The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[speckledhen]

I had Shelties and my mom raised collies before I got the Shelties. They love to bark for sure! As a herding breed, I wondered if they would be a good choice for chickens. The breeder of my last sheltie had her sire as a working herd dog on their farm. I didn't have the common sense to ask them back then what he was herding or any info. I've read that they have such a strong instinct to herd that they will herd small children in the family to keep them where they should be. Folks had spoken about teaching them to herd with a small flock of 3-4 ducks.

My experience with Shelties is that they would chase small prey like rabbits, squirrels, etc. That makes me wonder how they'd behave around a flock of chickens.

I have considered a donkey but right now I'm just not wanting to add any more work - especially in winter. Feeling old and lazy.

They seem to be smart dogs, as most herding breeds are, so surely they could be taught, as Kathy did, to be okay with chickens. Not thrilled with a lot of barking, though again, many guarding and herding breeds do that, especially Great Pyrenees. I wonder what protection a Sheltie would be, other than an alarm, for us, due to their size. Two or three could give someone a run for their money, certainly! But, I"m not up for more than one dog, I don't think. Maybe a good one will wander up and stay like the cat did, LOL. There are plenty of good dogs just dumped in the country, as we all know.

 

[kitkat5505]

I keep wanting to get another dog, but I know I don't have the time to properly train one. Our dog is an 8 year old pug-schnauzer mix and we never trained him well as a puppy (I had a baby, 3 year old, and 5 year old at the time). He was too nippy with the kids and started peeing all over the house after being housebroken so he ended up being put outside. When we got our chickens he went nuts. He was constantly running around the coop and barking until he lost his voice. We finally put an underground dog fence around the coop and after getting shocked a couple times he no longer does that. In fact he seems afraid of the chickens now and if we have him out with us when the chickens are out he tries to climb in our lap shaking. I still wouldn't trust him alone with them but at least he's not terrorizing them anymore. We rarely even use his collar, if we put it on he just sits on the garage doorstep and stays until we take it off.

 

[getaclue]

Dh, and I have been debating the dog issue for several years now. IF an exceptional opportunity presented itself, I would, but short of that, it's just too much work for me at this time.

The bigger argument right now is getting our front fence, and gate put back up, with an automatic gate opener. When we bought the place, the gate, and front fence had rusted so bad, they were almost nonexistent. We are totally enclosed by the neighbor's fences in back, and on both sides, so all we have to deal with is the front. The old gate had already been removed, and stashed behind the storage trailer. All the posts are good. Dh got out, and pulled down all the old, dilapidated fencing. Now, he likes the "clean" look, and doesn't want to put the fencing, and gate back up. I want the fence, and gate back up. My argument is that it will keep out stray people, and critters. The problem is that, so far, we don't get any stray people, and critters.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

They seem to be smart dogs, as most herding breeds are, so surely they could be taught, as Kathy did, to be okay with chickens. Not thrilled with a lot of barking, though again, many guarding and herding breeds do that, especially Great Pyrenees. I wonder what protection a Sheltie would be, other than an alarm, for us, due to their size. Two or three could give someone a run for their money, certainly! But, I"m not up for more than one dog, I don't think. Maybe a good one will wander up and stay like the cat did, LOL. There are plenty of good dogs just dumped in the country, as we all know.

I'm on my third Australian shepherd, none ever bothered the chickens, so they are good that way. They are formidable when strangers come around, and I consider both mine as my protection dogs, as my boxer is the first to run like heck when someone comes around.

Australian shepherds have a bold personality as they were bred to move cattle so they need a strong confident owner or else they could be trouble.

I find it's important to pick the right breed for you needs, or else you will be very unhappy with the outcome.

 

[speckledhen]

I'm on my third Australian shepherd, none ever bothered the chickens, so they are good that way. They are formidable when strangers come around, and I consider both mine as my protection dogs, as my boxer is the first to run like heck when someone comes around.

Australian shepherds have a bold personality as they were bred to move cattle so they need a strong confident owner or else they could be trouble.

I find it's important to pick the right breed for you needs, or else you will be very unhappy with the outcome.

I agree about the right breed. My friend, Kate, in Indiana (used to live near me) has a red merle Aussie named Huck. Says he's the smartest dog she's ever had. I think Tom admires smart dogs like Cody was, but they are rather high energy, which is what would make me hesitate. They are medium size, though, not huge. Maybe an Aussie pup we could train to the chickens and cat?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I agree about the right breed. My friend, Kate, in Indiana (used to live near me) has a red merle Aussie named Huck. Says he's the smartest dog she's ever had. I think Tom admires smart dogs like Cody was, but they are rather high energy, which is what would make me hesitate. They are medium size, though, not huge. Maybe an Aussie pup we could train to the chickens and cat?

