I have heard and read so many different things about male and female BC's, I need a second opinion. Which is your personal preference? I don't care if it is a biased opinion Is there any traits you have found to be consistent through a certain gender?
Well I have both sexes. My girls I find are loyal and attentive to both me and Patrick. Our lad....he listens to both but he is a protecter of ME....when we're out he takes lead (off lead) and watches both us and the girls much more aware of his surrounding and whats going on. I find him more likely to wade in if another dog growls or snaps.....where as the girls tend to not bother......they would have to be attacked before they fought. As for loving....the girls love a cuddle then move away ...more independent.....our lad loves to be cuddled and will stay forever (where there are cuddles) he is more with me too now as he's getting older. Sit alot on my feet or against me, where as the girls will find a chair. At night the girls lie on the settee, but he will lie by the front door (on guard) especially if my OH is out. But other than that....I cann't say I prefer one sex to the other. Would sya that Bruce is slightly the more dominant though. (Must be a man thing)
samantha our old bitch - was so loyal it was unreal - very dominant bitch.... she would put her life on the line for me and my mum nick - male bc - didnt give a sh1t!!!! still dosent!!! i think bitch trates of some breeds like what sam was like (bc) and millie (springer) are sooooo similar......
I agree with Stevie My girl is more independent, she likes a stroke and a cuddle, but my boy lives for it. He's such a softy and loves everyone. However, this also has a lot to do with the breeding too Alfie is pretty protective of the house/me, where as Jess isn't bothered. Again though, this could be to do with things other than the sex.
Typically my lot have to be different! My old boy Kip didn't really like cuddles but he did want to be near us all the time. My girls however love cuddles and can't get enough of them. My lad was the most soft and gentle of the three of them -I'm afraid there would be no chance of him protecting me from anything, but I loved him like that. All mine are rescues though, so their previous life will have played a large part in how they are. I'd always had boys before but now that I have girls, I honestly wouldn't mind which I had in the future.
I have found male BC more nervous in kennels where as females aren't so bothered. My male collie x is v. loyal and protective even where my parter is concerned he also get jealous. ATD x
Mine are all working dogs and we have more males than females - just the way we prefer it. I have found bitches to be far more " bitchy" and not as tolerant of other dogs. Our males are all pretty laid back and love their cuddles, whereas the bitches are definitely more independent. So, in general, I prefer males to females Are you hoping to get a collie?
Have to agree with the kennel thing.......Mine have been in kennels and the girls didn't care...Bruce only stayed once overnight, and the kennels maid said he circled her alot and seemed uncertain with her. Whoops I'm not making excuses....but she wore all black with a hood....Bruce isn't sure about the hood thing:? :? :? It makes him wary. However Patrick dressed up as shrek at Christmas......came lumbering down the stairs....and Skye nearly took a chuck out of his ''''PRIVATE''' parts
I've only had 2 girls so I'm biased but must say both girls were/are DADDY'S GIRLS I do the caring, feeding, cleaning, grooming; OH gets the love, looks, drool and loyal defending. I'm ok with it, he is the 'master ' of the house, must give off a lot of testosterone :-D Both my girls were/are spayed . In my experience both my BC's are good with kids, altho Jess (RIP) was more shy and ended to give them space, Bron is one of the girls and wants to play and share toys etc. You'll never regret your choice of having a collie. Brilliant dogs, no, family companions
Ive had both, the girls are EXTREMLY loyal but more independant & strong minded, Prob more of a one to one relationship. The boys are more loveing, but prob abit more fickle & in general abit more laid back. I prefer the "lookk" of a male dog, with a masculine head. coat & "presence" I also find the boys easier to train, the girls can be more manlipative wheras the boys are more straight forward
i agree with the act... our 2 bitches -although mil isnt a collie (fully ), were very nouty sometimes with each other when my next dog - which im hopeing sooner rather than later - i will definately get adog..... i think it wll be better - 2 dogs and 1 bitch - the dogs hopefully more chilled.... i wish..
