Dog Breed Guide

Border Collie

Profile

Size

Medium

Country of origin

United Kingdom

Origin

19th century

Bred for

Sheep herding

Height

male about 53cm (21in), female slightly smaller

Weight

14 - 20kg (31 - 44lb)

Life span

12 - 15 years

A supple, athletic body and an intense stare are its hallmarks. The coat may be medium-long or short. Black and white is the best-known color, but there are many others, including red, blue and merle.

It is considered one of the most intelligent breeds in the world, and it took first place in Canadian psychologist Stanley Coren's ranking of breeds by their ability to learn work and commands. It is famous for its distinctive style of herding, crouching low in front of the flock and moving the sheep with its intense gaze, known as "eye."

The Border Collie is loyal and loving with its family, but to satisfy its brains and energy it needs plenty of exercise and mentally challenging work every day. When bored, it may try to chase and round up cars, bicycles, children and other moving things. It is among the world's best at Frisbee, agility and other dog sports.

Good to know

The breed is named after the Border country between England and Scotland where it developed. The founding father of the modern Border Collie is Old Hemp, a male born in northern England in 1893. His superb work, moving sheep quietly wherever he wanted without any fuss, made him famous among shepherds, and he sired more than 200 puppies.

In the United States, researchers have also studied how many words these dogs can understand. Chaser, a Border Collie raised by psychologist John Pilley, spent three years learning the names of 1,022 toys and could fetch the right one when its name was spoken. When given a name he had never heard before, he would even reason his way to the answer, ignoring the toys he knew and bringing back the unfamiliar one. He became known as "the smartest dog in the world."

Chaser died in 2019 at the age of 15.