What is a Rough Collie? What is a Smooth Collie?

Collies have two coat varieties – rough and smooth coat. The rough coated Collie variety – a “long-haired Collie” — is the most recognized Collie variety. Rough Collies have a double coat – a longer outer coat and dense, soft undercoat – which gives this Collie variety a majestic look.

Smooth Collies are the same breed as Rough Collies with coat length the only difference. The Smooth Collie – a “short-haired Collie” — is also double-coated, with similar coat texture to a Labrador Retriever.

What colors do Collies come in?

Collies come in four coat colors – sable, tri, blue merle and white.

Sable: The sable coat color can vary significantly from light brown, coppery red or deep mahogany sable. Sable merle Collies carry the merle gene, inherited from a blue merle or sable merle parent, and may have freckling on their ears and in their coat and/or blue eyes.

Tri: The tri-color coat is mostly black with tan points on the eyebrows, tan markings on the muzzle and legs.

Blue merle: The blue merle coat has silver, grey and black markings on the body with tan points on the eyebrows, tan markings on the muzzle and legs.

White: A white Collie is predominantly white with sable, tri or blue merle markings on the head.

Do Collies shed?

Once a year, usually during late Spring or early Summer, Collies will “blow” their coat and shed their undercoat. This is the same for both Rough and Smooth Collies. With regular brushing, day-to-day shedding is minimal.

How much grooming do Collies need?

Along with weekly brushing, we recommend trimming the hair between the pads of their feet regularly and monthly nail trimming. Regular nail trimming is an important component of health maintenance to protect the wellbeing of your dog. Learn more about the importance of maintaining your dog’s nails from the AKC.

Find helpful nail trimming tips here.

Are Collies easy to house train?

Collies are naturally clean dogs and usually easy to house train. Learn more about house training from the AKC.

Incorporating crate training while being consistent and patient is key. Crates, when used properly, provide an important safe space for your Collie. Learn more about crate training and proper crate selection from the AKC.

Learn more tips about caring for your puppy from my veterinarian.

How much do Collie puppies cost?

Purchasing a Collie puppy from a reputable breeder is an investment for your family. Typical Collie puppy prices are $1,500 to $2,000. Expect average prices to be higher from top Collie breeders and the highest-quality lines.

Reputable Collie breeders care about the long-term health and wellbeing of their dogs and they demonstrate that care and dedication to quality through:

• Health testing based on the recommendations of the Collie Health Foundation
• Careful breeding and selection of only the highest quality dogs using the Collie breed standard as their blueprint
• Selling dogs on limited registration with spay/neuter contract, and adhering to Collie Club of America code of ethics, to protect the quality and health of future Collie generations.