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Dog historians agree
that the collie descends trom herding dogs brought to Britain
at the time of the Roman Conquest. Later, when England was
invaded by the picts and scots, it is surmised that some
of these dogs were taken north to Scotland, where a breed
of intelligent sheepherders slowly emerged. Scotland is
regarded as the homeland of the Collie and the breed is
often erroneously referred to as the "Scotch Collie."
Earliest reference to the "collie"
appears in The Canterbury Tales written in the 14th century.
A later work, dated 1570, describes the way these herders
worked in response to the shepherd's whistled commands.
The dogs were used to tend the flocks, gather in the strays
and, at sale time, drive the sheep to market. So familiar
were the dogs that they received little attention until
after the introduction of the dog show in Britain in 1859.
The following year some of
the breed were exhibited at the Birmingham show where they
were classified as "sheep dogs." They failed to
excite much interest until later in that same year when
Queen Victoria saw some collies while on a visit to Balmoral
Castle in Scotland. She was so taken with the cleverness
of the working dogs that she brought some Collies back with
her to the Royal Kennels at Windsor. From that date onward
the Collie "had it made."
It is suggested that some Borzoi blood may have been introduced
to give a touch of elegance to the breed's appearance. Whatever
magic was worked, the collie leapt from the obscurity of
being the lowly shepherd's helper to one of the world's
most popularity was generated by the stories of Albert Payson
Trehune and later by the "Lassie" films.
The origin of the breed name is a continuing subject of
speculation. Most generally accepted is that the name derives
from the Anglo-Saxon word for black, "col," and
that the black-faced sheep of Scotland were called "colleys."
Thus the dog that drove them was the "colley dog."
While there are two breeds of Collie, the Rough and the
Smooth, identical in all respects except for length of coat
and judged by the same breed standard, the smooth has never
achieved the popularity of his longer coated brother. The
breed standard in Canada and the United States calls for
a somewhat taller dog than does the British, Also, in Britain
white is not considered an acceptable Collie colour. In
the first Stud Book issued by The Canadian Kennel Club (1888-1889)
there were 123 rough Collies registered.
Official Breed Standard
for the Collie (Rough)
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Origin and Purpose:
Both breeds of Collie originated in the British Isles. The
Rough Collie was originally used as a herding dog, while
the Smooth Collie was the Drover's dog.
General Appearance:
The Collie is a lithe, strong, responsive, active dog, carrying
no useless timber, standing naturally straight and firm.
The deep moderately wide chest shows strength, the sloping
shoulders and well-bent hocks indicate speed and grace and
the face shows high intelligence.
The Collie presents an impressive, proud picture of true
balance, each part being in harmonious proportion to every
other part and to the whole. Except for the technical description
that is essential to this Standard and without which no
Standard for the guidance of breeders and judges is adequate,
it could be stated simply that no part of the Collie ever
seems to be out of Proportion to any other part.
Timidity, frailness, sullenness, viciousness, lack of animation,
cumbersome appearance, and lack of over-all balance impair
the general character.
Size:
Dogs are from 24-26 in. (60-67 cm) at the shoulder and weigh
from 60-75 lb. (27-34 kg). Bitches are from 22-24 in. (55-61
cm) at the shoulder, weighing from 50-65 lb. (22-30 kg).
An undersized or an oversized Collie is penalized according
to the extent to which the dog appears to be undersized
or oversized.
Coat and Colour:
The well-fitting, proper-textured coat is the crowning glory
of the rough variety of Collie. It is abundant except on
the head and legs. The outer coat is straight and harsh
to the touch. A soft, open outer coat or a curly outer coat,
regardless of quantity, is penalized.
The undercoat, however, is soft, furry and so close together
that it is difficult to see the skin when the hair is parted.
The coat is very abundant on the mane and frill. The face
or mask is smooth. The forelegs are smooth and well feathered
to the back of the pasterns. The hind legs are smooth below
the hock joints.
Any feathering below the hocks is
removed for the show rings. The hair on the tail is very
profuse and on the hips it is long and bushy. The texture,
quantity, and the extent to which the coat "fits the
dog" are important points. The five recognized colours
are "Sable and White," "Tricolour,"
"Blue Merle," "Sable Merle," and "White."
There is no preference among them. The "Sable and White"
is predominantly sable (a sable colour of varying shades
from light gold to dark mahogany) with white markings usually
on the chest, neck, legs, feet and the tip of the tail.
A blaze may appear on the fore face or back skull or both.
The "Tricolour" is predominantly
black, carrying white marking as in a sable and white and
has tan shadings on and about the head and legs.
The "Blue Merle" is a mottled or "marbled"
colour, predominantly blue-grey and black with white markings
as in the "Sable and White" is predominantly a
light sable with darker sable mottling or marbling as in
the "Blue Merle" and with white markings as in
the "Sable and White."
The "White" is predominantly white, with sable,
tricolour, blue merle, or sable merle markings on the head
and elsewhere.
Head:
The head properties are of
great importance. When considered in proportion to the size
of the dog the head is inclined to lightness and never appears
massive.
A heavy-headed dog lacks the necessary bright, alert, full-of-sense
look that contributes so greatly to expression.
Both in front and profile view the head bears a general
resemblance to a well-blunted wedge, being smooth and clean
in outline and nicely balanced in proportion.
