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Collie

The breeds · herding

AKC Herding · UKC Herding · FCI standard 156/296

Collie.

FCI 156 utilization: Sheepdog; "the basic message is that for all his beauty, the Collie is a worker"; many dogs can still perform satisfactorily at work. UKC: used for centuries as sheepdogs, both herding and guarding the flocks; recognized by UKC since 1914 as the Scotch Collie. AKC standard: gait "suggests effortless speed combined with the dog's herding heritage".

Breed sets the odds. The parents set the dog. Every number here shows its source, its spread and how sure we are. Nothing on this page is a prediction about one dog.

0INHeightdogs null, bitches null. An ideal from the standard, not a range.
40–75LBWeight, all linesbreed dogs 45 to 75 lb; breed bitches 39.7 to 65 lb.
1HRSExercise, every dayUp to 1 hour per day (RKC band, both Rough and Smooth). The constraint most homes get wrong.

The body

What the breed is built like. Registry standards give an ideal, not a range.

Height at the shoulder

dogs 22 to 26 in · bitches 20.1 to 24 in

Breed clubAKC breed standard, 1977

Low is the FCI/RKC floor, high the AKC/UKC ceiling; the US standard prints bitches about 2 in taller than UK/FCI. Ranges, so no center.

Weight

dogs 45 to 75 lb · bitches 39.7 to 65 lb

Breed clubAKC breed standard, 1977

Low is the smooth UK/FCI floor (18 kg = 39.7 lb), high the AKC/UKC ceiling. Ranges, so no center.

Coat

Two coat varieties, same size, one AKC breed. Rough: abundant, straight and harsh outer coat over a soft furry undercoat, very abundant mane and frill, smooth face, feathered forelegs; "the crowning glory". Smooth: short, hard, dense, flat coat of good texture with an abundance of undercoat. Colours: sable and white, tri-color, blue merle, white (no preference). FCI and RKC treat Rough (FCI 156) and Smooth (FCI 296) as separate breeds

Breed clubAKC breed standard, 1977

Shedding

Shedding 3 of 5 (AKC breed page trait score)

Breed clubAKC

AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.

Heat tolerance

2 of 5 · Rough: outer coat straight and harsh, undercoat soft, furry and so close the skin is hard to see; very abundant mane and frill. Smooth: short, hard, dense, flat coat with an abundance of undercoat (AKC)

DerivedAKC breed standard, 1977

Derived from the standard coat description: Rough is the heavy double/long tier (2), Smooth the short dense tier (4); center is the Rough Collie, the common variety.

The dog at home

What the breed asks of a day. The first thing most homes get wrong.

Exercise need

Up to 1 hour per day (RKC band, both Rough and Smooth)

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

RKC band mapped: up to 1 hour = 60. AKC trait score is Energy Level 3 of 5 (AKC page).

Exercise need

RKC: up to 1 hour per day, Rough and Smooth alike; either town or country, large garden. AKC page: energy level 3 of 5, mental stimulation needs 3 of 5

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

Energy

AKC trait scores (1 to 5): energy level 3, playfulness 4, adaptability 4, barking level 5, trainability 4, openness to strangers 3, good with young children 5, good with other dogs 3

Breed clubAKC

AKC breed-page bands, a registry scale, not a measurement.

Grooming load

4 of 5 · RKC: Rough, every day; Smooth, once a week

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

Center is the Rough Collie (the common variety, RKC every day = 4); low is the Smooth Collie (RKC once a week = 2).

Grooming

RKC: Rough Collie every day (medium coat length, sheds); Smooth Collie once a week (short coat, sheds). AKC page: coat grooming frequency 3 of 5, shedding 3 of 5

Breed clubThe Royal Kennel Club

The work

What it was built to do in the field, and what a test or trial asks of it.

