Australian Cattle Dogs of many colors

The Australian Cattle Dog, or Blue Heeler, is a fascinating mix of dogs and the topic of much discussion among breeders. Thomas Hall began experimenting in 1840 to create this very loyal and hardy breed. Dingoes, hand-reared by aborigines, were crossed with smooth-coated Collies. Some cattle dogs were bred with Dalmatians, and you can see the spotted coats in many of the cattle dogs. They also have had bull terrier and kelpie blood, but the primary mix is Collie and Australian wild dingo.

The wildness of the dingo may account for that mesmerizing stare in the cattle dog's eye. On working ranches, they can be observed performing incredible feats of courage and proficiency with cattle. Ranchers refer to them as the "wonder dog," uncannily intelligent and rugged, and consider them an incomparable herding dog.

Their dingo heritage extends back thousands of years, as the oldest dingo fossil found so far dates to 3,450 years ago. Aborigines would take young dingoes from the nest and hand-feed them. Socialized by humans at such a young age, they produced a nearly tame dog that would track and hunt with them. Dingoes do not bark, and that silence is seen in the cattle dog today. When Thomas Hall began to experiment in New South Wales, he imported a pair of blue merle smooth-coated highland collies. These were bred with the blood of dingoes and produced that beautiful blue coat sometimes seen in the Australian cattle dog.

The Dalmatian was brought into the mix in an effort to get the dogs to have a better relationship with horses. The Collie-Dingo mix was nipping at horses' heels along with the cattle, an undesired behavior in a herding dog. If you see a newborn cattle dog that is all white, you are looking at the Dalmatian breeding. It will develop its spots and speckles in about three weeks.

Along with the Dalmatian's spots came that breed's devotion and protectiveness. Already a very loyal breed, the Australian cattle dog was improved further by the Dalmatian's sensibility.

This breed is not suitable for a dog you can leave to its own in the back yard. They are devoted to their owner, often a one-person dog, which makes them less suitable for life around children. They do best in a very active life, as they are bred to have a job to do. There is no end to the amount of exercise they want and need. When left alone, they can become very bored and will begin to find something to do - which means something to tear up. If you have a blue heeler who is ripping up everything in sight, you can be assured that she is not getting enough attention and exercise. You will want to spend a great deal of time with them from the start, patiently and firmly training them, and plan to continue this involvement for their entire life.