Fundamental Facts To Know In Regards To The Australian Shepherd

The Australian Shepherd (nicknamed the "Aussie") is a herding breed of dog that features in blue merle, red merle, black and red or a variety of other coat colors as well as either blue or brown eyes. The breed was largely developed in the United States during the 1800s despite their name, and they were originally used for the primary function of herding sheep.

Some of their more distinguishing features are often described as their high level of versatility, intelligence and trainability - which essentially make the Australian Shepherd a frequent breed for herding, movie and television roles, guide dogs for the blind, therapy dogs, for search and rescue or as companions in active households.

The Australian Shepherd is well-known for their bold, alert and confident character. They are generally shy around unfamiliar people, which can mean they are fairly unsuitable as a guard dog.

The Australian Shepherd is also known to be highly intelligent - though only ranks equal 42nd compared to other dogs in terms of their capability to learn obedience directives. They are also known to be great with children who they may often try to herd without proper training - which means they are quite suitable as a family pet. The Australian Shepherd is usually friendly with other animals such as other dogs and pets once properly socialized.

Grooming the Australian Shepherd is a relatively easy operation. They require only occasional brushing once a week and bathing not too often to avoid removing the natural oils in the coat.

The Australian Shepherd is best with a large yard to give them room to run, and they are largely unsuitable for living in an apartment.

The Australian Shepherd enjoys endeavors such as agility, flyball, obedience, tracking and herding. They have a high quantity of energy and need daily exercise in the form of long walks, runs or other physical challenges to stop destructive behavior and excessive barking.

The Australian Shepherd can be the perfect breed of dog for an active owner or family with a large yard and a job to give them. They are suitable for anyone that is keen to do a small amount of grooming and allow time to give them early obedience training and socialization plus ongoing mental challenges as well as take them on long walks each day and present a good sum of companionship and devotion. Although they may be fairly unsuitable as a city dog or in a less active household, if you are capable of meeting their needs for physical and mental challenges then the Australian Shepherd may well make the ideal breed of dog for you.