The Sheltie

[Isargle]

Hey all!

My name is Jerome and lately my mum and I have been thinking of getting a Sheltie pup, but don't really have an idea of how much they cost and what they are like behavior wise. From what I've read on the net, they are very loving, playful and very very smart! If anyone could share a little information on these dogs-good or/and bad-that would be highly appreciated.
Thank you:)

[Melamaphine]

Hi there,

Shelties are gorgeous little things, I have a rough collie at the moment as I prefer the larger size. There are a few people on here who are very knowledgeable about Shelties so hopefully you'll get some good advice.

Shelties and the larger collies are very intelligent and require a lot of stimulation and exercise to keep them happy. Shelties excel at agility and obedience if handled correctly, and are generally pretty friendly with other dogs and people unless badly bred or not properly socialised when young. They are very sensitive dogs so are best suited to people who aren't going to shout at them when they do something wrong.

Oh, and they need lots of grooming. If you don't want clumps of hair in EVERYTHING they're not the dog for you!

IMO shelties and collies are one of the most beautiful types of dog on the planet...but i am a bit biased! ;)

[agilityk9trainer]

I own three shelties and train several more in my business. I teach agility.

I cannot speak directly to the lines you'll find in Austrailia, so keep that in mind. I'm from the US. Here I find two distinct types of personalities in shelties. There are the shelties that still retain their working drive. These dogs range from moderately driven to extremely high drive. The extremely high drive shelties would drive a regular dog owner up the wall, but a good breeder wouldn't let one of these dogs go to a pet home. They are hard to handle, full of energy and need a job or they'll become destructive. By a job, I mean herding, obedience, agility, etc.

Then there's the shelties that have had the (IMO) fun bred out of them. They're overly timid, shy and not outgoing at all. These shelties often wind up in pet homes with people who love them very much, but if you want to take your dog out and about, these shelties often display too much fear. This type of sheltie would really need good socialization as a puppy to help it overcome as much of it's genetic shyness as possible.

Most shelties are extreme barkers. They were bred to herd sheep with their voices, so they were bred to bark. If you don't like yapping, do not get a sheltie. One of the first things I teach my shelties is a quite comannd. :)

Depending on what type of dog you want - active or more of a house pet - will determine what lines you get your sheltie from. It's imperative to look for a good breeder as there are many bad sheltie breeders out there putting out very poor quality dogs.

As for grooming, they do shed. Their undercoats blow once to twice a year, and during this time they leave poofs of hair all over the house. They require weekly brushing, with sometimes daily brushing behind the ears to keep mats from forming there.

They are generally healthy but do suffer from some issues. They can be sensitive to some chemicals (like in heartworm medicine). They also can get cancer, eye issues and a few other genetic diseases.

A well-bred, pet quality sheltie with a moderate personality can make a wonderful house dog. :)

[Isargle]

Thank you both very much:D

[Draco]

I previously owned a sheltie, Calypso was a non-working pet sheltie. As far as sheep go, she saw some once and couldn't have cared less! :D Timid or shy was soooooo far from the truth with her!!! Hah, my girl would try to attack trees on the boulevard when we went for walks. She'd walk up to any dog, and was the dominant of our four leggeds despite being the smallest. She also was not a yapper. What can I say, I got a rare sheltie! :D

Do your reading on the breed before getting too far into it. They do need regular grooming, and solid socializing! But even amongst the breed there will be variants in personality and drive. When I selected Calypso from her litter she was mid-temperment, meaning she was not the most dominant nor was she the most submissive. She fell right in the middle and now that she's gone I miss my beloved Don Qui-lypso, the chaser of windmills! One thing is for sure... be ready to for some fairly unusual training conundrums with a sheltie, they can get quite creative! Calypso had a passion for chewing the corners off my drawings I hung on the wall with tape in my bedroom. ;) That was a real 'work of art' trying to get her to stop doing that!

[Isargle]

Sorry to hear about your loss, she sounded like a great dog.:(

[Draco]

She was 1 in a million. And at 12 going on 13, she lived a good long life. Every dog has it's own unique qualities even within the breed.

[agilityk9trainer]

I previously owned a sheltie, Calypso was a non-working pet sheltie. As far as sheep go, she saw some once and couldn't have cared less! :D Timid or shy was soooooo far from the truth with her!!! Hah, my girl would try to attack trees on the boulevard when we went for walks.

A point of note. When I said "working" sheltie, I did not mean herding. I have a very high drive sheltie who couldn't care squat about lifestock. But agility. He lives for it. He's my MACH (Master Agility Champion) dog listed below.

So getting a working sheltie does not always mean herding. It means a dog who needs a job. :)

[Draco]

LOL! And by 'non-working' I meant a city dwelling, indoor dog who was content with a walk and chasing trees for exercise. :D She wasn't for herding, agility, fetching... none of that struck her fancy. My Border Collie on the other hand is Disc Dog or Fly Ball material. ;) But Calypso was happy to be a four pawed afghan as a profession. :D

[agilityk9trainer]

She sounds like she was a lovely dog. :) A great pet sheltie. :)

[Draco]

She sounds like she was a lovely dog. :) A great pet sheltie. :)

Now THAT she was. :) But Aslan would have spun circles around her. I am fortunate to have gotten a Sheltie without the 'shy' issue that plague so many that I see listed in the local rescue group. I feel sorry for those dogs, to go through life handshy and skittish at the drop of a hat. So many people have no idea how to work with them and just give up.

[agilityk9trainer]

You are so right. Your girl sounds very special, and I bet I would have loved meeting her. I've worked with several of the shy shelties. You can do a lot with them with the right training, but the owners have to be eduated and willing to work with their dogs.

[Draco]

... but the owners have to be eduated and willing to work with their dogs.

Amen to that for just about dog out there! The key to raising a well-adjusted dog is to work with their natural qualities using consistent training... Calypso wasn't a herding dog, but she simply adored being a hiking companion. She wasn't really thrilled with fetching, but Ashenpaw my Border Collie is obsessed with fetching! In fact, we've used a tennis ball as a reward for him over a biscuit! :D It's all in finding the dog's niche and working with it, not against it. :p

[April]

What state are you in?

[Isargle]

South Australia.