CHAPTER IX 

 Dogs Used in Work (Continued) 



SHEEP-DOGS ROUGH COLLIES SMOOTH COLLIES— OLD 



ENGLISH SHEEP-DOGS 



The Rough-coated Collie is a very beautiful and in- 

 teresting breed, of a highly nervous temperament, very 

 intelligent, and capable of much training for the per- 

 formance of his natural work with the flocks. Those 

 who have seen him, at the Sheepdog trials, which are 

 frequently held in various parts of the country, but 

 more particularly in Wales, can testify to the patience, 

 care, judgment and discretion, shown by many of the 

 competitors, who, in these cases, have usually three 

 strange sheep to conduct a long distance, over a course 

 marked out by flags on small posts stuck in the ground 

 at intervals, and put them into a small pen, usually 

 made of three hurdles, at the end of the course, no one 

 being allowed to accompany the dogs during the trial, 

 but merely to give directions from a distance, by voice 

 or gestures. I am inclined to think the Scotch Collie 

 is, at the present time, nearly the most popular breed 

 of dog in the United Kingdom, and a really first class 

 specimen, good in head, ears, eyes, shape, size, coat, 

 colour and brush, is very valuable. This is another 

 breed favoured in high places, Her Majesty The Queen, 



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