Mini collie breed - features of the dog

Theses

This is a smart, obedient, faithful dog. Infinitely devoted to family.
They come in long-haired and short-haired varieties, both variations require care, but the long-haired variety requires more care.
Many have drug sensitivities, which veterinarians are usually aware of. However, it is better to warn, since the reaction is unpredictable, including anaphylactic shock and death.
They love children and play with them, they are a good nanny and friend.
Clean, they nevertheless collect small debris with their fur during walks.
They treat strangers with caution, but not aggressively. With proper socialization they are friendly, without it they are shy and timid.

Varieties

There are two types of breed - long-haired and short-haired collies. Both varieties have some differences in appearance and character.

Long-haired look. A model of aristocracy and obedience. The variety is more massive, males weigh 26-34 kg, females - 19-26 kg. The main distinguishing feature of the exterior is a thick, soft, warm undercoat and long guard. Thanks to his calm, friendly, patient disposition, he is suitable for the role of a companion and nanny.
Smooth-haired appearance. An elegant and “light” dog. Males weigh 20-29 kg, females - 18-25 kg. The exterior is distinguished by a thick undercoat and short, stiff hair. Compared to their “furry” relatives, they show more activity, curiosity, and sociability. Some representatives of the breed may express distrust of strangers, but they rarely show aggression. Shows good guard and hunting instincts.

Despite the similarity in origin and appearance of the collie and the Sheltie dog, these are two separate breeds. The ancestor of the second is the Border Collie, not the Scottish Sheepdog. Therefore, the Sheltie cannot be considered a miniature collie.

History of the breed

The history of the collie or Scottish shepherd is replete with reliable facts, and at the same time, it has not been possible to find out for certain the origin of this dog.

The first mention of the Scottish Sheepdog dates back to the 14th century and belongs to the poet J. Chaucer. Then representatives of this breed were described in the books “English Dogs”, “History of Quadrupeds” and in the “Encyclopedia Britannica of Dogs”. Everywhere they talk about collies as a herding breed with long hair of black or black and white color.

The origin of the collie has at least two opposing versions. According to one of them, the ancestors of collies were brought to Northern Europe by Roman legionnaires; according to another, Britain already had its own herding dogs by that time. Most likely, both Old English Sheepdogs and dogs of conquerors and migrating peoples were involved in the formation of the breed.

Herding dogs were especially common in the Highlands, a mountainous region between England and Scotland. An interesting difference between collies and other herding dogs - the lack of aggression - is explained by the fact that wolves were exterminated in the British Isles long ago. Therefore, the main task of the collie was the ability to herd sheep so that they did not stray from the flock.

This skill is so entrenched in the breed that even modern collies really don’t like it when people walking with them move away from each other. According to their concepts, everyone should walk together in a “pack,” and they vigilantly monitor this, driving everyone together by barking.

Interestingly, the first popularizer of the breed was Queen Victoria of England. She took notice of herding dogs in 1860 and brought them to Windsor Castle. From this moment on, the development of the collie as a companion dog can be traced. For this purpose, the most spectacular representatives with thick hair were selected. The dogs that continued to be used as herders were called border collies.

The collie breed was first presented at an exhibition in 1860, and 21 years later an official breed standard was published. The first collies were black and black and white, and only thanks to targeted breeding work a variety of colors appeared: red, sable and harlequin. The first collies were distinguished by a rougher physique and head structure. Modern elegance comes from the addition of Russian greyhound blood.

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, collies became popular dogs in other countries: they were exported to the USA, Russia, Australia and New Zealand. At the same time, breed clubs were created in the USA and Europe that were actively involved in breeding work, and in Australia the collie was mainly used as a shepherd on sheep farms. In Russia, and then in the Soviet Union, collies gained enormous popularity as service dogs; they participated in hostilities during the Russo-Japanese War as orderlies. During the Great Patriotic War, collies delivered secret reports and searched for mines.

Collie General
During the war years, Collie Dick helped discover 12,000 mines, including a huge landmine near the Pavlovsk Palace in Leningrad. He was wounded three times, lived to an old age and was buried with military honors.

Diseases and treatment

Despite its energy and cheerfulness, the collie dog breed acquired several genetic diseases during the selection process. It is not necessary that your pet will develop possible diseases during its life. However, you need to be prepared for health deterioration due to reasons beyond the dog owner’s control. The breed is predisposed to the following diseases:

anomaly of eye development - can lead to blindness; to identify it, you need to undergo special tests;
inversion or inversion of the eyelid - corrected surgically;
congenital deafness - more common in blue merle collies with light eyes;
degenerative myelopathy - leads to paralysis, diagnosed by specialists;
skin lesions - dermatitis, pemphigus, treated with medication;
epilepsy - detected by ultrasound of the brain, incurable;
ectopia of the ureter - creates a risk of infection of the genitourinary system.

