Breeds developed in response to local situations and needs. In many cases,
the work required versatility, while in other cases there were particular conditions that led to some
specialization. Conditions could change over time.The Way They Work
provides a view of many of the
tasks of stock-working dogs. The Border Collie Museum website has an excellent overview of
herding dogs worldwide
with many photos.
Some breeds have pages galore, others have at
most a mention in passing on a general list of dog breeds. I have tried to
include pages that provide information or the most direct links to pages
with such information. If you know of a page which should be included on
this list, or come across any broken links with regard to any of links set
out below, please let me know.
CUR BREEDS: The Cur breeds were developed from the
all-purpose dogs used for stock work and hunting by early settlers in the
U.S. -- "Old Yeller" was a dog of this type, as are the Catahoula, Lacy,
Florida Cur, and others. There are a number of local strains of Cur dogs;
some are used more for hunting than herding.
Blackmouth Cur
Throughout the world there are breeds or strains of
herding dogs bred solely for work, unrecognized by kennel club authorities.
Some may eventually be developed into recognized breeds, some may be
supplanted, some rare ones may only be preserved at the last minute. Some
of these are: In Italy, the Luvin/Lupino
del Gigante, the
Cane di Oropa/Cane da Pastore Biellese,
the Cane da Pastore Apuano, and the
Cane Toccatore/Paratore;
in France, the Chien de Crau and Berger d'Auvergne;
in Spain, the
Carea Castellano, Can de Palleiro, Pastor Garafiano, Pastor Mallorquin, Perro Lobo Herreñu o
and others; in Hungary, the short-coated
Sinka;
in Russia the Nenets Reindeer Dog/ Nenets Herding Laika,
closely related to the Samoyed; in the U.S., the Hairy Mouth or Wire Mouth Heeler, with an Airedale
background, and a new breed developed as a working cattle dog, the
Hangin’ Tree Cowdog, In South America, Patagonian
Sheepdogs are spread throughout
the pampas regions of Argentina and Chile, descended largely from working
collies brought by settlers from Britain intermixed with other local working
dogs. Appearance varies considerably, with a wide variety of colors, sizes,
and coat types, but the overall impression of many is of loose-eyed working
collie characteristics; a beardie-coated type is known as the Barbucho. The
book
Dog’s Best Friend, Journey to the Roots of an Ancient Partnershipn>,
includes a chapter about these dogs.
The Ovejero Magellanicois a Chilean dog of this type. Border
Collies and Kelpies also are used as stockdogs in Patagonia. Dog breed
encyclopedias such as The Atlas of Dog Breeds of the World, by
Bonnie Wilcox and Chris Walkowicz, give an overview of many herding
breeds.
History of the Working Collie Breedsby
Carole Presberg comprehensively covers collie-related breeds worldwide.
Information on a wide range of stockdogs and their work, along with photos and
illustrations, can be found at the
Stockdog Savvy blog. Many of these dogs can now be seen in
action on Youtube.com by searching on the breed name.
Mixed breeds have also served as helpful herders,
and, as is the case with most other breeds, crosses played their part in the
development of many sheepdog and cattledog breeds. Frequently-seen crosses
on farms and ranches in America today involve various blends of Border
Collie, Australian Shepherd and Australian Cattle Dog (some of these
combinations are called "Texas Heelers"). The German Shepherd X Rough Collie
was popular as a farm dog for many years in the Midwest.
Livestock Guardian Dogs
These aren't herders, but serve as
protectors for the flock, usually living full-time with the
animals they are protecting. In some regions there would be
both local guardian breed and a local herding breed; for
instance, in the Pyrenees Mountains in France the guardian
dog was the Great Pyrenees and the herder was the small,
active Pyrenean Shepherd. Some of the guardian breeds on
occasion would provide a low-key, gentle guidance of the
flock, but they weren't active herders, a behavior that
would be frowned upon in a livestock guardian breed.
Information about these dogs is available at: Livestock Guardian Dogs
(includes
an excellent article on the history of breed development
applicable to many breeds)
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