They are breeding miniature Australian shepherds these days. There's also toys but those look to be glorified Pomeranians.

The average Australian shepherd weighs between 45 and 75 pounds, but some can be bigger. There are show quality which are different than working quality. I currently have one of each. Same pushy personality but both look completely different. They are dogs that will follow you everywhere, but don't bother you as much as some other breeds that are always trying to play.

Australian shepherds do need exercise, but they are nothing like the border collie I had, she was crazy busy.

I do have the best conversations with my Australian shepherds. They are sensitive to corrections, and are clowns that enjoy a good joke. They aren't for everyone, but if you like their qualities they are wonderful dogs.

I personally love the red tri's and the red merle. Most people are drawn to the blue merle. They also come in black tri.

Definitely don't want to talk anyone into getting one. I always research my breed choices well before getting one so there's no surprises.

One of mine will chase our cat, because two others are, but she doesn't do nothing when she catches up to him. Their worse quality is the barking, which I work on immediately to keep to a minimum, but it makes them good watch dogs.

 

[speckledhen]

They are breeding miniature Australian shepherds these days. There's also toys but those look to be glorified Pomeranians.

The average Australian shepherd weighs between 45 and 75 pounds, but some can be bigger. There are show quality which are different than working quality. I currently have one of each. Same pushy personality but both look completely different. They are dogs that will follow you everywhere, but don't bother you as much as some other breeds that are always trying to play.

Australian shepherds do need exercise, but they are nothing like the border collie I had, she was crazy busy.

I do have the best conversations with my Australian shepherds. They are sensitive to corrections, and are clowns that enjoy a good joke. They aren't for everyone, but if you like their qualities they are wonderful dogs.

I personally love the red tri's and the red merle. Most people are drawn to the blue merle. They also come in black tri.

Definitely don't want to talk anyone into getting one. I always research my breed choices well before getting one so there's no surprises.

One of mine will chase our cat, because two others are, but she doesn't do nothing when she catches up to him. Their worse quality is the barking, which I work on immediately to keep to a minimum, but it makes them good watch dogs.

I saw the minis, very cute. I'd probably rather have the standard size. I wasn't aware they got to 75 lb. That would be a large dog, not medium, then. I was thinking more along the lines of 45-50 lb, but of course, haven't really researched it much.
How do you stop the barking, Lisa? I had one that would bark a decent amount (Cody), but the pointer/lab girl would rarely ever bark. When she did, the ground would shake, LOL, such a deep voice in a sweet-looking ladylike dog.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I start young with teaching the word quiet. They bark, I say quiet, than reward after a few seconds, eventually they figure out the word, they are smart.

Seems breeding is all over with the breed. Size and weight in the official standard is recommended but not required, so you can find all kinds of sizes of Australian shepherds. So asking the sizes of the parents can help, and avoiding show bred dogs which are bigger boned and have thicker coats, though they also tend to be calmer, so they do have their advantages.

They are a breed with a big range of what you will get in appearance, so you can definitely find smaller ones. My smaller one is around 55 pounds at 12 years old, but was under 50 for most of her younger days, the other is around 80, she is bigger boned and doesn't look that big, but is a heifer. My last one was show bred too and was in the 80's for weight. I'm looking for farm bred again next time, the show bred ones in Wisconsin are all bigger, but they are good looking.

 

[speckledhen]

I start young with teaching the word quiet. They bark, I say quiet, than reward after a few seconds, eventually they figure out the word, they are smart.

Seems breeding is all over with the breed. Size and weight in the official standard is recommended but not required, so you can find all kinds of sizes of Australian shepherds. So asking the sizes of the parents can help, and avoiding show bred dogs which are bigger boned and have thicker coats, though they also tend to be calmer, so they do have their advantages.

They are a breed with a big range of what you will get in appearance, so you can definitely find smaller ones. My smaller one is around 55 pounds at 12 years old, but was under 50 for most of her younger days, the other is around 80, she is bigger boned and doesn't look that big, but is a heifer. My last one was show bred too and was in the 80's for weight. I'm looking for farm bred again next time, the show bred ones in Wisconsin are all bigger, but they are good looking.

That would be what I'd look for, I think, if I decided on a puppy, but the prices they charge are way beyond what I can pay most of the time. Though, it always surprises me when folks give away their dogs that have been with them for years. Maybe I'll luck out, though more likely would get someone else's problem dog they didn't train.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Keep your eyes and ears open, you never know what can show up. Sometimes farm bred ones are pretty reasonable in prices. I always figure the right dog finds me when it's right, but that's a whole new topic I might be called crazy for.