What's the difference between a Border Collie and a Scotch Collie?

September 10, 2024 by Stillwaters Heritage Farm

I am often asked, "Are Scotch Collies and Border Collies about the same?"  I'm going to illustrate with a story about a Border Collie and my grade school children.

We were over at a good friends house and all of our children were romping around on their property.  As I kept an eye on them through the window, I saw her black and white dog (I didn't know what a Border Collie was back then!) chase the children and try to nip at their heels.  After a few times of that, the children headed toward the house.  "Why is that dog chasing them and nipping at them like that?" I asked my friend.  "Oh," she replied, "Border Collies have such a strong herding instinct that they will herd even the children." Hmmm, I filed that away with dogs that would not fit into my family picture.  If I ever had a big ranch with 100+ stubborn cows, I may consider it, but the dog would be banned from my home grounds!  

On the other hand, when our children are playing, our Scotch Collies will lay near our children, keeping an eye on them.  If the children call them and want to play with them, they will join in, but otherwise, our dogs are content to keep watch.  When the children move to other parts of our acreage, the dogs move right along beside them.

This ability to be still is what I love about the Scotch Collie!

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