Rehoming guide
How to rehome your Border Collie
Checked 6 October 2026
The short answer
Rehoming a Border Collie is a hard call, and Border Collie Trust GB calls it "a difficult and emotional decision". Sometimes the mismatch is effort: the breed needs a lot of exercise and mental work every day. Be specific about what your dog needs every day, so an adopter who can give it that time recognises the dog straight away.
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Why Border Collies end up needing a new home
Among the reasons owners give for rehoming, Border Collie Trust GB lists "unanticipated time and effort required to meet a collie's mental and physical needs".
That matches what the breed asks for. The Royal Kennel Club calls the Border Collie a "naturally active and intelligent herding specialist", lists more than two hours of exercise a day, and says it "needs to be engaged to lead a fulfilled life". Dogs Trust adds training and daily enrichment to daily walks and play. That is a lot for a busy household to keep up with.
None of this makes your dog a problem, or you a bad owner. It usually means the match didn’t fit, and a careful rehoming fixes exactly that.
What to tell adopters about your Border Collie
Exercise and a job to do. Say how much exercise your Border Collie gets and what keeps it busy: training, games, agility or work. The Royal Kennel Club's guide is more than two hours a day, and Dogs Trust says the breed benefits from training and daily enrichment as well as walks. A walk alone may not be enough, so tell adopters what your dog does when it is bored.
Working or farm background. If your dog came from a farm or working lines, or has worked sheep, say so. The Royal Kennel Club says the breed is still seen working sheep and cattle and points to its "innate herding instinct". Describe how that shows at home, for example around children, other pets or moving things.
Health and vet records. The Royal Kennel Club asks breeders for eye testing, and under best practice hip and elbow scoring, hearing tests and DNA tests including Collie eye anomaly and multi-drug resistance (MDR1). It does not register puppies from merle-to-merle matings because of risks to sight and hearing. Share your vet records and any known eye, hearing or joint problem.
Grooming. Dogs Trust says Border Collies generally need brushing a couple of times a week and are likely to need professional grooming. Say what coat your dog has and how it copes with being brushed.
Border Collie rescues that take owners’ dogs
Border Collie rescues can only offer a place when they have room. Border Collie Trust GB says an offer depends on kennel space, behaviour and how urgent your situation is, so contact more than one and list your dog with us at the same time.
Border Collie Trust GBdogs · Rugeley, Staffordshire; takes Border Collies and collie crosses from across the UK
Phone or use its online rehoming request form (it asks for microchip and vet details). Your dog waits at home until a kennel place is offered, then you must bring it to the Staffordshire centre for a brief assessment. It prioritises dogs "in the most critical situations, such as strays or those with no responsible owner".
The Freedom Of Spirit Trust For Border Colliesdogs · Bingley, West Yorkshire
Fill in its "Dog Into Rescue" form; if your dog is not microchipped in your name you will need written permission. It may need to assess your dog first and "will contact you if there is an available space". It also asks owners to consider whether good training advice might let them keep their dog.
National charities that take any breed
Dogs Trustdogs
Two routes: Homestay, where your dog stays with you while Dogs Trust finds a new home (it says Homestay dogs "generally find a new home within two weeks"), or a kennel or foster place, which "could take a few weeks". Giving up a dog to Dogs Trust is free, and it aims to reply within 72 hours. Start with a call on 0300 303 2188 or its online form.
Blue Crossdogs, cats, rabbits
Home Direct keeps your pet with you while Blue Cross finds a new owner. That is "the quickest way", it says, because space in its own kennels, cattery and small pet units "is very limited". It takes dogs, cats, rabbits and small pets. Call pet admissions on 0300 777 1960 or use its online form.
Should you charge a rehoming fee?
You can ask for a rehoming fee, paid at the handover after the adopter has met your pet, and never as a deposit beforehand. PAAG's worry with "free to good home" adverts is that people may take an animal on impulse and that a free advert "may devalue an animal" (PAAG). A fee does make the handover a sale, though, so animals can't go to anyone under 16 and you should be honest about your pet's health.
How listing your Border Collie on LocalPetFinder works
- Fill in the free listing form. Photos, age, health, how your dog is with children and other animals, and an honest description. It takes about ten minutes, and your dog stays at home with you.
