Barbara Sykes' Training Border Collies E-Book

Barbara Sykes

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 288

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

A new, practical guide to training your Border Collie, by esteemed trainer and author, Barbara Sykes. Drawing upon her popular 'Thinking Like Canines' (TLC) training method and other established approaches, Barbara Sykes' Training Border Collies is an essential resource for understanding and training this versatile and loyal breed. With step-by-step photography and training case studies throughout, the book covers: breed variants and temperaments; diet, puppy training and bringing new dogs home; simple commands, boundaries and socialization; the 'Chill Mat' - a safe territory to keep your collie calm; lead and recall training; rescue and problem dogs and, finally, common myths, facts and tips about the breed.

Leseprobe

BARBARA SYKES’

TRAINING

Border Collies

BARBARA SYKES

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2014 byThe Crowood Press LtdRamsbury, MarlboroughWiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2015

© Barbara Sykes 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 890 5

Dedication

To all the Border Collies in my life from childhood to present day who have taught me so much about patience, understanding and the value of friendship. From being my confidantes as a child, to being there for my children as they grew up and always being by my side through the dark times, I thank each and every one of you for the precious times we have shared.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Ian and Lucy for their expertise in taking photographs that can tell a story, Gemma and Ben for their help and patience, and special thanks to Diane Jones for all her help and support.

Photographs supplied by Ian Hughes, Lucy Pearson and the author.

CONTENTS

Introduction

  1    Meet your Border Collie

  2    Expectations

  3    Welcome Home

  4    Keeping Calm

  5    Keeping the Basics Simple

  6    The ‘Chill Mat’

  7    Lead Training

  8    Teaching the Recall

  9    Living with a Rescue or Problem Dog

10    Fun with your Border Collie

11    Collies, Kids and Relationships

12    Loving, Living and Learning

Further Information

Index

INTRODUCTION

At the end of Chapter 1 is a dedication to the Border Collie as a breed, and when I started to write this Introduction I couldn’t stop thinking about some of the words it contains: honesty, integrity, loyalty, friend and partner – words that really do sum up an exceptional and very special breed of dog. So special, in fact, that I believe it is important to understand as much as possible about their history and about the ancestors of today’s Border Collies, which is why I refer to their working instincts and to the shepherds who first gave us this amazing breed. There is a notion that a dog from working lines will not make a good companion but a collie bred from compatible working breed lines is a true Border Collie and will have the temperament, intelligence and loyalty to be a perfect companion, a working dog, or both, as long as he is understood. This book is about training by understanding the instincts, the different characteristics of the variations in the breed and communication. Once you can understand what your dog is thinking, and why he is thinking it, training him will become much easier. But he needs to be able to understand you, and repeated commands or words he doesn’t recognize will confuse him, whereas a carefully thought-out movement of your body will explain to him in a few short seconds what wasted minutes of misunderstood words can fail to do.

Throughout the book I use the term ‘guardian’, as the word ‘owner’ does not sit well with me; we don’t own our children, we parent them, and no matter how much money may be exchanged for our dogs, we parent and protect them rather than own them. Border Collies need a leader and, whether the term used is pack leader or parent, if not provided a collie will feel lost and unprotected. Pack leaders are not dominant, they do not revel in submission and they do not harm or bully their subordinates; a true leader is a parent with responsibilities, who guides, protects and nurtures – if they don’t, they become bullies. No dog should ever be submissive but nor should he become dominant; each dog is different, and has distinctive characteristics, and to get a happy, balanced collie the training and communication needs to be equally well balanced.

I am often asked whether it is easier to train male or female Border Collies, but it’s not about gender – it’s about the dog’s nature. By taking a journey back in time in the first two chapters to meet his ancestors, you will have fun working out the character of your own Collie before you start training him. (The word ‘He’ is used throughout the book as a generic term, as another of my foibles is not to call a dog ‘it’ unless in a sentence giving general information.)

This book is written purely and simply for the understanding and basic training of Border Collies, to help you to have a well-mannered dog you can be proud to call your best friend.

A NOTE ON ‘TLC’ – THINKING LIKE CANINES

TLC – Thinking Like Canines – is a home-grown ideology based on years of living with Border Collies and studying their interactions with each other and with people, and honed by allowing them to teach me how to have a better understanding not only of them as a breed but of every other breed of dog I encounter. Rather than having a pre-set idea of how a dog should be trained, and what he should or should not do, the concept of asking the dog what he would like and how he would like to be trained, and of seeing the world through his eyes instead of purely through our own, takes us on an amazing journey to discover not only what dogs are thinking but why.

