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The Bearded Collie or Beardie is a British
The legend of the Bearded Collie's origin is that the ancestors of what is today the Polish Lowland Sheepdog were abandoned on the shores of Scotland, and these dogs then bred with native herding dogs. A variant on this story is that Kazimierz Grabski, a Polish merchant, reportedly traded a shipment of grain for sheep in Scotland in 1514 and brought six Polish Lowland Sheepdogs to move them. A Scottish shepherd was so impressed with the herding ability of the dogs that he traded several sheep for several dogs. The Polish sheepdogs were bred with local Scottish dogs to produce the Bearded Collie.
The first written reference to the Bearded Collie occurs in 1891, when D.J. Thomson Gray describes them in his book ''The Dogs of Scotland'' as
It is generally agreed that Mrs. G. Olive Willison founded the modern show Bearded Collie in 1944 with her brown bitch, Jeannie of Bothkennar. Jeannie was supposedly a Shetland Sheepdog, but Mrs. Willison received a Bearded Collie by accident. She was so fascinated by the dog that she wanted to begin breeding, so she began searching for a dog for Jeannie. While walking along the beach, Mrs. Willison met a man who was emigrating from Scotland; she became the owner of his grey dog, David, who became Bailie of Bothkennar.
Bailie and Jeannie of Bothkennar are the founders of the modern show breed; there are only a few other registrable blood lines, preserved in large part by the perseverance of Mr. Nicolas Broadbridge (Sallen) and Mrs. Betty Foster (Bredon). These are based on Turnbull's Blue—a Bearded Collie from pure working stock, registered in ISDS when ISDS still registered non-Border Collies. He sired three litters of registerable Bearded Collies.
While the registered breed lines can be traced to a limited number of bloodlines, there are still many unregistered Bearded Collies in Scotland, some still working as herding dogs.
The breed became popular during the last half of the 20th century—propelled, in part, by Potterdale Classic at Moonhill, a Bearded Collie who won Best in Show at Crufts in 1989. The Bearded Collie Club celebrated its
The Bearded Collie ranks 117 out of 175 breeds in popularity in the United States, according to the
The Bearded Collie is used to herd both
The size of an average litter is seven pups.
breed
A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...
of herding dog
A herding dog, also known as a stock dog or working dog, is a Dog type, type of dog that either has been trained in herding livestock or belongs to one of the dog breed, breeds that were developed for herding. A dog specifically trained to he ...
of collie type. It was formerly used primarily by Scottish shepherds, but now commonly kept as a family companion.
Weights are usually in the range , while height at the withers
Withers are the ridge between the shoulder blades of an animal, typically a quadruped. In many species, this ridge is the tallest point of the body. In horses and dogs, it is the standard place to measure the animal's height. In contrast, catt ...
varies from about .
History
The legend of the Bearded Collie's origin is that the ancestors of what is today the Polish Lowland Sheepdog were abandoned on the shores of Scotland, and these dogs then bred with native herding dogs. A variant on this story is that Kazimierz Grabski, a Polish merchant, reportedly traded a shipment of grain for sheep in Scotland in 1514 and brought six Polish Lowland Sheepdogs to move them. A Scottish shepherd was so impressed with the herding ability of the dogs that he traded several sheep for several dogs. The Polish sheepdogs were bred with local Scottish dogs to produce the Bearded Collie.
The first written reference to the Bearded Collie occurs in 1891, when D.J. Thomson Gray describes them in his book ''The Dogs of Scotland'' as
It is generally agreed that Mrs. G. Olive Willison founded the modern show Bearded Collie in 1944 with her brown bitch, Jeannie of Bothkennar. Jeannie was supposedly a Shetland Sheepdog, but Mrs. Willison received a Bearded Collie by accident. She was so fascinated by the dog that she wanted to begin breeding, so she began searching for a dog for Jeannie. While walking along the beach, Mrs. Willison met a man who was emigrating from Scotland; she became the owner of his grey dog, David, who became Bailie of Bothkennar.