- A person checks it, usually within a day, before it goes live.
- Your Border Collie appears next to rescue dogs on the Border Collies pages for your city (Ashford, Barnsley, Barrow-in-Furness, Bath and North East Somerset, Belfast, Birmingham, Blackpool, Bolton, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Bradford, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Bury St Edmunds, Canterbury, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Chester, Chesterfield, Chippenham, Colchester, Coventry, Crawley, Darlington, Derby, Doncaster, Dover, Dumfries and Galloway, Durham, Eastbourne, Edinburgh, Exeter, Falmouth, Folkestone, Glasgow, Gloucester, Grantham, Great Yarmouth, Guildford, Hartlepool, Hayle, Huddersfield, Ipswich, Kendal, Kidderminster, Kingston upon Hull, Lancaster, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, Liverpool, Llanelli, London, Lowestoft, Luton, Maidstone, Manchester, Mansfield, Margate, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newport, Newquay, North East Lincolnshire, Northampton, Norwich, Nottingham, Oxford, Penrith, Peterborough, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Rotherham, Scunthorpe, Sheffield, Sleaford, Solihull, Southampton, Southport, Spalding, St. Helens, Stockport, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Swansea, Torbay, Truro, Wakefield, Walsall, Warrington, Watford, Wellingborough, Wigan, Wirral, Wolverhampton, Worcester, Worthing, Wrexham, York), marked as listed by the owner.
- You choose. Adopters message you through LocalPetFinder, so your email and phone number stay private. You decide who to meet and who takes your dog, and you hand over in person.
We take listings from owners anywhere in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Northern Ireland the new owner needs a dog licence before they take a dog, so ask to see it before the handover.
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Start your free listing →Before the handover: the must-dos
The microchip has to be transferred
In England, Scotland and Wales a dog can't be passed to a new keeper until it's microchipped, and the new keeper must update the database (England, Scotland, Wales); in Scotland the keeper's own details must also be correct before the handover. In England the same applies to cats, while in Scotland and Wales chipping a cat is optional. Check the chip is on a government-approved database and do the transfer at the handover.
No deposits, no couriers
Never ask for, or accept, money before an adopter has met your pet in person, and hand over face to face. A request for a deposit is the classic sign of a pet scam, and on LocalPetFinder it gets a listing taken down.
Banned dog types can’t be rehomed at all
It's against the law in England, Scotland and Wales to give away a banned dog. In England and Wales it's illegal to "rehome, sell, buy, or transfer ownership of an XL Bully" (gov.uk: England and Wales). In Scotland, since 23 February 2024 it has been illegal to sell, advertise, gift or exchange an XL Bully, Scottish guidance says it is unlawful to "sell, give away or rehome an XL Bully" (gov.scot), and since 1 August 2024 it has been an offence to own one without an exemption certificate. If you think your dog could be an XL Bully, don't list it.
Adopters must be adults, and you must be honest
Adopters must be 18 or over, and the listing must be accurate about health, behaviour, and whether your pet is good with children, dogs and cats. A good match is the one that lasts.
Rehoming your Border Collie: your questions
Tap a question to expand
Will a Border Collie rescue take my dog?
Possibly, but not always straight away. Border Collie Trust GB says a place depends on kennel availability, behaviour and urgency, and The Freedom Of Spirit Trust For Border Collies says "we cannot take into rescue a dog that we feel we are not going to be able to rehome". Give the rescue a full, honest picture of your dog so it can judge.
Can I change my mind after my Border Collie goes to a rescue?
Not with Border Collie Trust GB. Its rehoming page says "once your dog is in our care, you relinquish ownership", and that once a dog is rehomed, ownership cannot be reversed. Be sure of your decision, and try training help first if that might let you keep your dog.
Can I rehome my Border Collie to a family with children?
It depends on your dog. Dogs Trust says every dog has its own personality shaped by its own experiences. Tell adopters how your dog has been with children of different ages, and let them decide.
Related guides
Rehoming where you live
Rehoming guides for other dog breeds
Sources: The Royal Kennel Club: Border Collie · Dogs Trust: Border Collie · Border Collie Trust GB: I need to rehome · The Freedom Of Spirit Trust For Border Collies: Dog into rescue