Aussies come in a variety of colours, they are not just "the little blue dog". The four "accepted" colours are Red with or without copper and/or white, Red Merle, Blue Merle and Black, again with or without copper and/or white. For excellent pictures and explanations of the accepted and unaccepted colours please use this link to A Field Guide To Coloration of Australian Shepherds which is now included on the ASHGI (Australian Shepherd Health & Genetics Institute) website at  http://www.ashgi.org.  On the ASHGI site you'll find a wealth of health and genetics information about Aussies. Please don't forget to use your brower's BACK button to return here!

The Australian Shepherd dog, by heritage, is a herder and guardian. Sometimes their instinct to herd can be mistaken as "meanness" when they are trying to herd other animals and/or children. Nipping at the ankles is not an uncommon trait in young Aussies with herding instinct, but is easily discouraged with a gentle shake and an "ah-ah" sound. All of our Aussies have learned not to nip ankles within a few days but, taught in this manner, it has not destroyed their natural herding instincts. Aussies, properly trained and socialized make wonderful companions, they are highly intelligent, loyal, affectionate and protective of their property and their human family. Their high-spirits and eagerness to please make them an easy to train dog who will generally show great enthusiasm for learning new things and being challenged on a daily basis. Aussies excel in the show ring, trial arena, obedience ring, and they can be wonderfully athletic agility and flyball dogs. Their high energy makes them a serious candidate for lots of daily exercise and play. Aussies are generally good with children and other pets, although they usually try to keep the "herd" together! With strangers, Aussies can be aloof and show reserve but this should not be taken as shyness, they are generally just keeping an eye on things and making sure that the new person is acceptable before making them a friend. As a rule if you, as their owner, tell them the person is acceptable they will accept your word for it. Once an Aussie makes a friend, they are a friend for life.

The ASCA breed standard for Aussies is 20-23 inches for males and 18-21 inches for females measured at the wither; and the weight guidelines are 25 to 65 pounds. The Aussie lifespan is usually 12 to 14 years but there are Aussies who have lived to be 20+!

Aussies have a double coat (downy undercoat with coarser guard hairs) that requires moderate grooming, a thorough weekly brushing is usually sufficient. It is said that it's common for Aussies to shed twice yearly, spring and fall and during these times brushing more often is recommended.  Our dogs live in the house and shed year-round, so if you're after a dog that doesn't shed much an Aussie isn't for you!

Aussies, in general, do not have many health problems. Reputable breeders OFA or PennHip (for hip problems) and CERF (for eye problems) they're breeding dogs before allowing them to be bred. Dogs without good OFA or PennHip and CERF results should never be bred. Generally a good diet and regular exercise along with regular vet checkups and annual vaccinations, once past the puppy shots, are all that is necessary to keep your Aussie in good health. For more information on diseases that have been found in Aussies, please go to our genetics page.

The ideal owner of an Aussie is someone who not only wants a companion who desires to be with you all the time if possible, but should be a person who has the patience and time to ensure their companion gets proper training. As well, lots of regular exercise and play are necessary to keep your dog in good physical and mental condition. Aussies who do not get enough exercise and/or play time can tend to make their own fun by getting into mischief! A rural or suburban lifestyle is best for an Aussie and their immediate home should include a large fenced yard. Aussies should not be allowed to run free, their herding instincts make them ideal candidates for chasing cars and livestock if they are not kept in their own area. We strongly recommend that puppy owners take their Aussie pup to "kindergarten" for training with a reputable trainer. Your vet or pet supply store can be good sources to recommend trainers but always be sure to get references from people who have trained their dogs with them….most trainers will even let you go sit in on a session before deciding to train with them.

At Lakehills, our Aussies are our companions first and foremost. They love to travel in the trucks or van, no matter whether it's a 5 minute drive, a 20 minute drive to town or a 15 hour trip to somewhere new…..they want to go. They go visiting our friends, go camping in the Sierra’s and keep me company when I'm in town shopping, it's all the same to them since they're out "seeing the world" and keeping us company. They don't like being left "home alone" but are well behaved and we always get the famous "Aussie grin" and dance routine when we return. It matters not if it's only been 15 minutes, they are always excited to see us and resume the companionship.

If you are thinking about adding an Aussie pup to your home please also read

Is An Aussie Right For You?

Recommended Reading, Books & DVDs:

There are many excellent books that have been written on Aussies. Some of them are listed below.

To start with is a wonderful list of books and DVDs by various members of the Hartnagle family, owners of Las Rocosa Australian Shepherds, the Australian Shepherd Club of America #1 Hall of Fame kennel.  The Hartnagle family have been raising Aussies for over 50 years and most of the family are herding and/or breeder judges with a wealth of knowledge to share. You can purchase any of the Hartnagles books and/or DVDs directly from their website at http://www.lasrocosa.com/education.html

There is a widespread variety of books written on training dogs for a wide variety of venues, far too many to listed them all here. There are also wonderful resources available on the internet.   Clicker training, obedience training, agility training and so on are all interesting reading and I'm sure any good bookstore will carry a good collection and would be happy to recommend several to you.  Try doing a Google search on the subject of your choice.

Again a vast amount of information can be had on just about any topic to do with dogs and we recommend you read everything you can, and choose what you wish to do once you've you finish your reading. A couple of good sites to start with are Karen Pryor's Don't Shoot The Dog at  http://www.dontshootthedog.com and Suzanne Clothier's Flying Dog Press at http://www.flyingdogpress.com.

Although there are numerous articles written about dogs, we have chosen to name two that we believe should be very important to all dog owners. Both articles are written by Sheila Boneham, Ph.D. Please don't forget to use your brower's "back" button to return to this page:

Several good books on canine health and/or first aid are:

• The Nature of Animal Healing (The Definitive Holistic Medicine Guide To Caring For Your Dog & Cat), by Martin Goldstein, DVM, ISBN #0-345-43919-8

• Pet First Aid by Bobbie Mammato, DVM, published by Mosby -- recommended by the American Red Cross

• Dog First Aid-Emergency Care for the Hunting, Working and Outdoor Dog by Randy Acker, DVM available at: http://wolfpacks.com/books.htm#dog1st

• First Aid for Dogs by Bruce Fogel, DVM

There are also a number of e-mail discussion lists available for Aussie owners. Aussie-L is a list with almost 1,000 Aussie owners, breeders, judges from all over the world and people discuss their joys, sorrows, ask for help with questions on all sorts of things and generally just enjoy talking to other Aussie lovers. Herders-L is a list for people with interests in herding dogs. Hoflin has an Aussie list but it is primarily a more serious discussion list concerning health, behavior, training, etc.

Regarding 'mini' Aussies...