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HISTORY | BREED STANDARD | COLORS &
PATTERNS | ACTIVITIES
History
Miniature Australian Shepherds?
Where and Why
The Australian Shepherd:
The history of the North
American/Miniature Australian Shepherd actually begins with the history of the Australian
Shepherd. Though most facts are shrouded in time, the most commonly held belief on the
origins of the Aussie begin in the late 1800’s when western ranchers were importing
sheep from Australia. During this period the most popular sheep were being imported into
Australia from the Basque regions of Spain. When the herds were shipped, their shepherds
were sent with them to manage and care for the flocks on the journey. As the
Australian’s reputation for quality sheep grew, the demand for their sheep grew also
and American ranchers began importing them. The livestock were shipped to the Americas,
again accompanied by the Basque shepherds and their herding dogs. Ranchers of the American
west were reportedly very impressed with the working ability of these "little blue
dogs" and began interbreeding them with their own shepherd dogs. The result was the
Australian Shepherd.
In 1976, a single Breed Standard for the Australian Shepherd
was adopted and in 1980 the two major breed clubs consolidated to become the Australian
Shepherd Club of America (ASCA). Unrecognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC) at that
time, ASCA not only provided a registry for the Aussie, but held conformation, obedience,
agility, and working trials. Although the AKC now recognizes the Australian Shepherd, ASCA
continues to provide these activities to the Australian Shepherd and is currently the
largest single breed registry in the United States.
The Miniature Australian Shepherd was developed directly
from the Australian Shepherd. Throughout the history of the Aussie, small (under 18")
dogs can be seen in historical photographs. Many believe that the original Aussie was
selectively bred larger as sheep ranching decreased and cattle ranching increased. Cattle
ranchers preferred a larger dog to work the larger stock. Some Aussie owners have
continued to prefer the smaller sized Aussie while others prefer the larger.
In 1968 a horse woman in Norco, California, began a breeding
program specifically to produce very small Australian Shepherds. Her name was Doris
Cordova, and the most well known dog from her kennel is Cordova’s Spike. Spike was
placed with Bill and Sally Kennedy, also of Norco, California, to continue to develop a
line of miniature Aussies under the B/S kennel name. Another horseman, Chas Lasater of Valhalla Kennels soon joined
the ranks of mini breeders.
Redford
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Valhalla's Buster, Buddy and Russell
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Cordova's Spike |
Cordova, Lasater and the Kennedy’s together attempted to
form the first parent club for the miniatures. Although the club never quite got off the
ground, their stated purpose for developing the miniatures was to produce an Australian
Shepherd under 17" who had the heart, intelligence and drive to work stock, and yet
be small enough to travel easily to stock shows and be a "house" dog.
Cordova’s dogs were registered through the National Stock
Dog Registry (NSDR) and eventually NSDR came to be the first registry to recognize and
register the mini as a size variety of the Australian Shepherd.
Originally recognized in (1989
- 1990) they were shown with the RBKC of Southern California (Rare Breed
Kennel Club) as Miniature Australian Shepherds. The miniature gained in
popularity and the owners and breeders missed  the cohesive nature of a parent club
dedicated to the miniature, so in 1990, the Miniature Australian Shepherd Club of the USA
(MASCUSA) was formed. Kathy Croswhite (Munson), Jeanine Perron, Florence Toombs,
Susan Sinclair and Richard VanBurkleo served as the first Board of Directors, and one of
MASCUSA’s most notable early achievements during that time, was to gain
recognition of the miniature by the American Rare Breeds Assc. (ARBA) to provide a
Nationally recognized conformation show venue.
Now with the recognition of the
American Rare Breed Association (ARBA) the Miniature Australian Shepherds showed along
side the Australian Shepherd until 1993, when the AKC officially recognized the Australian
Shepherd. The American Rare Breed
Association's policy at that time was not to allow any breed of dog to show with them
(except in exhibition) that had the same name as an AKC affiliated breed and suggested
that we change our name. Amid mixed reactions
MASCUSA opted to change the name of our dogs from Miniature Australian Shepherd to North
American Shepherd, for the sole purpose of keeping ARBA as one of our main show venues. At the same time, the club amended its name to
North American Miniature Australian Club, USA, while also retaining the name Miniature
Australian Club, USA as an a.k.a. The breed
flourished over the next five years and grew under this name both in the US and Canada.
In
the beginning of 1998, ARBA changed their breed name policy and through much consideration
and discussion on the part of our club members and the Board of Directors of NASCUSA,
formerly MASCUSA, Miniature Australian Shepherd was incorporated back into the name of our
dogs, thus becoming the North American "Miniature Australian
Shepherd".