Many representatives of the breed are sensitive to medications, including anti-worm medications. Before purchasing medication, get your dog medically examined and consult a professional veterinarian.

Puppies

Despite the onset of the first heat in a six-month-old bitch, she will only be able to become a mother at the age of 18-24 months. Males are ready to untie by the age of two years. Mating is carried out on days 9-14 of the cycle, when ovulation occurs, and is repeated after one or two days. It is easy to find out about the readiness of mating by the playful behavior of the bitch towards the opposite sex.

If pregnancy occurs, the calcium content in the diet should be increased until the end of the puppies' feeding period. Pregnancy lasts 56-66 days. Starting from day 30, it is necessary to reduce physical activity and increase the amount of vitamins and minerals in daily nutrition. Collies do not have problems with childbirth; the bitch is able to give birth on her own without human help. However, it is better to be monitored by a veterinarian throughout the pregnancy.

Prospective parents must have pedigree and titles to prove they meet the standards. It is not advisable to breed dogs “without clan, without tribe”. It is not necessary for a bitch to have puppies; this does not affect her health in any way.

Description of the collie breed

The Scottish Shepherd is a strong, active, beautiful dog with a harmonious physique. The body should not be rough or loose, and the standard pays special attention to the ratio of proportions:

head is elongated, dry, narrowed; when viewed in profile, it is wedge-shaped. If it resembles the head of a greyhound, then this is considered a defect. The occipital tubercle and brow ridges are weakly defined.
The skull is flattened, with flat cheekbones and a weakly defined transition from the frontal region to the muzzle.
The bridge of the nose is rounded, the lobe is large, with black pigmentation.
The mouth is equipped with large, white teeth that create a scissor bite.
The eyes are small, almond-shaped, set slightly slanted. The expression “sweetish” is tricky. The iris is dark brown; in marbled collies, heterochromia is possible; the iris may have bluish or white inclusions.

The dog of this breed moves softly and gracefully. The coat is abundant, with a luxurious collar and feathering. In general, Scottish Shepherds look elegant and pleasant.

According to the standard, the height of males at the withers is from 56 to 61 cm, and that of females is from 51 to 56 cm. Body weight is not strictly regulated, but the minimum weight of dogs is 18 kg, the maximum is 30 kg. Among the different varieties of collies, the long-haired representatives are the most common.

Distinctive features

The first Collies were somewhat larger than modern ones. This is evidenced by the dog standard in the USSR, where the average height is 63-65 cm. Nowadays, shepherd dogs are of average height ( 51-61 cm ), rather squat, well-built, elongated. The sexual type is well defined, females are much smaller. The difference in weight can reach 15 kilograms .

Distinctive features include long thick fur and a fox-like muzzle with cunning shiny eyes. The latest standard was published in 1988, according to which all dogs that do not meet external characteristics are discarded.

The head is wedge-shaped, narrow, dry. The skull is wide and flat, as are the cheekbones. The stop is weakly expressed, but easily perceptible.
The muzzle is narrow, rather long, parallel to the lines of the skull. Powerful lower jaw . Scissor bite The cheeks are flat. The bridge of the nose is tilted down.
The nose is large. Definitely black.
The eyes are set narrowly, slightly slanted, almond-shaped. Brown and blue colors are allowed.
The ears are small, set high, but not wide. In an active state, they are raised and slightly tilted forward, in a calm state they are laid back.
The body is strong and elongated. The topline is straight. The croup is round and sloping. The scruff is smooth and beautiful.
The tail is set low, hangs down when calm, and is long, reaching the hock joint.
The limbs are parallel and strong. Long shins are characteristic. The feet are oval, with well-knit toes. The movements are trot-like, light, sweeping.
The coat is long, straight, thick and hard. Forms feathering on the ears, limbs and tail; mane on chest. There is a soft undercoat.
Colors: fawn, mahogany, tri-color, black harlequin.

Possible colors

The fur coat is very thick, luxurious - mane, feathers, fluffy tail. There is so much undercoat that it is difficult to see the skin through it. The spine is straight and rough.

sable
tricolor
blue marble

For any color, white areas are required: collar, shirtfront, lower part of the paws, tip of the tail. The nose is always black, the eyes are dark brown (blue irises are acceptable in merle dogs).

