Origin.
The Great Britain.
General Character.
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.
Temperament. Friendly disposition, with no trace of nervousness or aggressiveness,
dutiful, obedient, certain, loyal.
Head. The head properties are of great importance, must be considered
in proportion to the size of the dog. Viewed from front or side, the head resembles
a well-blunted clean wedge, being smooth in outline. Skulls flat. Sides taper
gradually and smoothly from ears to end of black nose, without prominent
cheek-bones or pinched muzzle. Viewed in profile, top of skull and top of muzzle
lie in two parallel straight lines of equal length divided by a slight, but
perceptible stop or break. A mid-point between inside corner of the eyes
(which is centre of a correctly placed stop) is centre of balance in length of head.
End of smooth, well-rounded muzzle blunt, never square. Under-jaw strong, clean cut.
Depth of skull from brow to underpart of jaw never excessive (deep through).
Nose and lips always black without specks and spots.
Eyes.
Very important feature giving sweet expression. Medium size, never very small,
set somewhat obliquely, of almond shape and dark brown colour, except in the case
of blue merles when eyes are frequently (one or both or part of one or both) blue
or blue flecked. Expression full of intelligence, with quick, alert look when listening.
The brows are not so long and don't cover the eyes.
Ears.
Small, not too close together on top of skull, not too far apart. In repose
carried thrown back, but on alert brought forward and carried semi-erect, that is,
with approximately two-thirds of ear standing erect, top third tipping forward naturally,
below horizontal.
Mouth.
Teeth of good size. Jaws strong with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite.
In upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to jaw.
Neck.
The neck is not so long, muscular, strong and well arched.
Forequarters.
Shoulders sloping and well angulated. Forelegs straight and muscular, neither in
nor out at the elbows, with moderate amount of round bone.
Body.
Slightly long compared with height, back firm with a slight rise over loins;
ribs well sprung, chest deep, fairly broad behind shoulders.
Hindquarters.
Hind legs muscular at thighs, clean and sinewy below, with well bent stifles.
Hocks well let down and powerful.
Feet oval.
Soles well padded. Toes arched and close together. Hindfeet slightly less arched.
Tail.
Long with bone reaching at least to hock joint. Carried low when quiet but with
slight upward swirl at tip. May be gaily carried when excited but never over back.
Gate and Movement.
Distinctly characteristic in this breed. A sound dog is never out at the elbow,
yet moves with front feet comparatively close together. Plaiting, crossing or
rolling are highly undesirable. Hind legs from hock joint to ground when viewed
from rear to be parallel but not too close; when viewed from side, action is smooth.
Hind legs powerful with plenty of drive. A reasonably long stride is desirable and
should be light and appear effortless.
Coat.
Fits outline of body, very dense. Outer coat straight and harsh to touch, undercoat soft,
furry and very close almost hiding the skin; mane and frill very abundant,
mask and face smooth, ears smooth at tips, but carrying more hair towards base,
front legs above hocks profusely feathered, but smooth below hock joint. Hair on
tail very profuse.
Colour.
Three recognised colours: Sable and White, Tricolour and Blue Merle.
SABLE: any shade of light gold to rich mahogany or shaded sable. Light straw or
cream coloured highly undesirable.
TRICOLOUR: predominantly black with rich tan markings about legs and head.
A rusty tinge in top coat highly undesirable.
BLUE MERLE: predominantly clear, silvery blue, splashed and marbled with black.
Rich tan markings preferred, but absence should not be penalised. Large black markings,
slate colour or rusty tinge either on top or undercoat are highly undesirable.
All should carry typical white Collie markings to a greater or lesser degree.
The following markings are favourable - white collar, full or part, white shirt,
legs and feet, white tail tip. A blaze may be carried om muzzle or skull, or both.
WHITE COLOUR admissible in the USA breed standard.
|