Today, breeders of the Miniature Australian Shepherd continue
to strive to produce Aussies of a smaller stature. Preservation of the herding instinct as
well as the intelligence and athleticism of the mini is a priority in breeding programs,
as well as continuing the reputation for health and easy companionship that the mini
enjoys.
Miniatures are quickly gaining in popularity among Agility,
Flyball and Disc competition enthusiasts as their attributes of small size and amazing
athletic ability makes them very competitive and easy to travel with. In the suburbs and
cities, families wanting a big dog are attracted to the "big dog" qualities of
the miniature Australian Shepherd, in a smaller package.
Vive la miniature!
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Breed Standard Miniature Australian Shepherd
| GENERAL APPEARANCE: The Miniature Australian Shepherd is a
well-balanced herding dog of small to medium size.
Bone is also moderate and in proportion to body size. He is attentive and animated, showing strength and
stamina combined with unusual agility. Slightly
longer than tall, he has a coat of moderate length and coarseness with coloring that
offers variety and individuality in each specimen. An identifying characteristic is his natural or
docked bobtail. In each sex, masculinity or
femininity is well defined. Disqualifications: Toy like features
(i.e.
domed head, bulging eyes, fine bone) |
Merle
bitch with Tri dog
in background.
Trim
color is optional and not to be preferred |
CHARACTER:
The
Miniature Australian Shepherd is intelligent, primarily a working dog of strong herding
and guardian instincts. He is an exceptional
companion. He is versatile and easily
trained, performing his assigned tasks with great style and enthusiasm. He is reserved with strangers, but does not
exhibit shyness. Although an aggressive,
authoritative worker, viciousness towards people or animals is intolerable.
Disqualification: Viciousness
Fault:
Undue shyness
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HEAD:
Clean-cut,
strong, dry, and in proportion to the body. The
top skull is flat to slightly rounded, its length and width each equal to the length of
the muzzle, which is in balance and proportioned to the rest of the head. The muzzle tapers slightly to a rounded tip. The stop is moderate, but well defined.
TEETH:
A
full complement of strong, white teeth meet in a scissor bite. An even bite is a fault. Teeth broken or missing by accident are not
penalized.
Disqualification: Undershot bites; overshot bites exceeding
one-eighth (1/8) inch
EYES: Very
expressive, showing attentiveness and intelligence. Clear,
almond-shaped, and of moderate size, set a little obliquely, neither prominent nor sunken,
with pupils dark, well defined and perfectly positioned.
Color is brown, blue, amber or any variation or combination thereof
including flecks and marbling. |
EARS:
Set
on high at the side of the head, triangular and slightly rounded at the tip, of moderate
size with length measured by bringing the tip of the ear around to the inside corner of
the eye. The ears, at full attention, break
slightly forward and over from one-quarter (1/4) to one-half (1/2) above the base.
Severe
Faults: Prick or hound-type ears |
Prick ear
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Hound ear |
| NECK
AND BODY: The
neck is firm, clean and in proportion to the body. It
is of medium length and slightly arched at the crest, setting well into the shoulders. The body is firm and muscular. The topline appears level at a natural
four-square
stance. The chest is deep and strong with
ribs well sprung. The loin is strong and
broad when viewed from the top. The bottom
line carries well back with a moderate tuck-up. The
croup is moderately sloping, the ideal being thirty (30) degrees from the horizontal. Tail is straight, not to exceed three
(3) inches, natural bobtail or docked. |
FOREQUARTERS:
The
shoulder blades (scapula) are long and flat, close set at the withers, approximately two
fingers width at a natural stance, and are well laid back at an angle approximately
forty-five (45) degrees to the ground. The
upper arm (humerus) is attached at an approximate right angle to the shoulder line with
forelegs dropping straight, perpendicular to the ground.
The elbow joint is equidistant from the ground to the withers. The legs are straight and powerful. Pasterns are short, thick and strong, but still
flexible, showing a slight angle when viewed from the side.
Feet are oval shaped, compact, with close-knit, well-arched toes. Pads are thick and resilient; nails short and strong. Dewclaws may be removed. |
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| HINDQUARTERS:
Width
of hindquarters approximately equal to the width of the forequarters at the shoulders. The angulation of the pelvis and upper thigh
(femur) corresponds to the angulation of the shoulder blade and upper arm forming an
approximate right angle. Stifles are clearly
defined, hock joints moderately bent. The
metatarsi are short, perpendicular to the ground and parallel to each other when viewed
from the rear. Feet are oval shaped, compact,
with close-knit, well-arched toes. Pads are
thick and resilient; nails short and strong. Rear
dewclaws are removed. |
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COAT: Of
medium texture, straight to slightly wavy, weather resistant, of moderate length with an
undercoat. The quality of undercoat varies
with climate. Hair is short and smooth on the
head, outside of ears, front of forelegs and below the hocks. Backs of forelegs are moderately feathered;
breeches are moderately full. There is a
moderate mane and frill, more pronounced in dogs than bitches.