Appearance characteristics

In the photo of a collie dog you can see large ears, expressive eyes, a narrow, elongated muzzle, the bite is almost always correct, the shape of the eyes is almond-shaped, the color is brown, red, even reddish.

The ears are predominantly triangular in shape, stand at 2/3, and the tips hang down.

Based on the type of coat color, the following types are distinguished:

Sable. The color of the coat is brownish-yellow, the inside of the down is white.
Mahogany. The coat color is wheat-gold or rich brown.
Puke merle. The main color is white with admixtures of black and pockmarked shades.
Tricolor. Coat color is whitish, black and brown.

The purpose and character of the collie

Long-haired collies are wonderful companions . They are suitable for keeping in a city apartment and a country house. They can be used to protect premises and serve well as a nanny for small children .

Among the character traits that dog handlers most often note: goodwill, calmness, shyness, neatness, love for children, devotion, complete absence of aggression, a tendency to obedience, good guard qualities, responsibility.

Long-haired collies are wonderful family dogs. They love children and look after them with pleasure. Collies do not conflict with other pets and are very loyal to their owner and home.

Training and education

There shouldn't be any problems with collie socialization. This breed is perfect for novice dog owners. She is smart and obedient, so she is easy to train. All household members can raise their four-legged friend.

The animal must understand that, despite the affection of all family members for it, it cannot live with it on equal terms. What does this mean? Rules must be established between man and dog. Their absence may result in the dog becoming uncontrollable.

A collie living in an atmosphere of permissiveness will become a big problem for the family. He is a large and active dog, which, if not obedient, can knock dishes off the table, damage objects, and jump on people who come into the house.

To prevent this from happening, you should take up educational work from the first days of his stay in the house. So, let's look at a few basic rules for dog socialization:

Some collies become so attached to people that they become psychologically dependent on them. They strive to constantly be nearby, to take care of their household members. At first glance, this seems cute, however, such an animal’s attitude towards people is pathological.

There are many known cases of starvation of dogs that could not stand separation from their owner. This is not the norm. Therefore, there must be rules regarding a person and his four-legged pet. It is important that the dog sees you as a leader. Only in this case will she begin to trust and listen.

Never demonstrate your authority to her with physical force. The domestic collie will not tolerate beatings. To lose a dog’s trust forever, it is enough to raise your hand to it once.

The classic method of proving your primacy to an animal is to be present during its meal. Fill your collie's bowl and invite him to it. Do not take your hand away from the dish so that the animal understands that you have a similar claim on the food you presented to it.

If you hear a dog growl, do not scold him. This reaction is natural. Try to treat the animal with something more tasty, for example, a piece of meat. This way he will be able to associate you not with a threat, but with a tasty treat. To rid your collie of stubbornness, you need to play sports with him. He needs exercise to maintain health and good shape.

If there is an opportunity to introduce a young shepherd dog to another dog, be sure to take it. Experts say that a person’s pets should communicate with their own kind. This will allow them not to lose social skills and adapt well to any conditions.

You should not go out with your collie into an area where he might be interested in a pack of stray dogs. It is better to choose open, clean clearings for a walk, where you can run or play catch.

When training a collie, you need to be patient. Sometimes these dogs become stubborn and withdraw into themselves. In this case, they should not be punished, but interested. Motivate your dog to train with treats or massage.

Appearance care

Nothing tricky - go over the fur a couple of times a month with a special combing brush, and when you hear a clicking sound on the floor, trim the nails. If you often walk, but your claws grind down on the asphalt by themselves, sometimes they still have time to grow back if you walk on soft lawn or snow.

The wool is two-layer - the first layer consists of a warm undercoat, which will warm you in cold weather and prevent you from overheating in hot weather. On the outside there is a hard guard hair that does not tangle and has water- and dirt-repellent properties. The fluffier your pet, the more care it will require, because... fluffy hair is more prone to tangling.

Be prepared for seasonal shedding - the collie will “change” seasonally for winter and summer.

You should start brushing from early childhood, teaching your dog to do it. First, move the brush in the direction of hair growth, then against it.

Sometimes you need to clean your ears with a cotton swab dipped in a special lotion that pet stores sell. If the ear flap is overgrown with hair, and this is normal for a collie, then you need to carefully trim it with nail scissors. You can also use a special ear powder, which makes the coat brittle, and pull out the hair, but this is a somewhat painful and unpleasant procedure, and not every dog will allow hair to grow in its ears.