Training is not about demanding, or even requesting; it’s about co-operation, and discovering how a relationship can change from man and dog to a true partnership through communication. Thinking Like Canines is about studying each dog as an individual and asking nothing from him but the four marks of respect that he learns from his mother and which he easily recognizes and understands. Dogs by nature are givers, not takers, and TLC is about us learning to converse with and understand them, rather than expecting them to do everything our way. When you study your dog closely, watch his body language, know what he is going to do before he does it, can feel his every emotion and can sit with him quietly, allowing him to simply be himself, you have a true partnership – a bond that enables you to converse without words but by simply thinking like a canine.

BORDER COLLIE FACTS AND TIPS

Facts

•

Chasing is not a Border Collie instinct but if they are encouraged to do so, rather than discouraged, it will develop into a bad habit

•

Border Collies do not round up children thinking they are sheep; they are interacting and playing as they would with each other

•

Border Collies do not need hours of exercise; they need a sensible amount of exercise, a calming diet and company

•

Border Collies are not naturally hyperactive but excessive ball-throwing or repetitive games that over-excite them can lead to hyperactivity

•

Border Collies are very stoic but they are also very sensitive and anything that causes them stress can affect them for a long time

•

Border Collies respond to communication and company, which they can never get enough of, and they love the challenge of a game that makes them think, but over-stimulation of mind and body can lead to behavioural problems, particularly if the dog is then left to try to wind down on his own

•

Border Collies are amazing companions and they don’t need to be ‘doing things’ all the time

•

Border Collies are the masters of downtime and can switch from active to resting very quickly but if they are kept active all the time they will forget how to relax.

Tips

•

Playing games with a ball that include working out a problem, such as hide and seek or waiting before retrieving, will exercise the mind as well as the body and discourage chasing

•

Teaching a child to play gentle interactive games, and making sure that games don’t develop into chasing, can change the relationship between dog and child from competition to companionship

•

Walking with a Border Collie and sharing special moments is one of the best parts of exercise and keeps a dog focused, but any strenuous exercise should always finish with quality time together

•

Border Collies that become hyperactive may also be on a diet that is too high in energy; reducing the energy in the food and introducing games that make him think rather get over-excited can help to calm him down

•

Border Collies need to understand what is wanted of them; if you are unsure how to respond to any behavioural trait or problem, take time to think through why it happened as an incorrect response made in haste could take some time to rectify

•

Border Collies love to please and rarely refuse to do something they are asked to do, so before they become stressed or over-stimulated with a game, slow things down and spend time just enjoying their company

•

If you have more than one dog, try to spend some quality time or have special moments with each of them individually; they love human companionship, and when you have them on their own, even for just a few moments, you discover little traits you don’t notice when they are together

•

Border Collies need time to relax and switch off, but if they are not encouraged to do this they will be in permanent overdrive. Make sure they have a place of their own that is peaceful and quiet, where they can go and rest; even young dogs need time out.

1  MEET YOUR BORDER COLLIE

Life with a Border Collie is rarely dull and is often full of surprises. One minute they are full of fun and bounding around and then, in the wink of an eye, they have engaged their working brain and become focused, almost to the point of appearing to be in a trance. However, appearances can be deceptive and even when a Border Collie appears to have ‘switched off’ his brain is usually ticking away, working out his next move.

Originally bred as working dogs, they were often required to diversify into different areas of the same kind of work. The working life of a sheepdog often consists of gathering sheep into the fields from the hills and then driving them back again at the end of the day. He may be called upon to shed, or separate, a small group of sheep from the main flock, or even cut out a single sheep from the flock and keep it apart until the shepherd can catch it. He needs gentleness and patience to handle ewes and lambs, and a brave heart to tackle a stubborn ram. One dog rarely excels at all areas of shepherding work, although Collies will certainly try their best, but this wonderful breed does sometimes have to admit that, as good as they are, they just can’t be brilliant at everything.