I cant rem where I read it but I rem reading a collie behaviourst saying that if she got a call for a collie nipping/ showing agression it was a male, if the call was for a dog who had broke out of a loked shed, riped out the starter moter from a tractor and was hiding on the roof then it was a female With my observations of the flock of collies friends have Boys - on the whole tend to be more huggy and goofy and bonded to one person - they always give 95% all of the time Girls can be a bit more complicated - more mood swings but when they are good they are great - giving 70% one day and 110% the next I have to say I love my goofy boy who always trys hard but I might try a girl next time just to see and of course there are always big exceptions to the rule
Wow, thank you for the replies everyone! Thank you for all the insight. Yes, I am hoping to acquire a Border Collie, my dog just passed last week, and the house is so bare without her. I have done lots and tons of research on the breed and feel it would suit my lifestyle. I am going to be adopting from a breed-specific rescue and right now I am very interested in a male that they have on their site.
I am so sorry to hear you have recently lost your dog. I wish you luck in finding the right border collie to suit your lifestyle and I hope he can help fill the gap left by the much loved companion you have lost.
i too have one of each ,when i only had our first collie bessey ,i would have said ,i will only have girls ,but then our dylan came along ,and now i have to say i love the girls and the boys are lovely willow has more go in her (she is more like tom boy ) dylan is very loveing and will cuddle you all day .dylan is probably not typical boy (more like girl ) lol not sure if this helps at all . i will just add i would have both male and female in the future i just love collies .girl probably ,dont pull so much on the lead .when they are little
I have both, and I can agree with what most other people have written. Bilbo (boy) we affectionately call him 'special needs Bill' !!, he is goofy and daft as a brush. He adores his cuddles and will sit on your feet all night and day if he could - very touchy feely. He completely refuses to listen to my daughter when she does agility training with him, but when I do it, he worships the ground I walk on and would bounce on his nose if I asked.... hence I believe that males are more a one man/woman dog. Kayleigh is also laid back like Bilbo, however she will come for a stroke and then takes herself off to her bed or lies at the bottom of the step. She is a lot more independant too. I believe that bitches question what you ask of them more, they work out what they are going to get out of it before doing it, whereas males will do it without question. Unspayed bitches also have their cycles to contend with so can become more or less affectionate dependant on the 'time of the month' Bitches are smaller, and in our two Kayleigh is 18 inches and Bilbo 23 so there is quite a difference in height. I feel it is down to personal preference. Our arrangement works well, as Amber our old Weim is 12 years old and spayed, Bilbo is nearly 6 years old and castrated but Kayleigh is entire and 11 months old. They all get on very well and I never have any problems with them squabling - they know I am boss at the end of the day ! lol Good luck if you decide to give a home to a BC.
I currently have one of each and I pretty much agree with what has been said. I had my girl first. She's very laid, will do what she's told but will test me sometimes in a cheeky way. She will come to me for cuddles but then when she's had enough she'll find her own space. Then came bobby. A cheeky little monster and he still is, however loves his cuddles. If there's space on the sofa he wants to be there cuddled up with me. So one of each is nice as they compliment each other. I am getting another one next year and have decided to get a girl, so it will be interesting to see if the dynamics change amongst them. It's an interesting topic as if I was put on the spot I prefer to live with bitches, however out of the 100's of collie owners I know that show. There are far more that prefer dogs to bitches as they are generally more laid back (shame I got the one that wasn't lol) Good luck with finding a collie.
Well I have a female collie and she's so laid back she's almost comatose!! I've never had a male collie but I have her son who's equally laid back so I guess it just depends on the dog.
Hi, I have a male BC and I have found him very protective, even against my partner, and he is only 7 months old....what others are saying seems to apply to my little boy to, he loves cuddles, and will do anything to climb on the sofa or my lap!!! Never had a girl tho, so I'm biased!!!
We've had 3 males and they've each been quite different. The first was very laid back, the second is a worrier and the third is a bundle of fun. I was going to look for a bitch but it was a behaviourist who put me off. She reckoned they were more likely to try to nip either other dogs or children than males. I honestly think it all depends on the dog. No two are the same.
