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The breed of dog called the Border Colony was bred solely as assistants to the shepherds who were engaged in grazing large flocks of sheep in the highland regions located in England and Scotland. The value of these shepherd dogs lies in the fact that they are incredibly attentive and have good eyesight, they can focus on long distances.
Border Collie dogs are quite active and are distinguished by their extreme endurance, which has made them very popular in farming circles around the world. This breed is easy to train and train. In connection with this factor, a Border Collie quite often can be found as a participant in a wide variety of sports competitions among dogs.
Make sure that this breed was bred not in vain, and that she is really a true professional in the field of sheep grazing, you can literally watch her during this session. Any person will immediately realize that she loves what she does and that it really gives her pleasure. This is reflected in an adequate and timely response to all the commands that the shepherd gives her, as well as in competent management of the livestock, even if it is large enough. These qualities could not remain unnoticed by other shepherds from different countries of the world, and therefore since the moment of their appearance, the Border Collie rather quickly managed to gain world popularity and become popular in farming circles.
This breed of dogs has quite standard average sizes and does not differ in especially large dimensions. Has average fatness and can carry in the range of 14-22 kilograms. The excessive activity of the border collie can be easily explained, it is due to the special purpose for which, in fact, the breed was bred. Namely - the daily grazing of livestock of sheep for a long period of time in the region of the mountain ranges, which England and Scotland are so rich with.The distances that this breed can overcome without any problems are, on average, 70-80 kilometers a day, and, if necessary, up to a hundred kilometers. Therefore, if you need a hardy and active dog, then this breed may be the best option.
Dog temper
No matter how perfect this breed of dog may seem, some of its drawbacks are still present. Their manifestation is possible only in the case when the family, in which the border collie lives, treats the animal rather coolly and indifferently. It is with this attitude that disobedience, stubbornness, and total disregard for the commands that her master gives her, are replaced by exceptional positive characteristics. The manifestation of such behavior on the part of the dog is possible only in the case of devil-may-care attitude towards it. If you give her enough time and properly care, she will never disappoint her owner. In addition, taking the Border Collie into the family, the potential owner must clearly understand that such a dog urgently needs regular mental and physical stress, the implementation of which he will have to provide.
Since the main purpose of this breed of dog is shepherd, it is not surprising that it will be incredibly attracted to various clusters of animals, especially in large groups. This applies not only to sheep, they can also show great interest in grouped children, cats, and even in moving vehicles, which the animal will willingly chase. This behavior is due to the natural natural instinct of the dog and its direct duties, for which, in fact, this breed was bred. Consequently, it is not possible to change the style of the animal’s behavior and make it more relaxed, even with the use of daily training by the most experienced specialists and dog handlers. This is the main feature that every potential owner should know who intends to acquire a border collie. Taking the dog of this particular breed, a person must clearly understand that she needs a lot of attention, she urgently needs daily walks and various active games. This is necessary primarily for the full realization of the energy that accumulates from her every day.
Border Collie is great as a pet to any active person, and the ease and simplicity in teaching a dog will help save a lot of time for training. Her temperament is rather quiet and familial, she is gentle and sensual towards all members of the family, she is not inclined to display aggression. Due to the social adaptation of the animal from an early age, its mental abilities will develop much more dynamically, in addition, a benevolent attitude will be developed regarding the people around them.
Most often, the Border Collie as a pet is chosen by those people who are focused on active pastime with her, namely, to engage in her training so that she can take part in various events. First of all, such as: sports dog competitions, focused on agility, the execution of various kinds of teams, all sorts of physical exercises for dogs, the search for a person or some object. In order for the border collie to become a real and indispensable assistant and friend, you should take care of its social adaptation in the environment in advance.And the sooner this adaptation begins to occur, the better for both the puppy itself and its owner.
The origin of the breed
The appearance of the ancestors of the Border Collie breed on the territory of England occurred at a time when people began to realize that for more efficient grazing of large livestock of sheep they urgently needed helpers in the form of dogs. Naturally, these animals became the most popular in the mountainous areas between Scotland and England, since it was there that at that period was the largest accumulation of shepherds and sheep breeders. Remarkably, initially these dogs had some differences among themselves, which directly depended on the area in which they were bred. Each individual breed of shepherd's dog had a direct association with the area in which it was bred. It was thanks to these associations that all sorts of varieties of the name of this breed began to appear, and the Welsh shepherd dogs, the northern shepherd shepherd dogs, the haidel collie, and others often appeared on the Border Collie breed. The word "collie", which is present in a large majority of the names, gives a clear definition of the roots of a dog, as it comes directly from the Scottish dialect.