So a shepherd with a variety of tasks will usually have several Collies, each one a specialist in his own field. These dogs may all appear to be the same – fun-loving, hard-working little dogs – but each one carries different traits through his genes – traits that may still be apparent in Collies that aren’t working. For example, a Collie who prefers to ‘fix’ his gaze on something moving, rather than move with it, probably comes from a line of dogs with a strong ‘eye’ – a trait that can be managed once it is understood. A shepherd trying to catch a sheep will become very frustrated if the sheep moves every time he is within reach of it and his dog moves with it. In contrast, a dog with a strong ‘eye’ will stare at the sheep, almost hypnotizing it, thus enabling the shepherd to move in closer and catch it. But the dog that moves with the sheep also has an important role to play: a strong-eyed dog may cause distress to a ewe with lambs at foot, while a dog who is willing to move with the ewe and gentle her back into the fold becomes an important team member.

A shepherd with a small flock would have only one dog, which would soon become a jack of all trades, although probably only excelling at one. If he chose to have two dogs, he would make sure that their strongest traits were different, thus ensuring that not only was he gaining a more diverse team but he was also making it easier for each dog. A shepherd with a large flock of sheep may have several dogs, and, rather than try to force any of them into a line of work to which they were not best suited, he would observe them, noting which trait each dog favoured. They would all be trained to work separately, but as part of a team each one would have a specific role. They would all be sent to gather the flock from the hills but the best outrunning dogs would be the ones he relied upon to make sure all the sheep were gathered in. However, when it came to ‘driving’ them back up the hill, he would rely more on the strength of his driving dogs, who might not have been as reliable at gathering, but could be depended upon to make sure the sheep were driven back to their upper grazing lands. The outrunning dogs might not be as strong at pushing the sheep away back up the hills, but they would support and help the dogs that were.

A Border Collie working sheep will be able to separate one sheep from the flock without becoming over-excited or losing his temper.

THE COLLIE ‘EYE’

With this background knowledge of the breed we can see how they all have different attributes, each of which needs to be recognized to enable us to understand how to manage any problems that may arise during training. For example, a dog with a strong ‘eye’ may sit for hours just staring at a ball that isn’t moving or he may fix his gaze on another dog. This can become an obsession, which in itself can create more problems, but once we understand why the dog is doing it, then it is much easier to manage by making sure each ‘fixation’ is curbed, first of all by removing him from the object of fascination, and then by giving him something to do that breaks his concentration. A dog with less ‘eye’ will soon become tired of something that doesn’t move and will either try to make it move, or will move on to something more interesting. This isn’t a new or unusual trait for a Border Collie and a shepherd with just one dog would manage it at the start of the training process. He needs a dog with a strong eye, but too much eye can cause problems when working with a flock of sheep, so he would encourage the young dog to keep moving with the sheep rather than using his favoured trait. The most important aspect for any shepherd training his dogs is to make sure they are balanced. Several dogs can balance each other when working, but a single dog must have all his traits brought into balance so he learns to pay less attention to his favoured trait, and more to the less favoured ones.

A strong dog with a ‘good eye’ can almost hypnotize a sheep with his gaze, and he must be brave enough to keep the sheep still until the shepherd can get close enough to catch it.

A dog driving sheep away from the shepherd will work lower to the ground than a dog ‘holding’ a sheep with his gaze, his strength being in his powerful movement and self-confidence.

The last thing a shepherd needs is for any of his dogs to ‘worry’ or try to kill his sheep. His dogs need to be brave but able to exercise control, and they must stay calm no matter how stressful the situation. A sheepdog that becomes frustrated or over-excited loses focus and concentration, and in so doing not only makes the job more difficult but can make mistakes that might cost the shepherd some sheep – or even his job.

We are now beginning to get a picture of how diverse the breed can be. The Border Collie is an intelligent dog who will work quite happily on his own but is an equally capable team player, balancing his strongest trait with those he is working with. However, whether working alone or as part of a team, a Border Collie still needs a mentor. Without someone he trusts and feels safe with, who gives him boundaries to learn from, he will be forced to make his own decisions. Border Collies can be obsessive when they find something they enjoy doing, and they will happily work all day and every day – which provides a shepherd with a very willing work-force but can cause problems in a pet home. A Collie who learns to chase a ball before he learns how to control his enthusiasm can become ball-obsessed. A Collie who learns how to invent his own game with a ball, before running to retrieve one, will be less obsessive, and will be able to amuse himself without getting over-excited.