On the sides it tapers gradually and smoothly from the ears
to the end of the black nose, without being flared out in
back skull (cheeky) or pinched-in muzzle (snippy).
In profile view the top of the back skull and the top of
the muzzle lie in two approximately parallel, straight planes
of equal length, divided by a very slight but perceptible
stop or break.
There is a very slight prominence of the eye brows. The
back skull is flat, without receding either laterally or
backward and the occipital bone is not highly peaked. The
proper width of back skull necessarily depends upon the
combined length of skull and muzzle and the width of the
back skull is less than its length. Thus the correct width
varies with the individual and is dependent upon the extent
to which it is supported by length of muzzle.
A midpoint between the inside corners of the eyes (which
is the centre of the correctly placed stop) is the centre
of balance in length of head. The end of smooth, well-rounded
muzzle is blunt but not square. The under jaw is strong,
clean-cut and the depth of skull from the brow to the under
part of the jaw is not excessive.
The teeth are of good size, meeting in a scissors bite.
Because of the combination of the flat skull, the arched
eyebrows, the slight stop and the rounded muzzle, the fore
face must be chiseled to form a receptacle for the eyes
and they are necessarily placed obliquely to give them the
required forward outlook.
Except for the blue merles, they are required to be matched
in colour. They are almond shaped, of medium size and never
properly appear to be large or prominent. The colour is
dark and the eye does not show a yellow ring or a sufficiently
prominent haw to affect the dog's expression. The eyes have
a clear, bright appearance, expressing intelligent inquisitiveness,
particularly when the ears are drawn up and the penalty.
A large, round, full eye seriously detracts from the desired
"sweet" expression. The ears are in proportion
to the size of the head and if they are carried properly
and unquestionably "break" naturally, are seldom
too small.
Large ears usually cannot be lifted correctly off the head
and even if lifted they will be out of proportion ot the
size of the head. When in repose the ears are folded lengthwise
and thrown back into the frill. On the alert they are drawn
well up on the back skull and are carried about three-quarter
erect, with about one-fourth of the ear tipping or "breaking"
forward.
Expression is one of the most important points in considering
the relative value of Collies. "Expression," like
the term Character, is difficult to define in words. It
is not a fixed point as in colour, weight, or height and
it is something the uninitiated can properly understand
only by optical illustration.
In general, however, it may be said to be the combined product
of the shape and colour of the eyes, and the position, size
and carriage of the ears. An expression that shows sullenness
or which is suggestive of any other breed is entirely foreign.
The Collie cannot be judged properly until its expression
has been carefully evaluated.
Neck:
The neck is firm, clean, muscular,
sinewy, and heavily frilled. It is fairly long, is carried
upright with a slight arch at the nape and imparts a proud,
upstanding appearance showing off the frill.
Forequarters:
The forelegs are straight
and muscular, with a fair amount of bone considering the
size of the dog. A cumbersome appearance is undesirable.
The forearm is moderately fleshy and the pasterns are flexible,
but without weakness.
Body:
The back is strong and level, supported
by powerful hips and thighs and the croup is sloped to give
a well-rounded finish. The body is firm, hard and muscular,
a trifle long in proportion to the height. The ribs are
well rounded behind the well-sloped shoulders and the chest
is deep, extending to the elbows. The loin is powerful and
slightly arched.
Hindquarters:
The hind legs are less fleshy than
the forelegs, are muscular at the thighs, very sinewy and
the hocks and stifles are well bent.
The comparatively small feet are approximately oval in shape.
The soles are well padded and tough and the toes are well
arched and close together. When the Collie is not in come
to a natural stop in a standing position so that both the
forelegs and the hind legs are placed well apart, with the
feet extending straight forward. Excessive "posing"
is undesirable.
Tail:
The tail is moderately long, the
bone reaching to the hock joint or below. It is carried
low when the dog is quiet, the end having an upward twist
or "swirl." When gaited or when the dog is excited
it is carried gaily, but not over the back.
Gait:
Gait is sound. When the dog is moved
at a slow trot towards an observer, its straight front legs
track comparatively close together at the ground. The front
legs are not out at the elbows, do not "cross over,"
neither does the dog move with a choppy, pacing, or rolling
gait. When viewed from the rear the hind legs are straight,
tracking comparatively close together at the ground.
At a moderate trot the hind legs are powerful and propelling.Viewed
from the side the reasonably long. "reaching"
stride is smooth and even, keeping the back line firm and
level.
As the speed of the gait is increased, the Collie single
tracks, bringing the front legs inward in a straight line
from the shoulder toward the centre line of the body and
the hind legs inward in a straight line from the hip toward
the centre line of the body.
The gait suggests effortless speed combined with the dog's
herding heritage, requiring it to be capable of changing
its direction of travel almost instantaneously.
Faults:
A soft, open outer coat or a curly
outer coat, regardless of quantity, is penalized. Because
of the importance of the head characteristics, prominent
head faults are severely penalized.
Overshot or undershot jaws are undesirable, the latter being
more severely penalized.
Eye faults are heavily penalized.
A dog with prick ears or low ears cannot show true expression
and is penalized accordingly.
Both narrow and wide placement of the forelegs are penalized.
Noticeably fat dogs or dogs in poor flesh or with skin diseases
or with no undercoat are out of condition and are moderately
penalized accordingly.
A dog which moves cow-hocked. Or a dog with straight stifles,
should be penalized.
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