AKC Official Standard of the Border Collie
Preamble: The Border Collie originated in the Border country between Scotland and England where the shepherds' breeding selection was based on biddable stock sense and the ability to work long days on rugged terrain. As a result of this selective breeding, the Border Collie developed the unique working style of gathering and fetching the stock with wide sweeping outruns. The stock is then controlled with an intense gaze known as "eye", coupled with a stalking style of movement. This selective breeding over time developed the Border Collie's intensity, energy and trainability which are features so important that they are equal to physical size and appearance. The Border Collie has extraordinary instinct and an uncanny ability to reason. One of its greatest assets is the ability to work out of sight of its master without commands. Breeding based on this working ability has made this breed the world's premier sheep herding dog, a job the Border Collie is still used for worldwide.
General Appearance: The Border Collie is a well balanced, medium-sized dog of athletic appearance, displaying gracefulness, power and agility in equal measure. Its hard, muscular body conveys the impression of effortless movement and endless endurance. The Border Collie is extremely intelligent, with its keen, alert expression being a very important characteristic of the breed. Those aspects of structure, movement or temperament that enhance the dog's ability to function as a herding dog are virtues that should be strongly rewarded. The Border Collie is, and should always appear as, a natural athlete in hard physical condition.
Size, Proportion, Substance: The height at withers varies from 18 to 22 inches for males, 18 to 21 inches for females. Overall balance is more important than size. Bone must be strong, medium being preferred. The overall proportion of Border Collie is slightly longer than tall, with the length measured from point of shoulder to point of buttocks and height measured at the withers. Body length should be achieved by length of rib and not by length of loin.
Head: Expression is intelligent, alert, eager and full of interest. Eyes are an important feature and should be set wide apart, oval in shape and of moderate size. Eye color varies from brown to blue, with merles sometimes having one or more blue eyes. Ears are medium size and set well apart, carried erect or semi-erect. Skull and muzzle are approximately equal in length. Stop is moderate. Muzzle is strong and tapering slightly to the nose. Nose color corresponds with coat color. Bite is scissors.
Neck, Topline, Body: Neck is of proportional length, strong and muscular, blending smoothly into the shoulders. Topline is level. Body is athletic and deep rather than broad. Chest is moderately broad with well-sprung ribs. Loin is deep, muscular and slightly tucked up. Tail is moderately long, reaching at least to the hock. The ideal tail carriage is low when the dog is concentrating on a given task and may have a slight upward swirl at the end like a shepherd's crook. In excitement it may be raised, but the base of the tail should not curve forward over the back.
Forequarters: Forelegs should be parallel when viewed from front, pasterns slightly sloping when viewed from side. Because sufficient length of leg is crucial for the type of work the breed is required to do, the distance from the wither to the elbow is slightly less than from the elbow to the ground. The shoulder blades are long and well laid back. Shoulder blades and upper arms are equal in length and meet in a right angle as nearly as possible. The prosternum is easily felt but not pronounced. There is sufficient width between the tops of the shoulder blades to allow for the characteristic crouch when approaching and moving stock. The elbows are neither in nor out. Feet are compact, oval in shape; pads deep and strong, toes moderately arched and close together with strong nails of moderate length. Dewclaws may be removed.
Hindquarters: Broad and muscular, in profile sloping gracefully to the low set tail. The thighs are long, broad, deep and muscular. Stifles are well turned with strong well let down hocks. Proper length of hock is approximately one-quarter to one-third the height of the dog. When standing with the hocks perpendicular to the ground the toes of the rear feet should be in line with the point of buttock. Rear feet should be parallel, but may toe out slightly when standing. Rear pasterns are short, strong and parallel when viewed from rear. Feet are compact, oval in shape; pads deep and strong, toes moderately arched and close together with strong nails of moderate length. Dewclaws may be removed.
Coat: Two varieties are recognized, rough and smooth. Both are double coats. In the rough coat, the outer coat is medium length and texture flat to slightly wavy. Hair on face, ears, front of forelegs and hind legs below hocks should be short and smooth. Forelegs may be feathered. Breeching on thighs, tail and chest is desirable. The smooth coat is short over the entire body, usually coarser in texture than the rough coat, and may have minimal feathering on forelegs, chest and breeching. Both coats should be weather resistant, the undercoat soft, short and dense. Excessively long or curly coats are objectionable.
Color: The Border Collie comes in all colors and markings. The traditionally accepted color is black with or without white markings. White should never be the dominant color. Merles, brindles and sable colors may have black nose pigment while colors other than black may have nose pigment matching the body color. Eye color varies according to coat color and is not limited to brown only.
Gait: An effective working gait is smooth, seemingly effortless and tireless, conveying the impression of stealth and speed combined. There should be minimal lift of feet, giving the impression that the dog glides over the ground. Single tracking is not required at a slow gait but becomes more evident as speed increases. The topline remains firm and level. The hindquarters provide powerful drive while the forequarters absorb shock and direct movement. Movement should be balanced and coordinated, with no wasted motion. The legs, both front and rear, tend to converge toward the center line as speed increases. Exaggerated movement is not efficient, and therefore is not useful to the Border Collie.
Temperament: The Border Collie is energetic, intelligent, keen, alert, and responsive. An intense worker of great tractability, it is affectionate towards friends but may be sensibly reserved towards strangers. When approached, the Border Collie should stand its ground. It should be alert and interested, never showing shyness, fear, dullness or resentment.
Faults: Any deviation from the foregoing should be considered a fault, the seriousness of the fault depending upon the extent of the deviation, and the degree to which working ability would be impacted.
