MaryP Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 I picked up a new foster dog yesterday afternoon. He was an owner-surrender. He's supposedly an 11 month old purebred border collie. They forgot their paperwork, including his registration information (not sure what the registry is), so I don't yet know anything about where he came from or what his pedigree is. My guess is that he's probably a run of the mill byb dog. But, he has the strangest coat I've ever seen on a border collie. Every border collie I've ever encountered has had a fairly soft coat. Some are softer than others, but all are soft. His is very wiry, almost like a terrier. He also has curly fur but it's shorter, so it just sort of flips up and sticks straight out. Even his whiskers are curly. He's also kind of odd looking. I know that there's no one look for the border collie, but he is very different looking. I think my bf hit it on the head when he said that he looks like a greyhound with longer fur. He has very long legs and a very narrow head and body. He's also very tall (maybe 24 inches). I'll try to get a picture of him this afternoon. I didn't get a chance to get any pictures yesterday. But, has anyone ever seen/felt terrier-like fur on a border collie? Not sure if this is relevant, but he's also shedding quite a bit. They were feeding him Iams large breed puppy food. We will be feeding him Chicken Soup FTDLS adult food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journey Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 I'd be interested in the picture, but yes, I have seen 1, a pure bred female though the coat was not wiry to the touch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desertranger Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 Jin's coat is very soft around his face going back to where his ruff ends and the black fur takes over. At that point the black fur which is silky smooth does seem to be harder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenajo Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 My Dinah - short, curls. Soft when it's thick and in full bloom, but right now, with a blown coat, just wirey short stalks LOL If you saw her at the pound you would be completely baffled. I've seen several like her over the years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 I've seen a couple of dogs with the kinda curly looking fur. And I've felt a couple of BCs that had not-so soft fur, but I don't think I'd call it wiry. He sounds interesting! Can't wait to see pics. PS. Does he act Border Collieish? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Billadeau Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 But, has anyone ever seen/felt terrier-like fur on a border collie?Yes, I looked at a "bomber" pup that had a wirey coat.I've also seen couple with tight curls like a poodle. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journey Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 If he is shedding then I would guess he will have the soft coat you are used to when it comes back. My bitch is in full blown porcupine coat right now... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dracina Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 My Marcus has a stiffer outer coat; and funny you should mention it- sometimes feels almost terrier like. Not full-blown terrier, but wiry in the summer after shedding. This occurs paricularly around his collar and shoulders, where his hair is shorter than the rest of his coat. He is a medium rough, and tends to get a bit wavy, but not curly. His undercoat is very soft and fluffy. Two things struck me after reading your description: could it be possible that the coat is just brittle (perhaps from poor nutrition or illness), making it seem more wiry? Or perhaps the pup isn't purebred border collie, but rather a mix? It just seems strange to me that the former owners would forget all of the pup's registration papers. Great of you to take the pup, regardless! Looking forward to some pictures! Karrin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryP Posted July 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 PS. Does he act Border Collieish? The jury is still out there. I think that right now he is just so tightly wound from being cooped up for so long that he's a bit of a crazy man. He's just so excited to get out and run and play with the other dogs. I need to burn off some energy and get his head back on straight and then do some individual work with him before I'll get a better idea of the dog that lies beneath. His behavior is not really screaming border collie to me right now, though. Maybe I'll get some video, too, when I get some pictures of him this afternoon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryP Posted July 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 Two things struck me after reading your description: could it be possible that the coat is just brittle (perhaps from poor nutrition or illness), making it seem more wiry? Or perhaps the pup isn't purebred border collie, but rather a mix? It just seems strange to me that the former owners would forget all of the pup's registration papers. Brittle is a pretty accurate word. I don't think he was ill, but he was probably certainly stressed out because he had been confined to a room or crate by himself for a while now because their son was allergic and was having severe asthma attacks. I don't believe that they tried to deceive me about his being purebred. I believe they truly did forget his paperwork and they are supposed to be mailing it to me. They really did care about their dog and were happy to see him have a chance to go to a good home. Hopefully, I know more about where he came from when I get the paperwork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 I've seen curly coated purebred border collies. I've also seen what might be described as a wiry coat, though it looked wiry but was actually soft to the touch. The part bearded collies (not AKC beardies, but working dogs) that Polly M. and Suzanne C. have appear wiry coated--these are the dogs I'm referring to. I'd agree that the brittleness may simply be due to poor nutrition and/or stress. