There are no Border Collies listed in Wellington rescue at the moment. Border Collies come up periodically, so it is worth setting an alert, and Border Collie crosses are worth considering too.
Rescue availability changes constantly. Set an alert below and we will email you the moment one is listed, or browse every adoptable dog in Wellington.
We will email you the moment a Border Collie becomes available in Wellington, from a rescue or an owner rehoming.
The Border Collie is a medium dog breed originating in Scotland / Northumberland. Adult dogs typically weigh 14 to 25 kg and live 12 to 15 years. Typical traits: highly-intelligent, work-driven, sensitive, reserved-with-strangers.
Owners who incorporate the dog into structured work, agility, herding, dog sport, or daily off-leash adventure in real terrain. Sedentary households, owners expecting a casual companion dog, or working-line dogs placed in town townhouses.
Adult Border Collies need about 90 minutes of daily exercise; adolescent dogs typically need 120 minutes. The coat is double-coated with high shedding, and weekly brushing keeps the coat manageable.
Use the city links to narrow to your area, or browse the full list below.
Breed-associated conditions worth asking any rescue about before you adopt. A good rescue will already know whether a dog has been assessed for these.
A hereditary eye condition affecting both Border Collies and other Collie-type breeds.
Source: VCA →About 1 in 10 Border Collies carries the MDR1 mutation, making them sensitive to common medications including ivermectin.
Source: VCA →Editorial summary for adopters, not medical advice. Ask the rescue about a specific dog's health, and consult your vet for individual guidance.
Rescues rehome across the country, and many will consider adopters outside their immediate area. It is worth checking the nearby cities too.
As of October 2026 there are no Border Collies listed in Wellington rescue on LocalPetFinder. Border Collies are among the rarer dogs in New Zealand rescue, and availability turns over quickly, so setting an alert is the most reliable way to catch one when it arrives. Border Collie crosses are worth considering too.
LocalPetFinder lists Border Collies available for adoption from rescues across Wellington and New Zealand. A dedicated single-breed rescue is not always active near Wellington, so the fastest route is to watch the general rescues and set an alert. Every listing links straight to the rescue that has the dog, and the application is handled by them, not by us.
Border Collies typically live 12 to 15 years.
Adult Border Collies need about 90 minutes of daily exercise. Adolescent dogs (under 2 years) typically need 120 minutes, more than mature adults.
Breed-associated conditions to ask the rescue about include Hip dysplasia, Collie Eye Anomaly, MDR1 drug sensitivity. See the citations in the health section above for authoritative information on each. This is an editorial summary, not medical advice, so check with your vet for individual guidance.
Not for sale, for adoption, which is usually the better deal. Every Border Collie here comes from an New Zealand rescue or shelter, not a breeder, pet shop, or classified seller. If you searched "border collie for sale wellington" or "border collie puppies for sale", adopting gets you a healthy, vetted dog for a fraction of the price.
You can buy from a registered breeder, but it is worth weighing against adoption first. If you do buy, insist on seeing where the puppies were raised and getting vet records, and check the breeder against your local pet-sale rules. For most families in Wellington, adopting a rescue Border Collie is cheaper, faster, and gives a dog in need a home.
Both, but adults far outnumber puppies, and it is worth knowing that before you start looking. Most Border Collies arriving in Wellington rescue are adolescents and adults, because that is the age at which first homes tend to give up. Puppies do come through, usually as accidental litters or with a surrendered mother, and they are typically spoken for quickly. Setting an alert beats refreshing the page. It is also worth asking whether you actually want one: an adult arrives with a temperament a foster has already observed and described, where a Border Collie puppy is a prediction, and for this breed in particular knowing what you are getting is the more useful thing.
Start with the listings on this page, which pull from Wellington rescues and shelters and are refreshed regularly, so what you see is what is genuinely available rather than a stale directory. If nothing suits today, that is normal for this breed: rescue intake is intermittent rather than steady, and a breed with none listed this week often has several next month. Setting an alert beats checking back, and it is worth widening to nearby suburbs and towns, since most rescues serving Wellington will adopt out across a reasonable driving distance rather than only inside one council area.