Severe
fault: Non-typical coats
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COLOR:
All
colors are strong, clear and rich. The recognized colors are blue merle, red (liver)
merle, solid black, and solid red (liver) all with or without white markings and/or tan
(copper) points with no order of preference. The blue merle and black have black
pigmentation on nose, lips and eye-rims. Reds and red merles have liver pigmentation on
nose, lips and eye rims. Butterfly nose should not be faulted under the age of one year.
On all colors the areas surrounding the ears and eyes are dominated by color other than
white. The hairline of a white collar does not exceed the point at the withers.
Disqualifications:
Other than recognized colors, white body splashes. Dudley nose |
| GAIT: Smooth,
free and easy; exhibiting agility of movement with a well-balanced, ground-covering
stride. Fore and hind legs move straight and
parallel with the center line of the body; as speed increases, the feet, both front and
rear, converge toward the center line of gravity of the dog, while the top line
remains
firm and level. |
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SIZE: Height
for dogs and bitches is 14 inches up to 18 inches at the top of withers.
Quality not to be sacrificed in favor of
size within the guidelines of this breed standard.
Severe
fault under 14 inches and over 18 inches.
For Preferred height read Breed
Standard Guidelines Booklet |
Disqualification's:
ü Monorchidism
and Cryptorchidism
ü Toy
like features (i.e. domed head, bulging eyes, fine bone)
ü Other
than recognized colors, white body splashes, Dudley nose.
ü Viciousness
ü Undershot
bites; overshot bites exceeding one-eighth (1/8) inch
For a more detailed look at the Breed Standard go to Breed
Standard Guidelines Booklet
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| "Drawings
from Victoria and Christina Mistretta's book The Structure and Movement of the Australian
Shepherd. Permission to use granted
01/01. All drawings are Copyright protected. All rights reserved. No picture may be reused
or copied without written permission from authors." The
Structure & Movement of The Australian Shepherd
by Victoria & Christina Mistretta. $25.00 (Postage included)
* note: add $2.00 for Canadian and $5.00 postage for international orders.
Send order to: Victoria Mistretta, 3167 Dodge Rd, White City, OR, 97503 541-826-6598
|
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Colors & Patterns
Miniature Australian Shepherd can be found in the same colors as
the standard bred Australian Shepherd. The
base colors are either red or black, with or without white or copper trim, or a variation
of the colors, known as merles.
A blue merle
has patches and patterns of black on a background varying from slate gray to powder blue.
A red merle
has patches and patterns of red on a cream colored background.
The black
has a solid black body. They may have white
trim, in which case they would be a black bi (left picture), or copper and white, which
would be a black tri (right picture).
The reds vary in intensity from a deep mahogany to a brownish-red color. As with the
blacks, a red and white is termed a red bi; add copper points and the dog is a red tri.
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Activities
| Working together in dog sports such
as Frisbee, Agility, Herding, Flyball, Obedience, etc. is encouraged as a means to channel
the MAS energy in a fun way for both dog and owner. Training classes once or twice a
week helps provide mental and physical challenges and often cements the close bonds formed
between dog and owner. Check out our Resources page for some links to information about many of these
activities. |
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Below is a brief description of only
a few of the activities the MAS excels in.
Herding
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Mini Aussies have a strong and instinctive desire to
herd. In fact, you may see this drive to herd
when they play with other animals. While this
is instinctive, learning to do it effectively and efficiently is something both dog and
owner can train together in. The MAS is eligible to compete with the Australian Shepherd Club of America (ASCA) and the American Herding
Breeds Assc. |
Agility
This is a fast paced sport in which the
handler directs the dog over and through a series of obstacles, including jumps, tires,
teeter-totters, tunnels, A-frames, and weave poles. MAS
may compete for titles with ASCA,
CPE,
NADAC, USDAA and the UKC. |
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Conformation
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Conformation is a competition in which
correct structure, movement and showmanship are judged. MAS may compete with the American Rare Breed Asso.
for Championship status, with the International All Breed Canine Asso. for National and
International Championships, Canine Kennel Club and
Rarities. ARBA points may
be applied toward a NAMASCUSA Breed Championship as well.
You will find links to these venues on our
Events page. |
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