Dogs needing homes

Before you adopt, please read our guide: What to expect when Adopting a Rescue Border Collie.

Smokey

Smokey is a striking 3-year-old Border Collie with a sharp mind, incredible energy, and a true working-dog spirit. He arrived at The Spot due to his owner’s health difficulties, and while well-loved, he did not receive the structured training and confidence-building he needed. Smokey is now looking for a very experienced collie home—one that understands sensitivity, pressure, arousal, and reward cycles in high-drive dogs.

Smokey has no desire for physical contact at this stage. He finds handling uncomfortable and becomes anxious when touched or approached too closely. This is not aggression—he is simply overwhelmed, and his default coping strategy is avoidance. He will need someone patient enough to teach him that touch is optional, predictable, and safe.

What Smokey does love is fetch. It is his comfort activity, his coping mechanism, and the easiest way to build a relationship with him. He could play ball endlessly, and this would be an important tool for bonding and decompression in his new home.

Training & Behaviour

Smokey is intelligent but easily over-aroused and struggles to switch off. He hasn’t had formal training and finds it difficult to focus unless carefully managed.

He needs someone who can offer:

Calm, structured training sessions
Clear routines
Low-pressure interactions
A hands-off approach initially
Confidence and skill in handling sensitive, high-drive collies

Smokey:

Has no reliable recall
Pulls on the lead
Can be anxious around new environments and people
May nip if someone tries to take items from him, including food or toys
Is worried at the vet and usually needs sedation
Gets stressed in cars and barks
Can be left for up to three hours with enrichment
Enjoys scenting for hidden treats around the room

He is fine walking past dogs on a leash, but does not like them too close.

Ideal Home

Smokey needs:

A quiet, adult-only home
No children
No visiting children
No other pets
A secure garden
An owner experienced with collie behaviour, anxiety, arousal management, and hands-off training
Someone willing to take things slowly and give him the space he needs
A home that understands that Smokey may never be a cuddly dog—and that’s okay

He will thrive with someone who enjoys shaping behaviours, building confidence, and helping a sensitive dog learn to feel safe.

In Summary

Smokey is not a beginner’s dog. He is not a petting dog. But he is a clever, beautiful, sensitive collie who desperately needs the right person to help him decompress, learn the world at his own pace, and develop trust again.

With patience, boundaries, and a deep understanding of collie behaviour, Smokey will blossom. If you’re the sort of person who enjoys the journey as much as the destination — and loves helping a dog grow — Smokey could be your special project.

If you think you may be a match for Smokey, please get in touch.

Please email Gill directly at info@thebordercolliespot.com

Please provide as much detail as possible about your home, garden, lifestyle, working hours, family, other animals, age, and experience with border collies.

Please state which dog/s you are applying for and give your full address and all contact details.

Please note: We often receive a high number of applications, and while every one is read with care, unfortunately Gill does not have the capacity to respond to everyone individually. If you don’t hear back, please know it simply means we didn’t feel this particular dog was the right match for your home at this time. Thank you so much for understanding and for your support of rescue.

Dizzie

Meet Dizzie – A Loving, Lively Young Collie

Dizzie is a beautiful young female Border Collie, around 1–2 years old and weighing only 10kg. She may be small in size, but she has a big heart full of love and energy.

Dizzie adores people – she is gentle, affectionate, and happiest when she’s being stroked and cuddled. Because she can feel a little insecure, she often seeks reassurance and closeness from her humans. With the right support, she will blossom into a loyal companion.

One of her greatest joys in life is her toys! Dizzie is toy-obsessed and can get carried away in play, so she’ll need an experienced owner who understands how to handle her carefully and positively. She is currently learning that she doesn’t need to guard her toys, and with patient training, she will continue to improve.

She is already doing well with her crate training – she sleeps peacefully in her crate at night and takes daytime naps there. Her recall is improving, though like any young collie, she can get distracted.