The first appearance of this breed for all to see occurred in 1860, when the border collie became a participant in the Second Dog Show, which was held not on the territory of England. It was at this show that the Border Collie was spotted by Queen Victoria. Since then, the queen has become an ardent fan of this breed and expressed great interest in her. English dog breeder James Lloyd had to spend quite a large amount of money in order to breed and train this breed. Especially for the development of herding abilities in this breed, in 1876, James Lloyd brought a flock of one hundred sheep from the area of Northern England to one of the royal estates in London.
Today, the Border Collie breed is recognized as the best shepherd breed in the world. However, at the moment the breeding of these dogs is carried out not only to help them graze large numbers of sheep, but the Border Collies have become full members of many families around the world.
At the end of October 1995, the Border Collie dog breed was officially recognized by the American Kennel Club.
The nature and temperament of dogs breed Border Collie
Each member of the Border Collie breed is characterized as an active, intelligent and hardworking animal. It is quite easy to learn and captures all the techniques of training on the fly, because performing various exercises gives such dogs great pleasure.
This animal has a playful and disobedient nature, which is caused by the need for constant employment, it simply will not be able to sit for a long time without work. If this dog stays for a long time without any active occupation, then the owner should be ready for various mischiefs on the part of his pet. For example, to dig holes or reckless pursuit of moving vehicles. If the owner needs a dog that will lie on the mat for a long time without any actions, then he clearly should not start a border collie as a pet, since this dog was bred to be active and mobile for a long time. Do not forget that its direct purpose is the active participation in the grazing of a large livestock of sheep.
This animal, despite its playfulness and endless vital energy, is incredibly sensitive, and is able to understand its owner almost on an intuitive level, it executes commands immediately and without any whims or discontent. Thanks to this dedication from the broder collie, it is quite easy and pleasant to train. Naturally, with such a temperament, she will be able to feel comfortable, being exclusively in an active family, or from a host who purposefully intends to engage in her training for participating in various sports competitions. If such a dog does not undergo a timely social adaptation to the environment from an early age, then it is possible that it may grow secretive and fearful.
Maintenance and care of the pet
This breed of dog represents the category of animals that do not need any specific care. Her six can periodically fade, but this happens rarely and does not cause the host particular trouble. Mostly molt wool is no more than two times a year.In order to prevent the appearance of pellets on the hair of the animal, it is recommended one, and preferably twice a week to carefully comb it.
Bathing usually occurs once every two to three months, but only on condition that the animal is not exposed to heavy daily pollution. If the dog is prone to frequent smudging, then, accordingly, it will have to be bathed many times more, perhaps even several times a month, which in turn may not reflect very well on the general condition of his skin and coat in the future.
Due to the weekly cleaning of the mouth and teeth, not only does the animal's fresh breath remain, but sanitary standards are also observed - this also helps to avoid the appearance of dental stones in the mouth. Teaching the border collie to brushing your teeth should occur even at the stages of an early age.
Since this breed has a predisposition to the appearance of various ear diseases of an infectious nature, its owner is obliged to conduct a thorough weekly examination of the ears of the animal. In addition to the inspection, it is also necessary to treat the auricles with special solutions that only a veterinarian can prescribe.
Training a collie and her training
The main thing that is required from the owner is his desire to train his pet and diligent attitude to this process, since the dog’s childhood is considered to be the most optimal period to start training.
This animal loves the manifestation of heightened attention to itself and active actions on the part of man, therefore, devoting as much time as possible to practice with him, the results of training and learning will be achieved much earlier. A remarkable feature of this breed is that the Border Collie is the real champion in performing difficult tasks, which are directly related to the manifestation of dexterity and physical fitness of the animal.Most often, this breed receives the title of champion in competitions related to long jumps or other similar tests.
Health and Diseases
On average, this breed lives from 14 to 22 years. They are prone to diseases such as:
- congenital deafness;
- cerebellar degeneration;
- epilepsy;
- hip dysplasia.
Eye diseases in the form of: nodular episcleritis, lens dislocation, cataracts, anomalies of the eyeball, generalized progressive retinal atrophy.
Some interesting facts
- This breed is smart enough and smart, and therefore perfectly understands the owner and all his teams at an intuitive level, it often happens that she literally predicts what her owner wants from her.
- Due to the characteristics of its breed, the Border Collie is very active and, therefore, needs substantial mental and physical stress on an ongoing basis. This is necessary to maximize the potential of the animal, so that it does not engage in independent searches for entertainment, which its owner does not always like.
- Since at the level of instincts the pursuit of moving objects in a border collie is in blood, it is a problem to take a walk without taking the leash. Chasing bicyclists, cars, various animals and even children cannot be avoided.
- This dog needs to go through a period of social adaptation from the very first day of its appearance in the family, since if this recommendation is not followed, there is a high probability that the animal will grow up shy and shy, and will try to avoid contact with people in every way.
- In connection with herding instincts, the border collie may unintentionally escape, therefore, it is necessary to constantly control the movement of the dog.
Video: Border Collie Dog Breed
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