All things Collie: May 2014

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Nothing "butt" collies!

One of these things is not like the others!

There we go - everycollie in line!

Somecollie was caught ~~using his mother as a pillow~~ snuggling with his mother!

Saturday, May 17, 2014

Whenever we take the collies for a walk, people stop us to talk about them. Ryder, in particular, brings a smile to people's faces and his happy nature invites people to stop and chat for a while. I'm sure it's because Ryder is a rough collie, and he reminds people of Lassie or of their own childhood collie, or both. We have even had people stop their cars in the middle of the street to tell us how beautiful Ryder looks.

The girls, being smooth collies, are less recognizable. But their sweet personalities, pretty markings, and beautiful faces also have people stopping us to ask about them. We have been asked if they were shepherd mixes or grey hound mixes. Some people even ask us "why did we shave our collies?" We then explain about the smooth coat, and many are amazed because they never knew the smooth coated variety of collie existed.

Children flock to collies, like bees to flowers, and the admiration is mutual. Not only are our collies careful and gentle with small children, they are fascinated by them. I can't count how many times they have spotted a child and dragged us over to say "hello." The children we have encountered seem to know that the collies love them, often wrapping their little arms around a collie neck to share a hug. (Which sets our collies' entire bodies to wagging in delight!)

Older adults often reminisce with us about their childhoods, and how they grew up with collies. And many tell us about how they watched the Lassie TV show every week. We have also heard many times that "you never see collies anymore." It's so strange, with so many people loving this breed so deeply, that collies aren't more popular.

Some days, during our walks, it feels like we are accompanying celebrities on a goodwill tour! They never seem to tire of making new friends. Which is why we have begun attending AKC "Meet the Breeds" events with our collies. It is a great way to educate people about this wonderful breed, that has captured hearts for generations.

Here are some fun facts about collies:

The collie originated in Scotland.
The role of Lassie, the most famous collie, was always played by a male collie.

Most collies dislike getting dirty, and they will even avoid mud puddles!

Collies are one of the most intelligent breeds, which makes them easy to train. But they are also sensitive, so only positive training methods should be used.

Collies are talented and eager to please, which means they can compete in a variety of competitions – herding, agility, obedience, Rally, dance. And they can also serve as search and rescue, therapy or guide dogs.

Collies are “nosey,” and are always checking on their humans. If they can’t be by your side, they can be seen peeking around doors, shower curtains or windows, to see what you are doing or if you need their “help.” They need to be with their families, so if you want an “outside” dog, this is not the breed for you.

Male collies typically weigh around 60 to 75 pounds, females are usually smaller and weigh 50 to 65 pounds.

Collies come in four coat colors – tri-color, white, blue merle, or sable and white

You can learn more about the collie by visiting:

Friday, May 16, 2014

Scarlett to the rescue!

The other day our little Scarlett must have been inspired when we watched a Lassie movie together, because she tried to follow in Lassie's heroic pawsteps! When my daughter went outside yesterday, Scarlett told her that something wasn't right. She ran to my daughter, ran over to the tree in our yard, and then back to my daughter again. She repeated this a couple times, because humans can be slow to catch on. Finally, my daughter realized Scarlett was trying to show her something.

There she found this little guy. He had fallen out of his nest, or jumped, we aren't sure which. My daughter picked him up, gently dried him off, while Scarlett supervised. During this process, the scared baby heard his parents calling for him, and started fluttering and moving in excitement. So my daughter put him down, and his parents quickly joined him. They all hopped off together under the fence, and that was the last we saw of the little family.

But I have to say, I'm impressed with Scarlett's "rescue" skills. What a good collie!

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Rounding up the usual suspects...

This past weekend we took Holly and Kori to a herding trial. The event was run by our collie club, and was open to all herding breeds. We also had a herding instinct test, for collies only. The instinct test is an AKC test, which determines if the collies still have an instinct for herding sheep, and if they know how to round them up and bunch them together. To earn the herding instinct "title", which is HIT, the collies have to have "two legs." Which means they have to pass the test twice, under two different judges. Holly and Kori have both passed the test in the past, and just needed their second leg to earn the HIT.

Holly did pretty good! Hard to believe she will be 9 years old this year!

My sister's collie, Penny, gave it a try too.

Then it was finally Kori's turn...

Kori has a very strong herding instinct! I wish there was somewhere local that we could train her to compete in herding!

This sweet puppy attended the event, and was a little doll!

Kori, enjoyed the sunshine and the beautiful scenic, farm!

It was a fun day, and both Holly and Kori passed their tests! My sister's collie, Penny, also passed. The collies love attending these events, and I love seeing that my family of collies still have their herding instinct!