Dizzie would be perfect for someone interested in dog sports such as agility – she is quick, clever, and eager to learn. She needs an active, experienced home, ideally with a young couple or individual who understands collies and can continue her training.

Dizzie has also started on allergy medication. Unless we’re able to identify and remove the trigger, she may need to remain on this long-term — so adopters should expect this to be an ongoing cost of around £70–£100 per month.

✨ Dizzie is currently in a loving foster home, where she’s learning all about family life. She’s happiest when she has people to herself — she isn’t too keen on sharing the spotlight with the resident pug princess! For this reason, we believe she would truly flourish as the only dog in her new home. The sooner Dizzie finds her special person, the sooner she can shine as the devoted companion she longs to be. ✨

Please email Gill directly at info@thebordercolliespot.com

Please provide as much detail as possible about your home, garden, lifestyle, working hours, family, other animals, age, and experience with border collies.

Please state which dog/s you are applying for and give your full address and all contact details.

Sassy

Meet Sassy – our deaf collie

Sassy is a beautifully sensitive young Border Collie who forms deep bonds once she feels safe. With people she trusts, she’s soft, affectionate, and responsive — a dog who wants to connect and be close, often pressing gently in for contact or resting quietly by your side.

She’s also a dog with a fragile nervous system and a history that’s left her easily overwhelmed by sudden change. New people, new environments, or too much fuss too soon can send her into a state of anxiety where she doesn’t know how to cope.

Sassy is deaf, which adds to her vulnerability in new surroundings — she can’t rely on sound to predict what’s coming, so she depends heavily on visual and emotional cues from those she trusts. Sudden movement or touch from behind can startle her.

When she feels safe, she’s truly delightful: she enjoys gentle walks, soft attention, and calm companionship. Her recall with familiar people is excellent; she’s attentive and eager to please once she understands what’s being asked of her.

Behaviour Notes

Fear & Stress: Sassy can become overwhelmed by too much handling or excitement. When her stress builds, she may “shut down” or react defensively (for example, showing teeth or snapping). This isn’t aggression — it’s communication and fear.
Environment: She thrives on calm predictability. Loud noise, fast movement, or emotional tension quickly raises her stress levels.
Other Dogs: She has previously lived peacefully with another calm dog, but she can become defensive if she feels insecure or if competition for attention arises. She would likely do best as an only dog or with a very steady, gentle companion.
Handling: She needs a “hands-off until invited” approach, allowing her to seek contact rather than being reached first.

Ideal Home

Sassy needs an experienced, patient owner who understands body language and can give her structure, calmness, and space to settle at her own pace.

She will thrive in:

A quiet, adult-only home
A predictable daily routine with minimal change
A secure garden where she can explore safely
Someone who uses positive reinforcement only and will never rush or scold her for fear-based reactions

A home experienced with deaf dogs would be perfect — one that uses visual cues, clear body language, and gentle consistency.

Training & Communication

Sassy responds beautifully to calm, consistent guidance. She can learn visual hand signals for basic cues such as “sit,” “down,” and “come.” A simple thumbs-up can become her “good girl” marker — she learns fast when the teaching is kind and structured.

She benefits greatly from:

Crate/den training for security
Scatter feeding and sniffing games to lower stress
Short, calm walks in quiet areas
Predictable handling routines (always from the front, never sudden touch)

In Summary

Sassy isn’t a dog for everyone — but for the right person, she’ll be one of those unforgettable dogs who give everything once they trust you. She’s sensitive, intelligent, and capable of deep affection, but she needs time and quiet understanding to let her heart open.

With patience, stability, and gentle communication, Sassy will become a loyal, loving companion — the kind of dog who doesn’t just live with you, but bonds with you for life.

Please email Gill directly at info@thebordercolliespot.com

Please provide as much detail as possible about your home, garden, lifestyle, working hours, family, other animals, age, and experience with border collies.

Please state which dog/s you are applying for and give your full address and all contact details.