HERDING DOG TRADITION 

          Britain has long been home to the herding dog.  From Neolithic times, through the Roman Empire occupation and up to the present day, herding breeds have always “pushed” livestock over British terrain.  Early herding dogs were large, powerful animals that, while rough with stock and difficult to control, nevertheless displayed an instinct to gather sheep.

            In the nineteenth century, the need for a more versatile dog, one with a gentler temperament and a more malleable nature, became apparent.  Small farmers, who could not afford to feed several dogs, required one that could not only gather sheep with a keen eye but also swiftly hunt game and sniff out sheep buried in snow.  Dependent to such a large extent on his dog, the farmer also needed the animal to develop a close working partnership based on cooperation, affection and respect.  Because this dog would work far afield from his master, it would also have to possess sensitivity to the human voice, whistle and gesture.

            Several breeds were introduced into the strain of these early herding dogs.  Fleet of foot and quiet by nature, the Whippet added its specific traits to the herding breeds.  To provide a “good nose” and a “strong eye,” pointers and setters were also bred with the herding stock.  Eventually a dog possessing superior athletic ability, a light and quick movement, a canny livestock sense and a tractable temperament sensitive to a handler’s will but independent enough to work without constant direction emerged from the crossbreeding.  In 1894, in Northumbria, on the English/Scottish border, Adam Tefler introduced the first of what would become known as the modern Border Collie.