Bailie and Jeannie of Bothkennar are the founders of the modern show breed; there are only a few other registrable blood lines, preserved in large part by the perseverance of Mr. Nicolas Broadbridge (Sallen) and Mrs. Betty Foster (Bredon). These are based on Turnbull's Blue—a Bearded Collie from pure working stock, registered in ISDS when ISDS still registered non-Border Collies. He sired three litters of registerable Bearded Collies.
While the registered breed lines can be traced to a limited number of bloodlines, there are still many unregistered Bearded Collies in Scotland, some still working as herding dogs.
The breed became popular during the last half of the 20th century—propelled, in part, by Potterdale Classic at Moonhill, a Bearded Collie who won Best in Show at Crufts in 1989. The Bearded Collie Club celebrated its Golden Jubilee
A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations.
Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali language, ...
in 2005.
As pets
The Bearded Collie ranks 117 out of 175 breeds in popularity in the United States, according to the American Kennel Club
The American Kennel Club (AKC) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit breed registry, registry of purebred dog pedigree (animal), pedigrees in the United States. In addition to maintaining its pedigree registry, this kennel club also promotes and sanctions eve ...
's yearly breed ranking. A Bearded Collie is best obtained from a reputable breeder or a dog rescue. There are Bearded Collie rescue associations, such as Bearded Collie Rescue and "Rescue Me".
Bearded Collies make excellent pets for those willing to accommodate their high energy level - they are very enthusiastic and have a bouncy nature. They also require regular grooming; weekly brushing is mandatory for keeping their long hair mat-free. Some Bearded Collie owners opt to keep their pets in a "puppy cut" haircut, which reduces the need for brushing. Bearded Collies are an energetic breed, originally intended to work in the Scottish Highlands
The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...
herding sheep; they also excel at treibball, dog agility and Obedience trials.
Working life
The Bearded Collie is used to herd both sheep
Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...
and cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...
. It is essentially a working dog — bred to be hardy and reliable, able to stand up to the harshest conditions and the toughest sheep. The working Bearded Collie has become less common in the last few decades and risked dying out.
Herding instincts and tractability can be assessed in noncompetitive herding tests. Bearded Collies exhibiting basic herding instincts can be trained to compete in herding trials.
Health
The size of an average litter is seven pups.
Mortality
A 2024 UK study found a life expectancy of 13.9 years for the breed compared to an average of 12.7 for purebreeds and 12 for crossbreeds. Leading causes of death amongst Bearded Collies in a 2004 Kennel Club survey were old age (26%), cancer (19%), cerebrovascular disease (9%), and chronic kidney failure (8%).Morbidity
Further existing breed dispositions of the Bearded Collie include: Dermatological conditions, such as pemphigus foliaceous and black skin disease, follicular dysplasia, musculoskeletal conditions such as congenital elbow luxation, ocular conditions, such as corneal dystrophy,cataract
A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens (anatomy), lens of the eye that leads to a visual impairment, decrease in vision of the eye. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colours, blurry or ...
and generalized progressive retinal atrophy (GPRA).
Hypoadrenocorticism
Hypoadrenocorticism (also known as Addison's disease) is an inherited disease in Bearded Collies, although the mechanism of inheritance is not known. It occurs when the adrenal cortex produces insufficientglucocorticoid
Glucocorticoids (or, less commonly, glucocorticosteroids) are a class of corticosteroids, which are a class of steroid hormones. Glucocorticoids are corticosteroids that bind to the glucocorticoid receptor that is present in almost every vertebra ...
and/or mineralocorticoid
Mineralocorticoids are a class of corticosteroids, which in turn are a class of steroid hormones. Mineralocorticoids are produced in the adrenal cortex and influence salt and water balances (electrolyte balance and fluid balance). The primary ...
hormones. It affects approximately 2–3.4% of Bearded Collies in the USA/Canada, and causes the death of at least 1% of Bearded Collies in the UK. These are much higher percentages than for the general dog population (0.1%), and hypoadrenocorticism causes a disproportionate number of deaths among young dogs.
References
{{Authority control FCI breeds Herding dogs Dog breeds originating in Scotland