Does anyone out there breed sheepdogs? I am doing some research aboutdifferent kinds of dogs before I get one. I have not seen a sheepdog since I was a kid and I am wondering if there are any around and how much and what are they known for etc. Thanks

-- Evelyn B (peontoo@yahoo.com), October 31, 2000

Answers

Evelyn, Cindy in KY has a little of Border Collie pups right now, and there are a couple of litters of American Working Farmcollies available or soon to be available: go to

http://www.geocities.com/farmcollie1/index.html

Other people on the list have or are raising Australian Shepherds, Blue Heelers, possibly a few Shelties or Kelpies or McNab's out there. You can do web searches on all these breeds and come up with a wealth of information. Prices usually aren't too high, unless you are looking at trial or show animals, then they can go through the roof. What exactly do you need your animals for? How much work, how much land, do you need them to protect the stock, protect you, etc.? All these things need to be taken into consideration. Hope you find what you are looking for!

-- Kathleen Sanderson (stonycft@worldpath.net), November 01, 2000.

I think Cindy has all boys .Kathleen have you gotton a pup yet ? I have found one but a couple of things have come up so hopefully soon .

-- Patty (fodfarms@slic.com), November 01, 2000.

Patty, yes, we have a male American Working Farmcollie pup coming the 20th of Nov. I'm anxious to see him!!

-- Kathleen Sanderson (stonycft@worldpath.net), November 01, 2000.

Any pictures you can send me ? Thats great !

-- Patty (fodfarms@slic.com), November 01, 2000.

I have Australian shepherds. They are a great all-around dog for the homestead. My female is the official guard of the pullets, as she keeps the racoons at bay. We appreciate that they are workers, but also enjoy coming inside to sit by the fire. Some sheepdog breeds are so fixated on the livestock that they aren't really interested in a good long walk in the woods or a game of frisbee. Not the case with the Aussies. I also enjoy that you never know what the puppies are going to look like-merle, tri-color, blue, black, red, blue or amber eyes, etc.

-- melina b. (goatgalmjb1@hotmail.com), November 01, 2000.

Maybe anyone who responds to this should say if they have pups or are going to be having pups.

-- Patty (fodfarms@slic.com), November 01, 2000.

Patty were you able to get a ride for the pup?

-- renee oneill (oneillsr@home.com), November 01, 2000.

I have had my end all set , it's the breeder and I'm starting to get worried .The dog has a nice pedigree but i'm starting to get nervice about sending money to someone I don't know and waiting to get the puppy site unseen .To top it off it's been 3 days since we spoke and have no clue when she plans on going to the airport .I may back out and start my search over.Sorry to go on on your thread Eveyln .Maybe you could learn something from my goof ups .

-- Patty (fodfarms@slic.com), November 01, 2000.

There's a farm collie email list, http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Valley/5755/list.html

I think there might be a problem with it at this time though. I haven't gotten an email from it for about a week. I just sent an inquiry, so don't know the answer yet.

-- Joy Froelich (dragnfly@chorus.net), November 02, 2000.

What kind of sheepdog? The big ones like on "Please don't eat the Daiseys?"

-- Cindy in Ky (solidrockranch@msn.com), November 02, 2000.

Evelyn, I have American Working Farmcollies. We bred our first litter this summer and I've been very pleased with how the pups have turned out. They are truly an all-around dog. They will herd, guard their territory and stock, rid your place of varmints and be a wonderful companion. The list referred to above is a great place to learn more both about the breed and who might have pups. I think Joy might be right though about the site having trouble. I haven't gotten my e- mails either. I don't know what your needs are but an AWF might fit the bill. As an aside, if anyone is looking for an older pup (5 mo) I have a female available. She came back to us recently as her owners were having problems with their two pups getting along. She's a nice girl, no major problems just some work needed on manners which is coming along nicely. If anyone is interested in her or the breed feel free to e-mail me directly. I love talking about these dogs!

-- Amy Dorsch (gshep@aeroinc.net), November 02, 2000.

Here is a link to a page that has info and pictures of our dogs.

www.geocities.com/farmcollie1/gdshep.html

I know others have similar pages on their dogs.

-- Amy Dorsch (gdshep@aeroinc.net), November 02, 2000.

Do go to the site for the farm dog list, though. All the archives are there to be read, even if the list is currently down, and there is a LOT of information to wade through. Many of the posts have links to look at pics of various dogs. It's fun!

-- Joy Froelich (dragnfly@chorus.net), November 02, 2000.

I am the moderator for the farmdog list. It is not down AFAIK, just no traffic. Go to:

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Valley/5755/farmdog.html

Read the introductions and post one of your own!

Elaine Reynolds

-- Elaine Reynolds (horses@newmex.com), November 03, 2000.

Evelyn, I tried to reply to your note but it would not go thru. Put 'Old English Sheepdog' in a search engine, and lots will come up. Have fun reading.

-- Cindy in Ky (solidrockranch@msn.com), November 06, 2000.

Do Old English Sheepdogs still work, or are they another of the breeds shot down by showing?

-- Kathleen Sanderson (stonycft@worldpath.net), November 06, 2000.

Kathleen, I'm sure there are some breeders who held on to the working lines. There usually are, you just have to look harder. There was alot of sites for the dogs. This internet is so neat, I am still amazed at the info out there. My pups had their first 'meal' yesterday! 4 weeks now. They are doing fine.

-- Cindy in Ky (solidrockranch@msn.com), November 08, 2000.