On the Collie front things were rather more settled,
the breed celebrating its coming of age in 1881 by
establishing one of the earliest societies devoted to
promoting a single breed. The Colley Club piloted
by a committee of dedicated fanciers, which included
Mr Shirley, and the Rev Hans F. Hamilton, quickly
set about introducing a standard of points, which
prospective judges were asked to adhere to. Initially
confining its activity to guaranteeing classes at shows
that employed specialist judges promoted by the
society, and running an annual ‘Colley Club Derby’, confined to puppies, in conjunction with one of the larger shows. By the middle of the decade the Colley Club’s activities were sufficiently well established to run their own show, with the now world famous Challenge Trophy, then valued at 60 guineas, awarded for the first time by Mr W. P. Arkwright to the big winning tricolour dog Rutland, at the Club’s second show held between the 13th and the 15th October 1886.
Gradually regional clubs began to appear, not all of them within the jurisdiction of the Kennel Club, and among the more significant the Scottish Collie Club, formed in 1885, not only continues to serve Scottish owners, but also claims the distinction of being the world’s oldest Collie Club still in existence.