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoloRiver Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 Rob Drummond's Ben, who came over on the same flight as my Fly, is the curliest Border Collie I've ever seen. I wouldn't call him wiry. His coat is pretty soft. Fly, on the other hand, IS wiry, although she appears more or less smooth and does not have a beard. Her papers state that her great-grandmother was bearded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoosierMike Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 The first purebred border collie I ever had hands on contact with has the hair type you're describing. He's a healthy dog and his owner told me that the breeder called it "rough coated". After learning more about the breed, I know that rough coat means just the opposite of what he has. He has that type of hair no matter what time of year it is. His owner told me it became more prevalent with age. Now on the other side of the age issue, I saw a 1 yr.old male at a breeder that I was looking at that had the same hair, and lotssss of it. When I saw this dog, it was early spring, and he was soaking wet, his hair was almost in ringlets and facing forward towards his head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BCDreamer Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 Psyche has a wiry coat, but it's from the bad food she was on before. Since switching her over to raw, it's slowly getting better. All that's left now is her bum area. She's not pure, but I also know she has no terrier in her. I would be interested in seeing a picture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrRipley Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 my friend's BC (with papers) has a very curly coat, we call him a border doodle The wiry-ness could be due to stress and poor nutrition. When I first brought Rip home, his coat was extremely thick (was living outside during the winter) but it was also dull and somewhat stiff. Since then, he has completely blown it and grown a new, sleek, soft and shiny coat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NRhodes Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 I'll add myself to the list of people who've seen short curly/wirey haired purebred border collies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryP Posted July 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 To clarify, I'm not saying it's strange for the dog's coat to be curly. I've seen that before. It's just strange (to me) that the dog's coat is wiry or feels brittle. It's definitely not soft to the touch. I only added that it was curly to explain why it makes him look a little funny (curly + short = sticks straight up like he's having a bad hair day). I'll get some pictures and some video when I get home this afternoon. Too bad I can't let you all pet him through the Internet, though, so you can feel for yourself what I'm talking about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2 Devils Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 Tempe has soft fur except her feathers and tail. They are more course than the rest of her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Bo Boop Posted July 13, 2009 Report Share Posted July 13, 2009 I understand that Stetson ( a pretty well known Border Collie) had/has a very curly coat. My Spree is very curly coated, and I'm often asked if she's a Stetson bred dog (she's not) I know a gal that does have a Stetson bred bitch, and she and my Spree could be twins...Also Spree's coat is curly and soft (like a bunny ;-) ) Betty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryP Posted July 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2009 OK, here are a couple of [not very good] pictures and a video. I'll try to get better pictures of him in the open field tomorrow. I took these right after getting home from work and, of course, Oreo was wound up and didn't want to stay still. Plus, it was overcast because it was about to rain. I felt his fur again tonight and it doesn't seem as wiry as it did yesterday. They told me that they had just given him a bath, so perhaps it just felt wiry and stiff because it was clean (i.e., washed all the oils off). The other thing I noticed tonight was that the curled fur on his back is white at the roots - all the fur. The fur on his sides is not. In fact, the fur on his sides seems to be entirely underfur with no guard hairs; whereas, the fur on his back seems to be mostly (all) guard hairs with no underfur. I dunno. Here's a video. Please excuse my green pool. I had a problem with my pump and my pool turned green in a matter of a coupld of days. This is a bad time of year to be without my pool, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshine Posted July 14, 2009 Report Share Posted July 14, 2009 It looks almost like he's been shaved and it is just starting to grow back... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweet_ceana Posted July 14, 2009 Report Share Posted July 14, 2009 It looks almost like he's been shaved and it is just starting to grow back... That's what I was thinking. It looks like he has a psuedo mohawk on his back where the coat is longer and maybe growing back faster? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryP Posted July 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2009 He wasn't shaved. I specifically asked them that. Here's another [not great] video. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweet_ceana Posted July 14, 2009 Report Share Posted July 14, 2009 He wasn't shaved. I specifically asked them that. Here's another [not great] video. Maybe he is just a punk rock dog at heart then! That coat is funky, but endearing. He seems like such a sweet boy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoloRiver Posted July 14, 2009 Report Share Posted July 14, 2009 That's exactly what Fly looks like after a bath. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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