As we saw after meeting Chaser, the world's smartest dog, border collies can be frighteningly bright. Stanley Coren ranks them in his book The Intelligence of Dogs as the smartest breed, able to complete a series of cognition tests (learning names of objects, learning new tricks) more reliably than any other breed of dog.
Check out our feature on Chaser for more, but as a brief: Chaser has been able to learn over a thousand words, including names of objects and verbs, but also modifiers, like adjectives and adverbs, and prepositions. And she can make inferences and draw conclusions.
The Border Collie German Shepherd mix is typically mistaken for being full breed German Shepherds, with experts and dog lovers generally being those who are familiar in spotting the difference between the mix and full bred German Shepherds.
Considered to be a very energetic and intelligent dog, Border Collie German Shepherd mixes are actually quite notorious for being “workaholics”, with different dog and pet circles dubbing them as the most industrious working dog breed out there.
One of the most famous Border Collie German Shepherd breeds would be Charlie B. Barkin, the protagonist in the 1989 classic animated feature, All Dogs Go To Heaven.
With Charlie’s character depicted as a “shady con man”, his portrayal as a Border Collie German Shepherd mix is defined by his tenacity to get this done, just as any real life workaholic is adamant in accomplishing his or her day to day tasks, chores and obligations.
As a breed the Border Collie German Shepherd mix is notorious for its “herding instinct”, and is also considered to be ideal companions for mature children. Their “eye contact factor” is also considered to be one of the breed’s more notorious characteristics, with many who’ve come upon their stares admitting that they’ve felt like they’ve been thoroughly probed.
Also, apart from their intelligence and highly companionable personalities, shedding is also one notorious Border Collie German Shepherd mix “trait”, something which prospective mix owners should consider knowing about before getting one in the house.
Those in search of a well mannered household dog can certainly find a lot of positive traits in the Border Collie German Shepherd mix.
Border Collie: Geniuses of the dog world Originating from Scotland, Border Collies were bred for herding cattle—the cattle-killing instinct of the wolf having been bred out of them, keeping only the urge to keep sheep or cattle in a group (herding instinct). According to Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs, Border Collies are at the top of dog intelligence. This intelligent tendency has been featured in the movie Babe (1995). The Border Collie’s intelligence, boundless energy and irresistible urge to keep a herd of small animals (and children) together, make Border Collies unsuitable as pets for families with small children, small dogs, and cats—the temperament of Border Collies and small animals collide. Border Collies will develop neurotic habits when put in a place where they cannot run around freely or where they get easily bored. Border Collies are not for couch potatoes. When paired with the right owner, Border Collies aim to please, but keep their distance from strangers—a trait which makes them good shepherd dogs. The Border Collie’s natural intelligence, remarkable intuition, and strong urge to track and bring stragglers back to the fold make the Border Collie a suitable dog for Search and Rescue (SAR) operations. These dogs are typically known as black over white, leaving the white on the collar, chest, parts of the head where the black parts don’t meet, paws, and the tip of the tail. Border Collies can also be red over white, black & red on white (tricolor), merle (blue and red), black & tan, brindle, and black.
Border Collie is a breed of dog. Initially, the Border Collie type dogs used to help herding cattle. Border Collie is known as a smart dog, and now Border Collie kept many at home as a guard, entertainment or children's friend to play.
Border Collies are considered the most intelligent dogs (according to Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs). Border collies are very loyal and obedient to their master. Originally created to help in herding cattle, the Border Collie breed was first developed in the area along the border of England–Scotland, and is now popular throughout the Western hemisphere.
For some communities, Border Collies are trained as sniffer dogs, dogs for acrobat (entertainer), dogs to race in sports, and Border Collies are even used to keep small children who play out near public roads from running in the streets, because this breed is very intelligent and so is easily trained.
Border collies are typically black, brown, or reddish yellow over white. Border collies have a medium to long outer hair with soft, thick undercoats so they need brushing two or three times a week; bathe them every two to three weeks.
The Border Collie has a medium size, as shown in one picture here. Border Collies are very energetic, lively and love to play, so they need an owner who can provide these needs for them, otherwise they will get bored and might chew stuff, dig, or constantly get into trouble.