Environment

When looking at suitable environments for a Border Collie it pays to take into consideration the design of the Border Collie.
Selective breeding over centuries has built instinctive traits and expectations into the breed which help it perform the function it is designed for.

Instinct is an inbuilt reaction to stimuli and circumstances. It is a handed down from generation to generation and is instilled and honed by long term life and survival experiences which can be reinforced or weakened by breeding. That accounts for the eye, herding, chasing, intelligence, thoughtfulness, independence, loyalty, bonding and working as a team aspects of the breed.  But some instinctive behaviours and expectations are taken on by social and environmental exposure and are not yet genetically held in the dogs cells but are still handed on to new generations as ancestral memories. Example:- the hefting of sheep that always stay on the same part of a moor that their ancestors have traditionally grazed.

Throughout the best part of its history, the Border Collie and the dogs that went into its development were the dogs of the shepherds and farmers who often led a peaceful isolated life in the quiet of the countryside away from the constant noise, hustle and bustle of human activity.

These farms and fields and moors were large open spaces with neighbours few and far between. Men and dogs enjoyed space around them.

Dogs would work singly or in groups controlled by one individual. They would spend long periods of time in the hills and dales coming across very few people on a day to day basis, most who would be known to man and dog. Very few strangers invaded their space.
These are all ancestral memories of the Border Collie. Up to the mid 19th century it was the lifestyle of all but a few.

Because of these ancestral expectations the breed is often outfaced by busy environments, overstimulated by sounds of neighbours coming and going and alarmed and alerted by the close proximity of people. Life in towns and cities can be a noisy and scary place for them where they have little opportunity to rest and relax because of everything going on around them invading their space.

If your Border Collie is left 'home alone' for long periods of time in a busy environment it may be constantly restless until you come home, unable to settle and sleep for long because of the constant stimulation around it, much of which it would not be able to see the source of.
It may suffer fear and anxiety as it experiences sound it has no understanding of or ability to confront or escape from.
Bass sound and low pitched vibrations like those caused by passing lorries or buses can cause considerable upset.
Separation Anxiety issues may arise simply from having to put up with life alone without the security of a human companion.
Not surprising it's pleased to see you when you get home from work!

Even if you are there all the time you are only reassurance and consolation, not a solution to the problem.
Border Collies are country boys at heart.

Couple this continual stress with the frustration of the suppression of other strong instinctive behaviours and you have the potential for all sorts of problems arising from the loss of control this will cause in many individuals of the breed. Some can cope but most can't.

Many people seem to think that the Border Collie is a hyperactive breed. Highly excitable.
Some people have told us, with a proud tone and a little smile, that their border collies are 'mad'. This is a myth but it's hardly surprising because a lot of people only see Border Collies in urban environments where, in comparison to more domesticated breeds, they are pretty wound up.

The truth of this myth is severely tested when you look at a Border Collie doing what it is designed to do in an environment that it was designed to do it in. Herding in the country on a farm or on the open moors. Alone with its handler or working as a brace or in a team.
Sheepdogs can't possible be allowed to be hyperactive. The idea is to round up and move the sheep, not run them into the ground or scare them to death. They say sheep will keel over and die at the slightest excuse and there is some truth in that. They are sensitive.

Watch a Border Collie at work. It focuses on the sheep, it moves with stealth, it keeps back and flanks from side to side to keep the sheep moving steadily in the right direction. It is alert, it looks around to see if it has missed any sheep. It is attentive. It listens out for commands, it's tail is down, its ears up. it's vision and hearing at their most sensitive. It is poetry in motion and flows across the field.

The control and focus a Border Collie needs to perform like this, it's sensitivity to sound and visual stimulation, is all there in a domestic Border Collie and it's all getting bombarded in an urban situation. That's why so many think their Border Collie is 'Mad'. It's been driven mad!

A quiet rural environment is ideal - it suits the quiet thoughtful nature of the breed and gives them the space they expect.

Any other environment is less than ideal - busy environments with lots of human activity, noise and movement is exactly designed to give the average Border Collie continuous stress which leads to psychological problems and behavioural issues.

 

If you are interested in adopting a Border Collie from us,
please do not write to us or email us - we want to speak to you before we start the process.
Please phone us during office hours. Details here.

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