A dog with a strong eye can become obsessive about focusing on one sheep so is encouraged to stay on the move in order to keep its working traits in balance.

DECISION-MAKERS

Max was sent to bring home a small group of ewes and lambs that had strayed from the main flock. One very stubborn mum refused to return, stamping her feet at him each time he tried to move her and her lamb. Max left her, gathered together the more manageable strays and returned them to the main flock. Max’s shepherd didn’t berate him for failing to bring them all back; instead he told him he was a good lad and watched with a smile on his face as Max disappeared. Almost half an hour later Max returned with the wayward ewe and her lamb. He had gone back for her and patiently kept adjusting his distance behind her, allowing her freedom to move but only in the direction he wanted her to go. Max worked out what he needed to do, made a decision, and his shepherd trusted him implicitly. This was a combination of good breeding, good training and complete trust in one another.

THE DIVERSE BORDER COLLIE

Just as Border Collies are diverse in their capabilities, so they are in their appearance, and with each variation of coat colour, length and texture come different characteristics and personalities. Making the breed even more fascinating, the very set of the ears and the colour of the eyes can tell us a great deal about each individual dog.

In order to understand the different types and characteristics, we need to know which field of expertise each type of collie would have specialized in, and the reason behind the breeding. A shepherd needing his dog to work all year round, in all weathers and often on muddy ground, would prefer a short-coated dog. If the dog is expected to work at a distance, and perhaps in strong winds, he would prefer a dog with pricked ears. To be able to ‘hold’ a sheep with his gaze until his master arrives on the scene, a dog needs to be bold and to have a good strong ‘eye’ – this eye may be lighter than most and often amber in colour. Over the years of breeding for specific types of work, different strains in the breed have developed. A much larger dog is required for working cattle, while small agile dogs are often better for nipping in and out of sheep-yards or running over rough ground. A very big and heavy Collie may soon tire when doing hill work but will be able to stand his ground in a yard full of sheep, whereas a lighter Collie will have little trouble running up and down steep hills. Thus it is easy to understand why a shepherd with a large flock of sheep would want more than one dog.

The shepherd’s choice for working in all weathers and ground conditions would be a short-coated collie, as the short coat sheds water and doesn’t get matted with mud. These are often high-stamina collies, usually with a strong eye.

It wasn’t just a case of ensuring he had enough dogs to work the flock, but of making sure he had all the skills in his team to meet every demand of the job. Little could our ancestral shepherds have dreamed that the dogs they were breeding all those years ago would go on to be just as diverse in our modern world. But all these different characteristics place demands on each of us as handlers, not only to recognize the different types of Collie but to understand how to manage them.

SHEPHERD’S COMMENT: ‘MY TEAM’

‘If I have six different dogs, to get optimum performance I must be six different men when I am working with them. A Border Collie may not be used for working sheep but if his character and ancestral traits are recognized, it is easier to understand him.’

It is probably because Border Collies were originally bred to be so diverse in their line of work that they are able to adapt to the many different lifestyles they are in today, from work and sheepdog trialling to search and rescue and sniffer dogs, from the disciplines such as agility and obedience to the wonderful companions they have always been. The Border Collie was originally described as the shepherd’s working companion, but we need to remember that the shepherds who gave us this breed are not the shepherds we see today. The modern shepherd has a much faster pace of life, and the use of tractors, modern sheep-handling equipment and quad bikes often means there is time left over in each working day for other jobs. In fact, few of today’s shepherds are employed solely to look after sheep and the last half century has seen them becoming jacks of all trades, like the dogs they are working with. The shepherds of yesteryear would rise at dawn and, armed with sandwiches and a flask, they would start their working day with their dogs and would not return from the hills until dusk. Their dogs were not just part of their work – they were their companions, they understood each other, could almost think for each other and they were a large part of each other’s lives. These men revered their dogs, breeding them for compatibility, stability and temperament; they knew which type of Collie was best suited to which kind of job, and the only time the dogs left the shepherd’s feet was to work. At the end of the working day, before the shepherd saw to his own needs, his dogs were given a warm meal and settled down for the night, and on retiring they could have the freedom of the farm and the farmhouse. In some ways it sounds an almost enviable lifestyle but, like many jobs, it had its drawbacks; the winters especially would have been very hard for both men and dogs, although working in adverse conditions probably served only to strengthen their relationship.

