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Collie History
There are two varieties of Collie, the
rough-coated being by far the more familiar. However, many fanciers have increased their breeding of the smooth-coated variety
and many smooths of excellent type are now being exhibited. Although the exact origin of the Collie remains an enigma, both
varieties existed long ago in the unwritten history of the herding dogs of Scotland and northern England.
Since sheepherding
is one of the world's oldest occupations, the Collie's ancestors date far back in the history of dogs. The smooth Collie,
which for as long as there have been written standards for the breed has been bred to the same standard except for coat, was
considered principally as a drover's dog used for guiding cows and sheep to market, not for standing over and guarding them
at pasture. Until the last two centuries, both varieties were strictly working dogs without written pedigrees. Their untutored
masters saw no need for pedigrees, if indeed they were capable of keeping stud books.
From early in the 19th century,
when some dog fanciers began to take interest in these dogs, and the keeping of written pedigrees began, the breed progressed
rapidly, becoming not only larger in stature but also more refined. The dog "Old Cockie" was born in 1867 and he is credited
with not only stamping characteristic type on the rough Collie but he is believed by usually reliable authorities to be responsible
for introducing to the breed the factors which led to the development of the sable coat color in the Collie. A short time
later Collies were seen of almost every imaginable color, including red, buff, mottle of various shades, and a few sables.
At that time the most frequently seen colors were black, tan and white, black and white (without tan), and what are now called
blue merles, but which were known then as "tortoise shell."
Collie type was well enough "fixed" by 1886 so that the
English breeders have never seen fit to change the height and weight established in their standard at that time. Numerous
clarifying changes have taken place in the United States standard over the ensuing years but except for recognizing that the
Collie has become slightly larger and heavier on this side of the Atlantic there is no fundamental difference, even today,
from that 1886 description of the ideal Collie.
Being no longer in great demand as a herder, today's Collie has transferred
these abilities to serving as a devoted family dog where he shows a particular affinity for small children. For many years
his general popularity has placed him among the top twenty of the favorite dogs registered by the American Kennel Club. Elegant
and beautiful in appearance, loyal and affectionate in all his actions, self-appointed guardian of everything he can see or
hear, the Collie represents, to his many admirers, the ideal family companion.
The Collie has been the beneficiary
of "good press." Its parent club, The Collie Club of America, Inc. was organized in 1886, two years after the establishment
of the American Kennel Club, and was the second parent club to join the AKC. Very active in promoting the interest of the
breed, the parent club now has a membership numbering well over 3,500 and its annual specialty show attracts over 400 Collies
from all over the United States. Great impetus to the breed's popularity was provided by the famous Collie stories of Albert
Payson Terhune. His Lad: A Dog was followed by many more volumes that have been eagerly read by several generations
of Americans. More recently, the television exploits of "Lassie" brought to children and their parents a strong desire to
have for their very own "a lovely dog like that."
Additional Collie Info
A. Collies come in a variety of colors.
Coat color inheritance.
1. Pure for sable. This is a product of
two sable parents and carries no tri-color gene at all. Usually a light or orange sable. This dog can only produce sables
no matter what you breed it to.
2. Tri-factored sable. This is also known as a shaded sable, mahogany sable, or black-tipped
sable. These are the rich reds with the black overlay and the dark face mask. They can also be very bland in color. A tri-factored
sable can produce sables and tris depending on what it is bred to as it carries a tri gene.
3. Tricolor. This is the
black Collie with the tan points. It has a black body that varies in depth of color. It again can produce sables or tris depending
on what you breed to. It can be carried as a recessive just like the sable..and this would be your tri-factored sable.
4.
Blue Merle and/or Sable Merle. A merle is a tri-colored dog or a sable-colored dog with a dominant dilution gene and
the dominant dilution gene is what makes it become a merle. IT IS NOT RECESSIVE. IF IT IS PRESENT..THE DOG IS A MERLE .
There is no way to get a merle unless you breed to a merle. You can think if it being inherited independently of color. A
Blue Merle is a tri-colored dog with a dominant dilution gene. A Sable Merle is a sable-colored dog with a dominant dilution
gene.
5. White. The white gene is also carried independently of color. White in the Collie is not so much as a color
as a condition just like the dilution gene we just went over. The white Collie does come with a color that is inherited just
like a non-white collie. In the white though, the only place you usually see the color is
on the head and maybe a
body spot or two. The white means that they inherited the white gene and can produce a white.
Q.
What does “Wf” mean?
A. ”Wf" is an abbreviation for “white factored”. White
factored dogs usually have a large white frill, a heavy white tail tip, possibly a body splash of white hairs and white extending
upward from their hind feet over the stifle and will meet the white underbody.
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