Houndmath

Border Collie: weight, feeding and growth

Published size figures for the Border Collie, with the calculators on this page bounded by that breed range instead of running free.

Reference figures for the Border Collie
Weight, male14–25 kg (31–55 lb)
Weight, female12–19 kg (26–42 lb)
Height, male48–60 cm (19–24 in)
Height, female46–56 cm (18–22 in)
Size classMedium (10–25 kg)
Resting energy across the range451–783 kcal/day

Figures adapted from the English Wikipedia article on the Border Collie (revision 1371155233), used under CC BY-SA 4.0. They describe breed-standard ranges, not any individual dog.

Calorie calculator, pre-set for this breed

This sets the multiplier applied to resting energy.

Enter your dog's actual weight.

Reading the range correctly

A published range of 12–25 kg (26–55 lb) is a description of the breed, not a target for your dog. The span exists because it covers both sexes, different lines and different frame sizes. A dog at the bottom of the range is not underfed and one at the top is not overweight; both can be in perfect condition, and both can equally well not be.

Weight on its own cannot answer the question owners are really asking. The body condition method assesses the dog by feel and is what actually settles it.

Puppy growth check for this breed

Growth runs on a different schedule at different adult sizes.

Enter your puppy's weight and age in weeks.

Crate and airline sizing: measure this Border Collie for a crate or air container. The calculator checks your shoulder-height measurement against this page’s published 46–60 cm range; it is a reasonableness check, not a claim that every dog is identical. Compare food costs using this dog’s actual weight.

Feeding a Border Collie

Across the published weight range, resting energy requirement for this breed runs from about 451 to 783 kcal per day. The figure you feed to is that multiplied by a life-stage factor — typically 1.6 for a neutered adult, which puts a mid-range Border Collie near 999 kcal per day before any adjustment for how much this particular dog actually moves.

To convert that into a portion of the food in your kitchen, you need the kcal/cup figure from the bag: the portion calculator does that step.

Sources: Breed figures: Wikipedia — Border Collie (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Energy formula: WSAVA Global Nutrition Guidelines