Maintenance and care

For many potential owners, the optimal way to keep a Collie is unclear. Living in an enclosure is associated with pollution and poor grooming of the “coat”; keeping a Collie in an apartment horrifies housewives who see floors covered with balls of wool. Be that as it may, the breed can be kept both in a personal yard (provided there is free access to the home) and in apartment conditions, and care in both cases is equally painstaking. If you plan to keep a dog in an apartment, it is worth considering that the breed requires average but regular physical activity.

Ability to train representatives of the collie breed

Thanks to their high intellectual abilities and good-natured disposition, these animals are perfectly trainable. They are so attached to their owner that they will do anything to please him. It is worth noting that aggressive behavior is not typical for representatives of this breed. If the puppy shows aggression, you definitely need to scold him and stop such attacks in the future. It is very important from the first days to teach the animal not to take food from the floor, and also to the fact that biting the owner’s hands during play or pulling on the hands is unacceptable. In addition, you should not indulge the puppy’s attempts to put his paws on the owner or beg for food. In the future, it is very difficult to get rid of such bad habits.

As early as 3 months, you can begin to take a standard course of training and team training. In the future, the collie can be easily trained to perform more complex tasks. Despite the fact that these animals are easy to train, it is recommended to undergo training at a specialized canine school. This will allow you to fully realize the potential of your pet, making it a full-fledged member of the family. During training, you should not use force or use negative intonations in educational games.

Collies are very sensitive dogs, so they can easily detect disdain, anger and dissatisfaction in the owner’s voice, which can lead to the animal simply losing trust in him.

Collies are very active, so owners should be prepared for long walks outdoors. These animals love to play and fetch objects, which allows them to burn off excess energy. As a rule, by the end of the first year of life, the dog has already successfully mastered not only the general training course, but can also learn dog sports. They always perform well in flyball, agility, freestyle and herding competitions.

Currently, the collie is actively used to guard various objects and private homes. These animals quickly understand the task assigned to them. They are also safer than other watchdogs. Thanks to their developed intelligence, these dogs are able to quickly assess the degree of danger of an intruder, so they will never attack a child or a postman. The modern Scottish Shepherd has retained its herding skills; it is practically not used in this matter, since long hair can cause a lot of discomfort and require additional care from the owner.

These dogs love their owners so much that they try in every possible way to please them and make their life easier, so they quickly acquire some household skills. They can quickly learn to hand their owners slippers, a newspaper, or a remote control. A collie dog can learn to take out trash in a container and even wash floors. Thus, the dog can become indispensable in the shortest possible time.

Scots character

The Scottish Shepherd Collie is a wonderful animal with a stunning character, but due to its increased emotionality, it requires careful learning and training. A collie and her puppy are ideal guards, faithful companions and wonderful friends.

Before choosing a pet, you will have to thoroughly study the pedigree, character traits and health of the parents and get to know the breeder better.

The importance of this process is really great; the dog is selected not only by external indicators, but also by character. The difficulty lies in the fact that children at 2–3 months are still small, and in a short visit, it is difficult to understand his character.

The most important thing that is required of you is to choose a healthy pet, as well as understand the basics of care, understand what type you need and why you plan to buy a pet.

If you want a show career for your pet, further breeding, then you will need to choose mainly based on the exterior, but if this is a dog for the sofa, then you can take the dog in a simpler way.

Feeding the collie

For proper development, growth, excellent physical condition and health, you need to pay special attention to the diet, know what to feed your collie, and what feeding regimen to follow. It is best to keep a collie on natural food or stick to a mixed diet. If you decide to feed your pet with ready-made industrial food, choose products from proven, well-known premium or elite brands (professional food). When choosing dry food, give preference to professional food, taking into account the age, level of physical activity, and general physiological condition of the dog. It is equally important to adhere to a certain diet, feed the dog at the same time, and choose the right optimal portion size. New foods are introduced into the dog’s diet gradually, replacing part of the usual diet with them. The dog's diet must be nutritious, fully balanced, high-calorie, high-quality and varied.

With a natural diet, the basis of the diet should be meat products, boiled offal (liver, tongue, tripe, tracheal meat, chicken offal). From four months you can feed your pet boiled sea fish of fatty varieties. The collie's diet should contain dairy/fermented milk products, boiled, stewed, raw vegetables seasoned with vegetable oil, fruits, and fresh herbs. Any products from our table, smoked meats, legumes, baked goods, pasta, sweets, tubular bones, fatty meats, smoked meats, and other delicacies harmful to a dog’s health are prohibited. There should always be fresh drinking water in the bowl. If necessary, mineral and vitamin complexes and bait are introduced into the diet.

