"Dave" my new Australian Shepherd pup

[FlyingLSimmentals]

 

[Stocker Steve]

Had a Border Collie. Seemed to be obsessive.
Have a great Wirehair cross that keeps UPS on their toes, but he is getting old.
Wife wants a protective dog that that loves her.
Would be good to have a cattle dog again.
What are some good options?

 

[Son of Butch]

Had a Border Collie. Seemed to be obsessive.
Have a great Wirehair cross that keeps UPS on their toes, but he is getting old.
Wife wants a protective dog that loves her.
Would be good to have a cattle dog again.
What are some good options?

I like German Shepherds.
Loyal as all get out to family - they don't tolerate strangers well, making them an excellent choice for protection.
Shepherds are very trainable to be good cattle dogs.
(Rin Tin Tin could do it all.)

For beauty a Rough Collie (Lassie) if your wife likes brushing hair.

 

[Stocker Steve]

No daily brushing.
Have had some success training hunting dogs.
What level of shepherd performance can you get with moderate training?

 

[True Grit Farms]

No daily brushing.
Have had some success training hunting dogs.
What level of shepherd performance can you get with moderate training?[/quote

Excellent, all a German Shepherd needs, is to see you do something and they pretty much figure it out. If they weren't so hairy, big and had such a short life span they'd be perfect.

 

[Son of Butch]

No daily brushing.
Have had some success training hunting dogs.
What level of shepherd performance can you get with moderate training?

Excellent, all a German Shepherd needs, is to see you do something and they pretty much figure it out.
If they weren't so hairy, big and had such a short life span they'd be perfect.

Only my opinion, but when brushed out the "Lassie" style long haired collie is perhaps the most beautiful of all dogs.
Show dogs need to be brushed daily, but as pets once a week because they will pick up all sorts of weed seeds and
their hair will mat without somewhat regular brushing. They are vocal barking at strangers, but seldom bite.
To prevent shyness they need to be well socialized, they are naturally calm and are protective of young children.
"Lassie" dogs have a natural herding instinct, but not nearly as strong of instinct as the Border Collie.
weight 60 lbs life expectancy 12 years and often go blind in their teens, Pal (the original Lassie) lived to be 18

German Shepherds are the best all around dogs I know.
weight 75+ lbs life expectancy 9-10 years... Rin Tin Tin lived to be 13
In my opinion, when selecting choose one with a strong back and top line.
It's been said German Shepherd show dogs are starting to look like a cross between a dog and a frog. With extremely
sloping rear ends and top lines and to me the rear legs are set too much and too far back causing poor tracking, also
they're well known for having hip problems. But they are quick learners and obey commands with the best of them.

 

[Stocker Steve]

If they weren't so hairy, big and had such a short life span they'd be perfect.

What issues cause the short life span?

 

[FlyingLSimmentals]

 

[True Grit Farms]

If they weren't so hairy, big and had such a short life span they'd be perfect.

What issues cause the short life span?

I suppose it's just God's will, just the nature of the beast. It just seems like all large dogs have a shorter lifespan.

 

[FlyingLSimmentals]

The Border Collies I've had were really smart but "how should I say it", well I guess soft or timid. Made great pets around the yard and farm but was just to timid with the livestock. Real loyal companions at home. Now they loved riding in the truck but if they saw the cows coming they'd duck and hide behind the fender, lol.
Had no complaints with the German Shepherd I had but he got hit in an accident while the neighbor had a bunch of construction going on. So didn't have him real long.
Dave has a bit of Australian Cattle Dog in him and isn't all the long hair Australian Shepherd. I'm gonna say he's the best I've had as of right now. He'll cuddle, play, obey, and grit it up when need be. Truly not afraid of anything but I'm scared he might find something that he should be afraid of and not know it.

 

[Son of Butch]

Dave

Dave is a great looking dog. I had to research Australian dogs to see breed standards, because of his erect ears and hair
coat he must be a crossbred and not a registered Australian Shepherd. He appears to fall more into the category of a
"Stump Tail Australian Cattle Dog" a breed under development with erect ears and natural stump tail descending from European cattle dogs, but not yet recognized as a breed by any major kennel club. Stump Tails are speckled so I suspect
he may get his coloring from a shot of short haired smooth collie somewhere in the woodpile. All in all a good looking dog. Was he born with a stump tail or was it docked?

 

[FlyingLSimmentals]

Thanks, SOB. The breeders had docked his tail as a puppy. I didn't see his parents but was told that the mother stayed outside in a kennel and that she was an Australian Cattle Dog or at least part A. cattle dog and part A. Shepherd. Was told the dad stayed in the house and he was a black tricolor Australian Shepherd and that he was a part miniature Australian Shepherd. Think he got his black tricolor from his daddy, and his erect ears, short hair, and the few speckles on front legs from his mother.