border Collie Club is to promote responsible dog ownership.
Membership enquiries : Ph 9857 0552
About Border Collie
Background
The Border Collie has its origins in the border country between England and Scotland. It has been adopted as an Australian working dog because of its outstanding qualities as a sheepdog. All of todays registered Border Collies have been bred from the original working dogs. The first recorded import of a Border Collie was Hindhope Hed in 1901.
Average Lifespan
When considering a dog, please realise that you are taking it on for its lifetime. Border Colllies live from between 12 to 14 years of age.
Breed Personality/Characteristics/Temperament
The Border Collie is highly intelligent, with an instinctive tendency to work and is very responsive to training. These dogs make keen, alert, and loyal and sensitive companions. As well as being loving family pets, they excel at obedience, agility and tracking, and make great sheepdogs as well as reasonably easy-care showdogs. Borders are very much "people dogs" and need much interaction with their family. This is not a dog to be left alone in the backyard all day with no company. The combination of brains and boredom will result in the dog finding something to do for amusement - which may not be amusing to you! Even if you want your dog purely as a family pet, it is advisable to attend obedience school. A short training session each day gives your dog something to think about, reinforces your position as leader of the pack, focuses all your attention on your pet while strengthening the bond between you and your dog.
Compatibility with other pets
A Border Collie will enjoy having another dog for company (preferably the opposite sex). Because of this breeds natural herding instinct, small pets that tend to run away may find themselves continually being herded into whatever area your Border Collie has designated for them. If you live on an acreage, have a run made to restrain your dog when it is home alone, especially at night, as it will consider your neighbours stock perfect for chasing. This precaution will protect your dog as well as respecting other peoples property.
Care Requirements
Border Collies are double-coated dogs with a short thick undercoat and a moderately long medium textured topcoat. They are easy to groom if cared for on a regular basis. Thorough combing and brushing weekly is needed to remove dead coat and to avoid problems when moulting. A well-trained dog enjoys these grooming sessions as part of the quality time the two of you share together. If you are not prepared to exercise your Border Collie in a regular basis then this is not the dog for you. A walk each morning and evening is a prerequisute for keeping our Border fit, alert and happy. This is also a great time for socialisation with other humans and dogs and presents an ideal opportunity to learn road manners.
Please Take Note
A Border Collies strong in-built herding instinct can quickly turn into a dangeorus chasing habit if not curbed. Because they are tempted to round up any moving object, this can include traffic - so train your dog to understand that "traffic herding" is not permissable. As well as lots of love and attention, your Border Collie also needs training and discipline to make sure it does what you want. This is a strong working breed developed to control large numbers of stock, and left to its own devices it could become quite a nusiance. You must provide guidelines to ensure that you dont inadvertently become one of the sheep!
Ideal Owner/s
Because Border Collies grow so quickly and are extremely active, they are usually too "full on " for very young children and elderly folk. Their inbred herding instinct can also make them a problem for the young. Children ten years of age and over or active adults make more suitable owners.
In Conclusion
Now you know a little about the Border Collie and have decided this is the dog for you or you want more information, make contact with the breed club or your State controlling body for purebred dogs. They will be able to give you information about available puppies and also suggest dog shows where you can see the breed and speak to breeders. In this way you will gain a better perspective of the breed and its needs.