A Collie’s idea of cooling off and getting clean at the end of a working day is a DIY bath in the horse-trough.

Then, with their wicked sense of humour, the Collie eye is used to target the nearest person to shake any excess water over!

Finding out more about the different characters within the breed is a little like a ‘Who’s who’ of the Border Collie world. A person living with a medium-coated black and white Collie, with mid-brown coloured eyes and ears that tip over at the top, may be totally bewildered when they meet someone who has a short-coated, prick-eared, tri-coloured (black and white with brown markings), amber-eyed Collie and is at their wit’s end trying to keep up with it, both mentally and physically. But even if they are both feeding their dogs the same diet, and training them in the same way, one of them will almost certainly be having problems. One dog needs to be kept very calm and is better on low-energy food. One of them will be able to display a huge amount of excitement, maybe play with a ball and then settle down for a nap, whereas the other will be excited most of the time, go into overdrive at the very thought of a ball, will chase anything it sees and struggles to be calm. But how can we tell which dog is going to be which and what makes them so different?

Prick ears and amber eyes

Border Collies are sensitive souls, and few are more so than the short-coated, prick-eared Collie with amber eyes. The amber eye can hypnotize a sheep, keeping it immobile while the shepherd moves close enough to catch it, and with this information we can understand why an amber-eyed Collie rarely likes people he doesn’t know in his space. He will often seek out someone’s gaze and then fall out with them for looking back at him. People looking at him, or meeting his gaze, represents to him the challenge he issues to a sheep, so when someone moves into his space and stares at him he will feel threatened. Initially he may respond by retreating, but if this doesn’t stop the unwelcome advances he will stand his ground, often issuing a growl. He is rarely timid to the point of being submissive and, if not understood, any nervous aggression that develops as a result of being made to feel vulnerable could soon become a more dominant form of aggression.

An amber-eyed, tri-coloured, short-coated Border Collie. Typically, such dogs are usually protective of their space, don’t like people staring at them, can hear sounds from a great distance and can be very sensitive.

Amber eyes, which can be found in Collies of any colour and with any set of ears, must not be confused with the more yellow and much softer eye. The amber (or tiger) eye is almost transparent in appearance when compared to the yellow eye, which is much softer. Although the yellow eye is still a strong hypnotic eye with sheep, these dogs are rarely as protective of their fight or flight distance (see Box ‘Fight or Flight Distance’ below).

The yellow eye is a softer eye. Combined with a longer coat and semi-erect ears, the dog will not be as protective of his space and usually has a more outgoing temperament than the amber-eyed, short-coated Collie.

Prick-eared Collies can hear the smallest sounds from over great distances, which makes them very sensitive to, and aware of, the sounds and movements immediately around them. When working, these dogs can hear the bleat of a lost sheep when the sound is inaudible to the shepherd. Very few Border Collies have ears that flop over as their ears are vital to their ability to work at great distances from their handlers.

FIGHT OR FLIGHT DISTANCE

Fight or Flight is the distance between prey and predator that allows a choice. Outside the fight or flight distance the prey has both time and space in its favour to decide how to react – at this point it can take flight. Once the predator reaches the edge of the fight or flight distance, the tension mounts and the choices become limited. If the predator continues to approach, the choice of flight for the prey is lost and the only remaining option is to fight. Because Border Collies with a strong amber eye are capable of almost hypnotizing a sheep with their gaze, their fight or flight distance is greater than that of a darker-eyed collie, which is why, if they are not confident with their handler, they will often react badly to a stranger walking directly into their space.

The short-coated Collie

The short-coated Collie with darker eyes is more inclined to retreat if feeling threatened, and can soon become very nervous to the point of being submissive. However, this dog can often bounce up to the other end of the scale if fed a diet in excess of his needs and is over-stimulated, and can become hyperactive, often behaving irrationally and seemingly tirelessly.

To make these short-coated dogs even more intriguing, the texture of their coats, or a dash of brown in the colouring, can add to or subtract from their characteristics. Softer-coated dogs can often be more timid than the coarser-coated ones, while a dash of tri-colour can dilute some of the tendency for nerves in a submissive dog, but can also heighten the stubbornness in the lighter-eyed dog.

The shorter-coated dog with a darker eye is more inclined to be nervous, almost to the point of being submissive. Note the tail tucked slightly underneath. They are very sensitive dogs but can soon become over-excitable.

