Planning of getting yourself a doggo with high endurance and great stamina this year but unsure which one to choose? Say no more because dogs like Border Collies won’t let you down!
These dog breeds are known to be very energetic, friendly, loyal, and best of all, really intelligent, so it’s no surprise why many consider them the brainiacs of their kind.
But before anything else, at least you should know some of the basics about them – like from the moment you get one, you must know how border collies should weigh, what is their appropriate nutritional requirements, or learn a border collie puppy growth chart for reference.
In this guide, let’s all find out about that. Let’s also answer some of the frequently asked questions that you may also ask yourself, so in the long run, you can ensure your border collies’ overall health and growth are secured in the future.
How Big Do Border Collies Can Get?
But first, how big do border collies can get? A border collie’s final weight and height will mainly depend on its gender— the female border collies are smaller than the males.
The females can only grow at forty-six to fifty-three centimeters tall or eighteen to twenty-one inches. On the other hand, the males can grow at forty-eight to fifty-six centimeters tall or nineteen to twenty-two inches.
Regardless of gender, border collies usually weigh between fourteen to twenty-five kilos or thirty to fifty-five pounds, and normally border collies should be fully grown in one year or so.
Here’s an explanation. Every dog breed’s physical maturity is achieved at unique stages, mainly depending on your dog’s size. Small-sized dog breeds are known to stop growing much sooner than those of bigger dogs.
Larger-sized dogs usually take more time to reach their physical maturity than smaller-sized dogs, which applies not only to the border collies breed but also to all kinds of dog breeds.
In a nutshell, small-sized dog breeds usually stop growing once they reach between 6 to 8 months old, while medium-sized dog breeds like border collies require 12 to 14 months to reach their physical maturity. Larger dogs usually take at least 18 months old to grow at their distinct breed’s expected physical growth.
Nevertheless, while your border collie puppy is on the verge of reaching their physical maturity, it is essential to give them a healthy diet, enough rest, and exercise to boost muscle growth.
If you are unsure where to start on the exercise journey of your border collie, here’s a complete guide on how much exercise do border collies need.
How to Tell if a Border Collie Has a Healthy Weight?
If you can’t visit the vet regularly, you can check at home if your border collie maintains a healthy weight, regardless of what stage they are in their growth.
By pulling this off, you can find out the ideal weight of your border collie by simply looking at them from above and on their side. Apart from that, you can also locate their pelvic bones and ribs and check if they have a well-proportioned waist size. If you think both of these ways are not enough, you really need to see the vet this time.
Seeing a veterinarian will clear your worries away as they can easily learn if your border collie suffers from weight issues, has underlying health problems, or both.
For border collies who appear to be underweight, even if they don’t have any health problems that are making them hard to gain weight, you might want to consider giving your dog a dog parasite treatment. Plus, adding more portions of dog foods or switching to a dog food brand may help.
But wait, before anything else, there are 5 common border collie food allergies that you should know, so before choosing the next dog food for your doggo, make sure you check the ingredients first, or best of all, let the vet help you decide which dog food you will feed to your border collie
For borders that are overweight and don’t have any health issues that keep them gaining too much weight, the first thing that you can do is cut out their meals or lessen giving them treats and do more exercise.
What to Do if My Border Collie Has a Different Size?
Don’t worry if your border collie’s size is different; that’s totally fine. Like human beings, every border collie grows or develops at a different pace. Besides, just like us, some dog breeds have growth spurts.
All the information, together with the border collie growth chart that you will find in the following sections, should only serve as guides for you to learn if your border collie is on healthy or ideal weight and a head’s up on how big they can get in the future.
It’s even possible that your border collie puppy doesn’t have the same weight or size in its growth stage in this guide, but it will fall anywhere between those measurements.
Also, you don’t have to put too much pressure on yourself about the tiny variance about your border collie in any guides or growth chart you can find online. If your border collie is living and eating healthily, especially if they see the vet regularly, that’s more than enough for your fur baby.
One good piece of advice we can give you today is to take lots of pictures of your border collie puppy as they grow up. This way, you can immortalize and remember all those milestones.
When Is My Border Collie Puppy Be Fully Grown?
A border collie should be fully grown by one year, which doesn’t mean they will stop developing. Because hereafter, they will continue to build healthy muscles and gain weight, but it is important that we should not expect that their size will change drastically after their first year.
As mentioned earlier, a male border collie will grow bigger, so are their coat. For both genders, the improving thickness of the coat is not so noticeable. If your border collie stops growing even before reaching one year and seems undersized, you may start to research about their parents because there is a big chance that they are a mixed breed.
In the following sections, you will find a complete guide for a border collie puppy growth chart to ensure their appropriate weight and height based on their age and guarantee your dogs are growing at a healthy pace.
Please note that every border collie -puppy to adult- grows differently; regardless, you should ensure that their weight gain is consistent and their height is appropriate to their age.
Birth to 2 Weeks Old
Although fully grown border collies are big, they are tiny when born and only weigh less than one pound. A newly born border collie loses even more weight at their birth.
Several hours after birth, a border collie puppy will slowly be gaining weight, about one and a half ounces per day.
Two weeks after, a healthy border collie puppy should weigh three pounds. They also successfully opened their eyes and started growing baby teeth at this point.
2 Weeks to 12 Weeks Old
At three weeks, a border collie puppy gains weight quickly and should continue growing until they reach twelve weeks old. A border collie should be four times bigger than their birth size six weeks later and should have gained three pounds a week.