Approved: April 21, 2015
Effective: July 1, 2015
WHY JBK BORDER COLLIES KEEP THEIR FRONT DEWCLAWS
One question we occasionally receive is: Why didn't you remove my Border Collie's front dewclaws?
Because we intentionally leave normal, healthy front dewclaws intact.
At JBK Border Collies, this is not an oversight and it is not something that was forgotten when the puppy was born. It is a deliberate breeding and husbandry decision based on canine anatomy, function, and our preference for preserving normal functional structures when there is no medical reason to remove them.
WHAT IS A FRONT DEWCLAW?
A normal front dewclaw is the dog's first digit on the front limb.
It is not simply a loose toenail hanging from the side of the leg.
In a normally developed front dewclaw, the digit has bone and is connected to the limb through tendons and other supporting structures. Anatomical studies have documented multiple tendons connecting the front dewclaw to muscles of the lower forelimb, demonstrating that it is capable of active movement.
In other words, a normal front dewclaw is functional anatomy.
WHAT DOES A FRONT DEWCLAW DO?
When a dog is standing or walking slowly, the front dewclaw normally sits above the ground. Because of that, people sometimes assume it has no function.
Watch an athletic dog at speed and the picture changes.
During cantering, galloping, jumping and hard turns, the front limb bears substantial force and the dewclaw can contact the ground.
Veterinary sports-medicine literature describes the front dewclaw as providing additional contact with the ground during these movements. It can help stabilize the front limb and reduce rotational forces placed on the carpus — the dog's wrist — when the dog changes direction.
That is particularly relevant in a Border Collie.
Border Collies were developed to be extraordinarily agile working dogs. They accelerate, stop, crouch, pivot, turn sharply, change direction at speed and work over uneven terrain.
The AKC Border Collie breed standard itself describes the breed as an agile dog capable of suddenly changing speed and direction while maintaining balance and grace.
Those are precisely the types of movements during which a functional front dewclaw may come into use.
DEWCLAWS ALSO PROVIDE GRIP
Dogs also use their front dewclaws for gripping.
Anyone who has watched a dog hold a bone, chew, toy or other object between its front feet may have seen the dewclaws helping secure it.
They can also provide additional purchase on slippery or uneven surfaces and when scrambling or climbing over difficult terrain.
Veterinary literature has even documented their usefulness when dogs attempt to climb out of ice or water, where the front dewclaws can act as additional points of grip.
For an active working breed, that additional traction can be useful equipment.
FRONT AND REAR DEWCLAWS ARE NOT THE SAME THING
It is important not to lump all dewclaws together.
Front dewclaws are normally well developed and structurally attached to the front limb.
Rear dewclaws can be very different. Depending on the individual dog and breed, rear dewclaws may be vestigial or much more loosely attached and may lack the same functional tendon attachments found in normal front dewclaws.
This difference is reflected in the AKC Border Collie breed standard.
For the front feet, the standard states:
"Dewclaws may be removed."
For the rear:
"Dewclaws should be removed."
The distinction matters.
"May be removed" means exactly that — removal is optional. The Border Collie standard does not require removal of the front dewclaws.
A Border Collie with intact front dewclaws is completely consistent with the AKC breed standard.
WHY WERE DEWCLAWS TRADITIONALLY REMOVED?
Routine removal became common in many breeds for several reasons, including tradition, appearance and concern that a dewclaw might catch on something and become injured.
For many years, front dewclaws were also widely viewed as essentially useless.
Our understanding of canine anatomy and sports medicine has become more detailed, and we now know that a normally attached front dewclaw is not simply a useless piece of tissue.
That does not mean a dewclaw can never be injured.
It can.
So can any toenail, toe, pad, ligament, tendon or joint on an active dog.
The possibility of injury alone is not sufficient reason, in our opinion, to routinely remove a healthy and functional anatomical structure from every puppy.
WHEN MIGHT REMOVAL BE APPROPRIATE?
There are circumstances in which dewclaw removal can be medically appropriate.
A veterinarian may recommend removal because of serious trauma, recurrent injury, abnormal development, chronic infection, a tumor or another medical problem involving the digit.
That is a medical decision concerning a particular dog.
It is very different from routinely removing normal, healthy front dewclaws from newborn puppies simply because it has historically been done.
CARE OF FRONT DEWCLAWS
Front dewclaws need routine nail care just like every other nail.
Because they may receive less natural wear than the weight-bearing nails, they should be checked regularly and trimmed when necessary.
Allowing any nail — including a dewclaw — to become excessively long increases the chance of snagging, splitting or tearing.
Proper maintenance substantially reduces that risk.
JBK'S POLICY
JBK Border Collies intentionally leaves normal front dewclaws intact.
Our Border Collies are bred as athletic, functional dogs. Whether an individual dog ultimately competes in conformation, herding, agility, obedience, performance events, lives on a farm or simply spends its life as an active companion, it was still born with the anatomy of a Border Collie.
We prefer to preserve normal functional anatomy unless there is a legitimate medical reason to alter it.
The front dewclaw has anatomical attachments.
It moves.
It can contact the ground during athletic movement.
It assists with grip.
It can contribute to stability during turns.
And the AKC Border Collie breed standard does not require its removal.
There is also a practical international consideration. JBK Border Collies has placed dogs in countries where cosmetic alteration of a dog's natural anatomy is restricted or prohibited by law or animal-welfare regulation. Depending on the jurisdiction, this can include procedures such as tail docking and removal of normal dewclaws when there is no medical necessity.
Because our dogs may be placed internationally, retaining normal front dewclaws also helps preserve their eligibility for export, ownership and competition in countries with stricter rules regarding non-therapeutic physical alteration.
For those reasons, normal front dewclaws stay on our puppies.
They were not forgotten.
They are there intentionally.
JBK Border Collies
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