Features of the diet

This breed of dog needs special attention to its diet. You cannot give food from a common table, and it is also unacceptable to overfeed the animal.

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If there are no allergic reactions, you can keep your pet on natural products.

Predisposition to diseases

In fact, collies are very healthy dogs; they rarely get sick. However, like any living creature, they have a predisposition to certain diseases.

Congenital collie eye syndrome . This is a hereditary disease that affects vision. The dog cannot see in the dark because the retina of the eyes is destroyed. Over time, if you do not pay attention to the disease, the collie begins to see poorly during the day.
Entropion . This is a disease in which the edge of the eyelid and all eyelashes are turned towards the eyeball. This causes the dog to have constant irritation and redness of the eyes.
Distichiasis . This is an abnormality in which an extra row of eyelashes grows. They affect some parts of the eyelid, causing not only irritation of the eyes, but also gradually loss of vision.
Yeast dermatitis . This is a fungus that multiplies quickly, causing your dog to itch. Congenital deafness can be inherited. This disease does not appear on its own. Therefore, it is necessary to study the dog’s heredity.
Epilepsy . This is a neurological dysfunction. This disease is extremely rare in dogs, and not only in purebred dogs.

To avoid the above diseases, it is necessary to get all vaccinations and, at the slightest suspicion, contact a veterinarian, who will immediately find the cause and prescribe the correct treatment.

What nickname to choose for a collie puppy

It is described above that this is a service dog. Therefore, it is more acceptable to give short nicknames so that the dog reacts quickly. It is important that the letter “R” is present in the nickname. After all, then the name is more sonorous, which is important for a dog.

Dog handlers recommend the following nicknames for collies: Arnes, Astra, Kirka, Cedric, Lycra, Mink, Laura, Frant, Laur, Lard, Dark, Roy, Bravo, Curry, Sarri, Freda, Madeira, Gerka, Rona. These names will help you name your puppy something that the whole family will like.

Many people name their dogs based on their color scheme. If a collie's color is predominantly black, then it is called in English - Black. When there is more red color, the dog is called Orange. Many owners use this method to make it easier to choose a name for the dog.

Owner reviews

Border collies, according to the owners of this breed, have very high concentration and are able to maintain performance for a long time. An energetic, resilient and very hard-working pet, it needs daily employment and sufficient physical activity. Otherwise, the dog’s behavior may get out of control, and a “little typhoon” will quickly appear in the house.

It must be remembered that border dogs are peculiar “escape artists”, capable of easily climbing over a fence and into almost any gap, so you need to carefully monitor a young animal during a walk.

Important! Borderers are required to provide at least a couple of hour-long walks every day, and these should not just be walks, but active games and long runs.

The breed is not at all picky about its diet, but preference should be given to premium food, which is of high quality and can satisfy all the pet’s needs. Borders should not be fed legumes, cabbage, smoked meats or sweets.

Among other things, it is not recommended to use river fish in your diet . As practice shows, the best treats for this breed include chicken liver and oven-dried meat, hard honeycomb cheeses and special dog delicacies.

If you can’t spend a lot of time and effort on regular training with your four-legged pet, then it’s better not to buy a border collie. Regardless of age, such a dog is completely unsuited to being kept in a chain or being left alone for a long time. As many amateur dog breeders and experienced professional dog handlers note, this breed cannot be content with simple physical exercises, and therefore needs complex combined daily tasks set by the owner.

Video

Description and features

The breed was bred to look after sheep on farms. Aggression and collies are incompatible concepts, however, wolves never attacked the property protected by these large dogs, as they were afraid of them.

Initially, all representatives of the breed had a dark color. It is believed that their homeland is Scotland. The breed spread to Europe thanks to the nomadic Scottish tribes that came to England. Thanks to selection, light collies appeared that significantly surpassed their ancestors in size and working potential.

This dog breed is an excellent shepherd. Every year, collie breeders try to improve their skills in looking after and herding livestock. But is this necessary? These animals are very savvy, responsibility is inherent in them from birth.

The second name for collie is Scottish Sheepdog. In the second half of the 20th century, the breed came to America. It has become loved in almost every state, and not only by farmers. People quickly realized that this large dog with long hair was incredibly kind and loyal. It was these qualities that allowed the collie to become a movie star. Today, this is one of the most sought-after breeds in the film industry.