Tell me about your Border Collies :D General Chat

Mine are all different too!
My parents have always had Border Collies [rescues] so I have grown up with them and learnt from them!

Flint- My first Border Collie cross. Hes a very lazy lad, who would very happily sleep all day! Hes 3 in November but acts like a VERY old dog, unless the 'W' word is mentioned! He would walk for miles but is also very happy to relax all day. Hes not a fussy dog at all, not really interested in people, except me, hes very clingy to me when hes in different circumstances.
He's bred from working parents.




Simba- again, bought from working parents.
Very different to Flint.
He would go all day and is a very fussy pup. BUT again would happily chill most of the day, except for the odd 'mad hour' where he will play in the garden with Gemma until tired.
Hes a very loving boy and loves most people, loves a good fuss and needs to be spoken to lol
Hes 18months.




And last but not least, Gemma-
From ISDS parents.
Shes a very loving girl, very focused on things. Fast learner, unlike Simba!
Quite stubborn when she wants to be.
She is very 'sheperd-y' in that she will round up Flint and Simba when we go walking round the fields, eyes always on them! Think she would of made a brilliant worker.

My three all have very different personalities

Teddy , he's 5 yrs old in Jan , was from a rescue , so we dont know anything about him , except he's a dream
laid back with no herding instincts to talk of



Toffee is 4 in feb , he is from working parents , but is possibily the laziest dog ive ever met , I call him the hippy cos he is perfectly happy to lie on the sofa all day , though he loves to play on the field

I love this pic , but excuse the cowmuck , lol


Gypsy is my little sweetheart , she's 3 yrs old ... she is also from working parents. She is VERY high energy , always needs to be on the go , very inquisitive , her fave thing is to run , let her go on the field to play and she zooms off like a little rocket , lol

Such beautiful dogs everyone!

Mine are all so different.

Skye came from wales and has very much a working instinct she is smart and works things out quickly, she herd the chickens morning and night and loves 'jobs' as for walking etc she is a dream dog. Not hyper, very sensible and focused on what she is told.
Bruce came from Ireland and is the lean one, runs like a greyhound and only ever jumps gates, fences etc when we are out never goes underneath He is fabulous at flyball and is a brilliant listener, however he can be protective over me, hubby and the pack....we call him 'The Protector' very much the guard dog of the gang;-)
Tess came from Derby and is a Border Collie in disguise no concentration and forgets easily, but she is a beauty very thick set and loves her mom;-)

and then we have Mojo the JRT....thats thinks she is a Border Collie, with good herding instincts

The white and Black BC in the pictures is my sons BC Dillon....great dog but chases light reflections every now and again, he was quite obsessive at one time, but is much better these day;-)

Your Flint is gorgeous. What a lovely boy.

I've enjoyed this thread hugely. Sorry I can't share my pics as they aren't digital.

My first was a family dog. She was a very kind girl, with the patience of a saint when I was a small child. She came from the Scottish side of the border and was the typical strongly built sort for the terrain and weather, classic black and white with a rough coat and the drop ears that would have kept sleet and snow out. She just wanted to be with you like a shadow.

My own first was a rescued black tri badly treated as a young dog. She was great with children but not so good with strange adults or other dogs for a long time. Her true nature was that she was a very loyal girl with a great sense of humour, loved her cuddles and to lay near you, she liked to please and to check with you that she was doing what you wanted. She was happy to get up and do whatever you wanted she would go hill walking all day or chill out with a toy. She was a fairly fast learner but had virtually no herding instinct. Her little quirk was to sleep with her tail over her nose.

Next came a home-bred girl from 5 generations of pet Border Collies on her father's side. Both her parents were good natured, good with children, adults and other dogs. She was classic black/white with erect ears and a rough coat. She was a little angel for behaving well, she was quick to learn and always attentive. She wouldn't go running up to people but she was anyone and everyone's friend. She had the "eye " and herding instinct from her farm bred mother but she never nipped or chased. She liked to run but would not swim and she would play ball but she was atrocious at catching one. She was another for being your happy little shadow. Her quirk was to circle around the other dog and try to make her change direction (the outrun, herding and driving).

The things they were bred to do were to be intelligent, trainable, biddable and be able to go all day when required in any weather. Although I mostly agree with the linked to article I do think a good temperament is essential for them to be kind to lambs not so hard that they are prone to nipping. Gripping is heavily penalised in Sheep Dog Trials.

I think they are a very good family dog if they have a good temperament and if you make good use of those qualities especially if you give them your time and something daily to do to use their brains and get your approval for pleasing you.

I haven't found that a dog that grips whilst working has any bearing on its temperament at all. :?

Of course whilst working, and in certain situations, such as when the dog needs extra power, gripping is allowed. Much depends on the type of sheep you have as well as the type of grip - and, indeed, why the dog is gripping in the first place.

Oh my goodness, your dog (the one sitting down in the picture) is the absolute image of ours. We were told that Ben is a collie cross, but we've always been a bit doubtful about that. However, he is identical to your dog - I'd be interested to know if that is the lazy one?

Ben is extremely lazy, he would happily spend all day sleeping if I would let him, though he absolutely loves to go out for walks. He will chase a ball for short periods, but soon loses interest. He is a very gentle boy, with no aggression 95% of the time. He does, however, dislike large dark coloured dogs, particularly if they are "in his face", and he hates cats. He has also been know to bark at carrier bags (obviously thinking that they are some sort of weird unknown creature out to get him) and squirrels .

When we first had him he had no concept of play whatsoever, but now has a few soft squeaky toys which he loves and looks after as if they are his babies .

I don't know if he's a typical collie but he is definitely a big softie.

In a working dog I agree, the instinct to hunt and capture prey has been modified over the longue duree and that isn't to do with temperament, they can need to turn the power tap on when it is called for.

What I was referring to was that a dog with a nervous disposition and a tendency to display hysteria is faulty in temperament though.

Ripley was my first collie, she is working bred. She has a very high work drive/ethic but has an off switch too, she is more friendly than *most* other collies, absolutely adores people and other dogs. She is an absolute joy to train and be around in general and she never fails to make me smile at some point each day.
She was the start of my love for the breed.


Maverick is ISDS lines. He is an absolute character, he is such a sweetheart. He has been a different kettle of fish to train than Ripley, finding his 'buttons' has been a challenge to say the least, he is still only 19 months and a slow maturer both physically and mentally, he is very much a mummy's boy and looks for approval with everything he does.