Role

FCI 156 utilization: Sheepdog; "the basic message is that for all his beauty, the Collie is a worker"; many dogs can still perform satisfactorily at work. UKC: used for centuries as sheepdogs, both herding and guarding the flocks; recognized by UKC since 1914 as the Scotch Collie. AKC standard: gait "suggests effortless speed combined with the dog's herding heritage"

Breed clubFCI Standard No. 156

Primary game

Livestock: sheep. CCA: herding tests and trials run with sheep, goats or ducks on a ranch, farm or hobby property; the Collie is a Scottish highland working sheepdog by origin (UKC, FCI)

Breed clubCollie Club of America (AKC parent club)

Stock worked, not game.

Also used on

Wikipedia (Smooth Collie): family pet, obedience, agility, search and rescue, assistance dog, herding events; some still work as sheepdogs. Wikipedia (Collie type): show and pet strains of Rough and Smooth Collie were bred for generations as pets and for the conformation ring, not as herding dogs

EditorialWikipedia

Search pattern

CCA: the Collie balances "gentleness when guiding livestock with the strength to manage stubborn animals"; no mandated working style; the AKC Instinct Test judges the ability to move and control stock by fetching or driving. AKC standard: gait lets the dog change direction almost instantaneously. AKC page barking level 5 of 5. Single dog working with the handler

Breed clubCollie Club of America (AKC parent club)

Field trial standard

AKC herding: noncompetitive Herding Instinct Test (no prior training needed), then AKC herding tests and trials; CCA supports regional herding events

Breed clubCollie Club of America (AKC parent club)

How common the problems are

Evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock; the numbers are still the best there are.

Hip dysplasia

3.2% · 3.2% dysplastic, n = 4,601 evaluations, current all-data, accessed Oct 9 2026 (Normal 96.5%; mild 2.0, moderate 0.9, severe 0.2)

MeasuredOrthopedic Foundation for Animals

OFA all-data skews to breeding stock (dogs screened for breeding), so it understates the pet population. Undated cumulative figure. Row read: OFA COLLIE (rank 198).

Elbow dysplasia

2.6% · 2.6% abnormal, n = 1,686 evaluations, current all-data, accessed Oct 9 2026 (Normal 97.3%; grade 1 1.8, grade 2 0.6, grade 3 0.2)

MeasuredOrthopedic Foundation for Animals

OFA all-data skews to breeding stock (dogs screened for breeding), so it understates the pet population. Undated cumulative figure. Row read: OFA COLLIE (rank 117).

Most common disorders

Wikipedia (Smooth Collie) lists collie eye anomaly (autosomal recessive, NHEJ1), progressive retinal atrophy, multidrug sensitivity (MDR1, ivermectin), bloat (gastric dilatation volvulus), epilepsy and cyclic neutropenia (Gray Collie Syndrome). The AKC national-club health tests (PRA-rcd2, MDR1, dermatomyositis, CEA) line up with this list

EditorialWikipedia

Single editorial source plus the AKC CHIC list; no VetCompass or club survey ranking reached.

More

akc bands

AKC breed page trait scores (1-5): Energy Level 3; Mental Stimulation Needs 3; Trainability Level 4; Barking Level 5; Watchdog/Protective Nature 3; Good With Young Children 5; Openness To Strangers 3; Good With Other Dogs 3; Shedding Level 3; Coat Grooming Frequency 3; Drooling Level 2; Affectionate With Family 4; Playfulness Level 4; Adaptability Level 4.

Breed clubAKC

Fourteen AKC bands in one row; the selector reads each by name. Breed-club ratings: a tendency, never a measurement.

How to read this page

Every value carries a label. Measured means peer-reviewed data on many dogs. Studied means peer-reviewed, smaller or indirect. Breed club means a club or registry states it. Editorial means expert opinion with no measurement behind it. Where two good sources disagree, both are shown and neither is averaged.

Published when the entry rests on the best information available from no fewer than three independent sources, checked by a second pass that did not write it. 8 sources on this page. Found something wrong? Tell us and the correction is logged with its date.

Also called
Rough Collie, Smooth Collie, Lassie dog, Scottish Collie

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