Personally, I think a dog can be a good work dog and still do agility, but in a way I agree with Lizmo that a dog who is extremely competitive in obedience or agility or flyball is not going to be 100% properly trained as a stockdog, because many of the things a stockdog should do are contradictory to most sports. The constant eye contact that is encouraged in obedience is enough to cripple a dog for stockwork, when they really should have their eyes on the stock at all times. The body language one uses for agility is the polar opposite that is used for herding, etc., etc.
If a dog is able to be a terrific work dog (and perhaps a trial dog) and still does well in sports... That's great! I know of one handler who has an OTCH dog that also competes successfully in Open herding trials. I'm stoked for them, but one is a very small number and it tells me something. It's nigh impossible to compete at the highest level of competition in border collie trials (not AKC or CKC "herding" trials) and compete at the highest level of competition in a sport, too. IMO, anyway.
That being said... If she's looking for a sport dog, I'd actually look at a responsible working breeder. Many of the characteristics that make Border Collies such superb sheepdogs also make them amazing sport dogs. I find that the dogs from good working lines tend to have a better off switch than the dogs bred for sports, but they still have a lot of drive and focus.
I live with 2 dogs from show/sport lines and own one from working lines... And as fun as Dakota is to run through agility, Eve could own his hairy little butt any day of the week if I trained her to do so... Her blazing speed, agility and ability to think on her feet is something I can only attribute to genetics.
If a dog is able to be a terrific work dog (and perhaps a trial dog) and still does well in sports... That's great! I know of one handler who has an OTCH dog that also competes successfully in Open herding trials. I'm stoked for them, but one is a very small number and it tells me something. It's nigh impossible to compete at the highest level of competition in border collie trials (not AKC or CKC "herding" trials) and compete at the highest level of competition in a sport, too. IMO, anyway.
That being said... If she's looking for a sport dog, I'd actually look at a responsible working breeder. Many of the characteristics that make Border Collies such superb sheepdogs also make them amazing sport dogs. I find that the dogs from good working lines tend to have a better off switch than the dogs bred for sports, but they still have a lot of drive and focus.
I live with 2 dogs from show/sport lines and own one from working lines... And as fun as Dakota is to run through agility, Eve could own his hairy little butt any day of the week if I trained her to do so... Her blazing speed, agility and ability to think on her feet is something I can only attribute to genetics.