Ideal Collie
Ruffneck Collies
1. What dog either past or present that you have seen in print or in
person is what in your opinion has come closest to YOUR ideal collie.
And why?
2. Which dog that you have either owned or bred in your opinion has
come closest to your ideal collie and why?
Ruffneck Collies
1. Am Can CH Carnwaths Evergreen- he is my choice. I have never yet
seen another dog, that comes close to matching his elegance and overall
picture of what I consider to be Ideal.
I also have been fortunate living in canada to see alot of dogs that
directly come from Evergreen and many are very impressive. I
particularly like the soundness and movement of the carnwath dogs
matched with their overall elegance.
2. I would have to say of course our own Maddison Ave, again what I
loved about her was her soundness, she moved like a dream, when showing
her you hardly knew she was on the end of the leash, she practically
floated. Standing back looking at her she had that overall picture
perfect look even as a yearly yuck and her expression was to die for.
Of course she wasnt perfect but she is the closest to my ideal, in a
lot of ways.
barbielu
a collie right? cheryl
rei...@idcomm.com
Ruffneck Collies wrote:
> Ruffneck Collies wrote:
> > Were going to start off with 2 questions for our first topic.
> >
> > 1. What dog either past or present that you have seen in print or in
> > person is what in your opinion has come closest to YOUR ideal collie.
> > And why?
When I look at a collie, the *first* thing I look for is outline (the
flowing lines of the body, balance, elegance, well-laid-back shoulders,
and well-let down hocks); the second is head/expression. Because of
the former being the most important to me (even if by just a hair!), I
would have to say that my ideal collie, of either sex, has always been
Ch. Starr's Blue Jeans. She might not be a top pick for expression,
but her incredible outline and soundness remain my blueprint in a
bitch. Other bitches who have similar appearances, and who remain on
my list of favorites, are Ch. Alfenloch Beyond Dreams, whom I saw many
times and always drooled over. I am a lover of blues, but her rich,
auburn color was to die for, as well as her lovely, near-perfect body
lines. Ch. Triumph Timeless I have only seen a couple of times, but
have never forgotten--she has utter balance and that lovely face and
head. I never saw Kendra's Ch. Nationview Maddison Avenue except in
photos, but can see that she, too, had the same lovely balance of body,
soundness, and laughing face. All of those bitches possessed beautiful
headpieces and breed type, combined with balanced, correct bodies.
That combination epitomizes the Ideal Collie that is in my mind.
In males, it's a little tougher for me to choose favorites that would
be known to many. Kendra mentions this:
1. Am Can CH Carnwaths Evergreen- he is my choice. I have never
yet
> seen another dog, that comes close to matching his elegance and overall
> picture of what I consider to be Ideal.
and I have to say he's right up there on my list, too. I unfortunately
never got to see Evergreen in person, and in fact, have only ever seen
ONE photo of him. However, his great presence and beauty is evident in
that photo, and he certainly comes very close to my vision of the ideal
male collie.
There are a couple of other dogs that contributed to my personal
vision, but ironically, neither is going to make many other people's
top lists, because they probably never saw them! One (that I never got
to see in the flesh, either) is another Carnwath male, a tri named C.
Finders Keepers. I met Sue Symington just once, and told her that I
admired Evergreen. She thought I might like another of her males, and
gave me two photos of Finders Keepers. Looking at him all these years
later, I still want that dog!! Although in the photos he was out of
coat, he was absolutely stunning! He was a big boy, with tremendous
bone and substance, and a manner of carriage I can only call "regal."
He had a proud, arched long neck and level topline, along with a
beautiful, sculpted head with huge muzzle and great finish. He was
just awesome. I longed to breed my Candray bitch to him, but it wasn't
to be. Some time later, I heard that Sue had gone out of breeding, and
I never knew what became of that impressive dog. I wish I could have
gotten him...
Another relatively unknown male was Ch. Wyndrift Step Aside, a
magnificent big blue dog that a friend of mine leased for a time. He
was also very close to my ideal collie, with the same long, arched
neck, a completely sound and well-built body with short hocks, and TONS
of correct, harsh coat. He was also a very showy, macho,
self-confident dog (the kind I prefer). In pedigree, he was a blend of
Shamont and Candray lines, and I felt he expressed the best qualities
of both. It is the Candray elegance and expressions that really
influenced me regarding the type I want in a collie. For structure, my
preference was often the Starr dogs, as well as a number of the
Tartanside collies, and the Mariner collies. They often had strong
bodies with good angles and strong, short hocks. In fact, I think the
best-moving dog I have ever seen was Ch. Shamont Stormalong (if anyone
has the *old* AKC videotape of the collie Standard, the one from 1976,
they know what I mean). For expressions besides Candray, my choices
would come from the kennels of Tartanside, Briarhill, Alfenloch, and
Fantasy, along with Stormalong's descendents (closely related to
collies I owned/bred). All of those have produced collies with the
kind of obliquely set, "laughing" eyes I want. Lastly, I prefer my
males to be at the top of the Standard in height. So my ideal dog (or
bitch) remains one that combines ALL of those qualties, successfully!
> > 2. Which dog that you have either owned or bred in your opinion has
> > come closest to your ideal
A dog I bred (and I have done very little breeding): Ch. SkyHaven Lord
of the Rings (Shaman). He was a grandson of Ch. Wyndrift Step Aside, as
well as a great-grandson of Ch. Carnwath's Evergreen--making most of
his pedigree being intensely linebred (back through both Evergreen and
Ch. Briarhill Sky High) on the blood of Ch. Ravette's Silver Meteor,
another masculine blue dog I liked from his photos. And Step Aside's
sire was a half-brother, through their dam, of Stormalong, so several
families I love were behind Shaman His dam was an exquisite, typey
bitch with one of those incredibly pretty Candray expressions, as well
as their famed elegance and coat sweeping the ground. Her son
inherited that same outline and massive coat, as well as the large size
from Carnwath, with good bone, a sculpted head, and full stovepipe
muzzle. He bore a strong resemblance to Evergreen. Sadly, while
Shaman was still young, I learned that he could possibly be a PRA
carrier. I made the decision that it was not safe to use him at stud,
and I will always wonder what beauty he could have produced...
There are other dogs and bitches that I have admired for one or more
qualities, but off the top of my head, those are the individuals that
most contributed to my vision of the *overall* collie.
Christie
Ruffneck Collies
If we are talking shelites I really love that Pop Star special that is
out right now, my knowledge of shelties isnt that great but I saw that
dog and immediately went wow! I have never seen the dog in person just
pics so unfortunately that isnt saying much.