Regardless of how they grow, a healthy border collie should be in an average weight within twelve weeks. At twelve weeks, they will become socially aware of its environment. Moreover, they will start showing their playful side at this point.
12 Weeks to 6 Months Old
At 12 weeks, you will notice that your border collies puppy’s fast growth slows down. Nevertheless, they should gain one pound a week until they reach six months old.
At six months, a border collie will become very active, which eats their energy levels, which is a sign to start ensuring that their nutritional requirements are met to sustain the energy.
6 Months to 9 Months Old
At six months, a border collie’s puppy life will come to an end. They will reach their adolescence stage and starts exploring their sexual maturity. They should weigh about fifteen pounds.
At nine months, they have grown all their teeth, and you can see their eyes are already formed while both tips are drooping. They will also start becoming very close to similar breeds or other dog breeds, particularly close to their age.
9 Months to 12 Months Old
At nine months, a border collie is getting ready for their adulthood. Thus, they will reach the peak of their height which ranges from eighteen to twenty-three inches.
If you notice your border collie looks quite skinny but tall, this is completely normal as their weight gain slows down from the moment they reach 12 weeks old.
They will show intense activeness at twelve months, which impacts their weight gain even more. With that, again, it’s vital to ensure they receive the necessary nutritional needs they want to match the energy they spend throughout the day.
Young Adulthood and Beyond
At twelve months, a border collie should have enough weight to give room for the strong muscles and bones they will develop in the long run. They should weigh between thirty-five to forty-five pounds, with a thick and shiny coat.
After twelve months, adult border collies will be no longer as energetic as they were when they were still younger.
Border Collie Puppy Growth Chart: Overall Guide
A border collie puppy can grow fast – growing to its full size at twelve months – but not yet fully developed until fourteen to eighteen months. Below is a table showing how border collie puppies should weigh at each growth point.
AGE | WEIGHT IN KILOS (Kg) | WEIGHT IN POUNDS (Lbs) |
8 Weeks | 1.8 to 3.6 kgs | 4.0 to 8.0 lbs |
9 Weeks | 2.0 to 4.1 kgs | 4.5 to 9.0 lbs |
10 Weeks | 2.3 to 4.5 kgs | 5.0 to 10.0 lbs |
11 Weeks | 2.5 to 5.0 kgs | 5.5 to 11.0 lbs |
12 Weeks | 2.7 to 5.4 kgs | 6.0 to 12.0 lbs |
13 Weeks | 2.9 to 5.9 kgs | 6.5 to 13.0 lbs |
14 Weeks | 3.2 to 6.3 kgs | 7.0 to 14.0 lbs |
15 Weeks | 3.4 to 6.8 kgs | 7.5 to 15.0 lbs |
16 Weeks | 4.0 to 7.0 kgs | 8.0 to 16.0 lbs |
5 Months | 5.0 to 10.0 kgs | 11.0 to 22.0 lbs |
6 Months | 6.0 to 12.0 kgs | 13.0 to 26.0 lbs |
7 Months | 7.0 to 14.0 kgs | 15.0 to 30.0 lbs |
8 Months | 8.0 to 16.0 kgs | 18.0 to 35.0 lbs |
9 Months | 9.0 to 18.0 kgs | 20.0 to 39.0 lbs |
10 Months | 10.0 to 20.0 kgs T | 22.0 to 43.0 lbs |
11 Months | 11.0 to 22.0 kgs | 24.0 to 45.0 lbs |
12 Months | 12.0 to 24.0 kgs | 26.0 to 52.0 lbs |
Take note that this table shows a rough estimate only of how a border collie puppy should weigh based on their age.
Border Collie Growth FAQs
What is the usual size of border collies?
Border collies are known to be medium-sized athletic types of dogs. It won’t be easy for them to live in an apartment comfortably for their size. Plus, since they are athletic dogs with very high energy levels, they would need plenty of exercise and playtime every day.
Hence, having a border collie will be better in a more spacious place with fur parents who can spare some time for adequate exercise.
How big are female and male border collies will be?
Female border collies are typically smaller than males, but in some cases, females can go bigger than males. Female border collies usually grow at a maximum size between 40 to 50 centimeters or 20 inches. Females typically have long legs and a slightly thinner body than males, so it’s no surprise why they weigh less too.
Can I determine my border collie’s physical growth through its paw size?
Your doggo’s paw size can’t be a precise basis of how big or small your border collie will be. But, there is a common connection between their paw size and your doggo’s expected physical maturity.
That is because heavier dogs will have broader and sturdier paws to support all their weight. However, this should not be a way to exactly conclude how big or small your border collie is by simply looking at their paw size.
Can border collies experience rapid growth?
Yes, border collies can experience rapid growth in their first three to ten months. This is called a growth spurt. After ten months, they will continue growing but at a much slower pace. In a period of rapid growth, it’s essential to give them enough rest and discourage too many exercises.
Final Thoughts
Dog breeds like border collies are undeniably hardworking, athletic dogs. Although they don’t demand too much grooming, they require enough nutritional requirements to match their energy spent during the day. There may be times they take up many hours of your time every day, but border collies can repay through their obedience and companionship.
Finding out a border collie puppy growth chart is one of the must-do things if you want to help yourself ensure your doggo is growing at a healthy pace. And it’s worth knowing that border collies want to feel that they have a purpose in life, which many new fur parents are unaware of. Also, do not forget that it’s okay if your border collie has a different size.
If you like to be prepared more and give that purpose they need correctly, a daily exercise and border collie crate training guide won’t let you down. An intelligent doggo like border collies is definitely worth an addition to your family.