Although everyone knows Lassie of book, movie, and television fame, it was the beloved collies of Sunnybank Farms whose stories did more to enhance the love and breed standards of the Collie. Albert Payson Terhune, 1872-1942, was a Columbia University-educated writer who happened to love collies. He devoted himself to improving the genetics of the Rough Collie and many of the lines he developed still exist in the collies seen today. When Terhune died, his collie kennels were the most famed in the world.

Sunnybank, New Jersey was originally Terhune's summer home, but he moved there permanently in 1912. Today, it is a park where visitors can visit his home and the graves of the many collies whose real lives were portrayed in his books. It is also a place of spiritual reflection as it was the shores of Sunnybank that Terhune referred to when he said that when he crossed to the other shore, that if he were not greeted by a whirl of gold and white fur that it would be less than he hoped for.

As young and later older readers of his books, we learned a lot about collies and the qualities Terhune prized. When Lad and Lady, who conformed to the slender head standard we see in modern collies, had a pup named Wolf whose head and body were as stocky as his Scottish ancestors, Terhune was pleased. He valued the toughness of the collie body even though he knew the stockier version would never win in the show ring. Wolf almost did win once though when his only competitor was an aging collie whose coat had none of the shine that Wolf's did. But, Terhune, true to his constant modeling of good showmanship, withdrew Wolf so that the older dog could continue in his glory.

Collies are more than just flesh and fur. They are brave, loyal, and intelligent. Whether it was Gray Dawn, a silver gray collie who would be called a Merle today, waiting all night in the cold frost for his master to exit the brood shed; or Lad curled up in the cave, his special spot under the desk, Terhune's collies all tug at the heartstrings. People who have owned and loved great collies describe them as forever dogs and that was the quality Terhune cherished.

The original short stories, titled Lad Stories were first published in magazines such as Redbook, Saturday Evening Post, Ladies'Home Journal, Hartford Courant and Atlantic Monthly. His first novel, Lad: A Dog is a compilation of a dozen of those stories. Terhune went on to write 30 more dog-based novels, most, but not all, of them about collies. Lad: A Dog was published in 1919 and became a best seller in both the young adult and adult markets; later it was adapted into a feature film.

So what did Terhune contribute to the breed?

High standards of physical and mental soundness. Educating the public about the keen intellect and companionship of collies. Heartfelt true stories about a breed whose family-friendly traits are as outstanding as its herding abilities.

Terhune can be given credit for upholding high breeding standards for the collie through its upward rise in popularity. Those who have read his books or who loved his dogs know that a collie's heart is as important as its coat or the length of its nose.

Learn more about this author, Cynthia Wall.
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