The longer-coated Collie

The dogs with slightly longer coats are no more or less intelligent than their shorter-coated cousins, but they can often be a little more forgiving, thus providing their guardians with a second chance should they make a mistake. The longer-coated, tri-coloured dog with an amber eye may not be quite as challenging as his short-coated equivalent, but he is likely to be more stubborn and, although he may forgive his guardian, he is much less likely to forget or forgive someone who is not a family member and who steps into his designated space. The black and white longer-coated dog with a hazel eye and pricked ears is less prone to making an issue of things that upset him but he is likely to have high energy levels, more so than his Collie cousin with a darker eye and ears that flop over rather than prick up.

The black and white and tri-coloured dogs are the breed’s main foundation colours, but red and blue merles, brown, white, and dogs with mottled faces and legs are also in the genetic mix. Colour genes and character pass down the breed line, which is why the breeding of Border Collies is not only fascinating but highly specialized if the balance of a good temperament with a working mind and body is to be achieved. Equally, purchasing a puppy bred from black and white parents with long coats doesn’t guarantee that he will have the long-coated black and white characteristics: the genes from a short-coated, tri-coloured grandparent can carry down the line, missing a generation but featuring strongly in the puppy’s character.

A rough coated Border Collie with mottled markings, one blue and one brown eye, and pricked-up ears: beautifully balanced genes, with all the attributes of an energetic and brave dog but sensitive and with a kind nature.

White Collies and merle Collies

White Border Collies are often considered to be unpopular for sheepwork for they don’t have the ability to slip in quietly behind a flock of sheep as easily their darker-coloured cousins. This may be so in sheepdog trial competitions, but on the hills they used to be considered an asset because they were easily seen by the shepherd when working at dusk.

Blue and red merles have never been prolific in the sheepdog working world as the merle gene, if not bred correctly, is known to cause a number of health problems, mostly deafness and blindness. Although these problems are unusual in a merle to non-merle mating, shepherds who bred for work ability and not appearance would rarely risk bringing a possible problem gene into their line. However, never to cast out the possibility of a working genius, any shepherd with a merle would breed very carefully to make sure it didn’t affect his line. Two merles should never be bred together as this results in some double merle puppies, which will inherit the serious health problems carried by the merle gene. Merles from a working line with a strong working instinct are often high energy dogs and they are often so busy being busy that they completely miss what they are being asked to do. A ‘wall-eye’ is also a characteristic of the merle gene; this is a striking blue eye instead of the usual brown or hazel, and can be one or both eyes. The wall-eye is not detrimental and is not an indication of defective eyesight. The colour and appearance of a dog’s eyes can tell a lot about his character, but two very blue eyes give away little information. A very dark merle dog will usually have standard-coloured eyes but lighter-coloured merles usually have at least one wall-eye, as will Collies with a different-coloured coat if they carry the merle gene.

A red-coated, fine-boned dog with semi-erect ears, usually full of life and very excitable.

A much heavier-boned dog with a brown coat and dropped ears: usually has a very placid and easy-going nature but is inclined to be stubborn.

Blue merles are often busy dogs with even temperaments but they can be very excitable. Merles often have one or two blue eyes.

THE INTERNATIONAL SHEEP DOG SOCIETY

The International Sheep Dog Society (ISDS) was formed in 1906 and its Stud Book was set up in the late 1940s. The Stud Books trace back to list 3,000 dogs registered up to 1939, with dates of birth stretching back to the 1890s (where known). The registered dogs are not all the same colour, shape or size; the ability to be able to do the job they were bred for is the main criterion. Three-quarters of a century after the formation of the ISDS the Kennel Club officially recognized the Border Collie as a breed, setting a precedent for a more stereotyped appearance than the huge variety seen in the breed as a working dog. For several years following the Border Collie’s initiation into the Kennel Club’s breed register the stereotype black and white long-coated dogs were the most popular in pet homes. But a century after the advent of the International Sheep Dog Society the Border Collie had become so popular that every shape, size and colour can be found in companion homes and in the disciplines but, for all the breed may have come a long way in just one century, the Border Collie still remains true to the character of his ancestral genes.

The importance of understanding breed lines, their traits and characteristics for at least seven generations cannot be stressed enough, not just for the names of dogs that may have excelled in one or more fields of expertise but for the temperament and sensitivity of the chosen line.