With tails Aussies would just be border collies!

I for one am SHOCKED by how many times I hear people IN AUSSIE GROUPS say stuff like this.
LIKE WHAT?? I think they are just angry at the idea and kind of lashing out honestly

I'm in London now, and I'm just saying, I've loved seeing full tails on dogs here when I go to the park. At first I couldn't figure out why the frenchies I was looking at looked off and then was like...OH!! haha
Now, I love Merlin's bunny butt. It's adorable, and as far as SD work goes I never had to ask him to tuck it in so it didn't get stepped on, which is nice.

That said, views on tails/no tails aside....AUSSIES AND BORDER COLLIES ARE REALLY DIFFERENT.

Am I being a crazy person? I mean, they are both herding breeds, but as far as general temperament goes... I can't be the only one who thinks that tails or no tails these dogs are incredibly different.

I don't know how anyone could see fluffy big boned Merlin bouncing around like a rabbit and barking his head off at the park (while also usually tripping on himself or a ditch) chasing a frisbee and think
oh yes... a border collie in his element...

Those who are familiar with both, what are your thoughts on this. Maybe I don't know enough border collies but as far as the aussies I know go....butt wiggles and partying is the name of the game.

I'd say generally the two breeds are very different in their mannerisms and temperament but some of the working line aussies are a lot more serious and smaller and more intense.

I do meet some bouncy derpy border collies too. And some with no eye and little drive. And some that are big boned and fluffy with blockier heads (mostly show lines).

There's some dogs that the only way I know which breed it is is if the owner tells me or I sneak a glance at a tail (or no tail). BCs vary so much and aussies vary so much I think there's bound to be a bit of overlap there.

I wish aussies had tails though.

If the dogs are true to their breed's temperament and structure, then an Aussie with a tail is most certainly not the same as a Border Collie.
Both great breeds, but both very different and a tail doesn't make those differences go away.

I will say though, Aussie tails are pretty awesome.

You're in London

Oh yes.. Dogs dogs dogs obligatory dog waffle.

Yeah, no. I hear this all the time in dog groups, and it is so frustrating. The same thing with "dobermans with floppy ears are just coonhounds!!!"

Like what the actual bonkity bonk, have you been around either of these breeds?

With all the tailed Aussies in agility these days, and all the colorful border collies, I'm the first to admit that there are times when I'm gating, and and looking down a list of border collies and aussies, and have no idea which dogs mingling around me are which breed. Throw in a blue merle BC with only a partial tail, and it gets even more confusing.


But "they may look similar" and "they will be the same!" are ridiculously different.

It doesn't help that Border Collies especially have such a massive variation between lines.

But yeah, that last point ^^

Let's throw an ES into that mix and really confuse people. Statements like that are really silly, now I can see the lines being a little fuzzy in the sport-bred lines of those two breeds though

Uhhhh no. All I've met have a totally different energy. They're different breeds, not the same breed that's called something else when it has a tail. Depending on the lines they can certainly look similar. I wouldn't want an Aussie. Don't get me wrong, there are ones I adore, but I would not want to have one.

I used to be all "docking bad, tails good!!!" But as I delved deeper into the aussie breed, I have grown to find the bobtail butt wiggle endearing

Oh so different!

Despite owning two blue merle Border Collies, yeah, there are times when I am not sure about breed.

But temperament-wise I don't find the breeds much alike at all.

^This, exactly.

And ES have a different energy from what I have seen, as well. At least the ones I have known. Closer to Aussie than BC but still distinct.

As for looks I can usually tell the three apart without seeing the tail end, but as others have said there are certainly overlap between them. But the majority of each breed have their own look in terms of structure, head, movement, coat. And while color isn't a guaranteed giveaway, it does help you play the odds haha.