The collie, or Scotch collie as the breed is sometimes called, comes from the Scottish Highlands and probably shares ancestry with the border collie. Some say the name "collie" comes from the Gaelic word for useful. Certainly these dogs have been useful right from the start, working as herding dogs and all-around farm dogs. They work livestock, guard the homestead and even pull carts.
Two varieties of the collie are the rough or long-coated and the smooth or short-coated. The two varieties can be interbred, and both types can appear in a litter. The type for the breed became set after the 1860s when Queen Victoria added a couple to her kennel. Royal approval often sets off a wave of popularity, and collies became known as faithful family companions as well as working dogs.
Of course, almost everyone is familiar with "Lassie," either through the movie or through the television show, where she (actually he) was forever saving Timmy, and with "Lad" and friends through the writings of Albert Payson Terhune. A sable rough collie is recognized worldwide as a "Lassie dog." Smooth collies work today as guides for the blind, showing that they have retained their intelligence and trainability.