Herding

The Belgian Sheepdog is an elegant, square-proportioned dog that is alert and agile with proud carriage. This breed’s bone is moderately heavy. For dogs expected to herd for long hours, their gait is smooth, tireless, and effortless rather than driving. They have a tendency to move in a circle rather than a straight line. They have an extremely dense undercoat along with an outer coat of abundant guard hairs that are long, well-fitting, and straight. The texture should be medium-harsh, not silky, for protection. The undercoat is extremely dense in cold weather for insulation.

The Aussiedoodle is an active and intelligent mixed-breed dog with Australian Shepherd and Poodle parents. Often called a “designer breed”, “Aussiedoodle” is not really an actual breed designation.

Confident with a sense of purpose, the English Shepherd is a true all-purpose working breed. This well-balanced medium-size dog is built for speed and agility, and his supreme intelligence makes him relatively easy to train. The English Shepherd’s keen herding ability, coupled with agility, stamina and perseverance, positions him as an excellent herding dog. He also is valued for his tracking, hunting and treeing abilities, and has the intelligence, athleticism and easy trainability needed to excel at obedience and agility.

The Dutch Shepherd resembles the Belgian Shepherd Dog in coat type and physical characteristics, sans color. His original herding abilities still intact, the Dutch Shepherd is lively, energetic and active with plenty of stamina, reflected in his physical appearance: his body is medium-sized, powerful and well-muscled and is slightly longer than tall.

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Small but mighty, the Lancashire Heeler a terrier-type working dog. He is sturdily built, his body slightly longer than it is tall, with a medium-to-high energy level. His short, weather-resistant coat can be either black-and-tan or liver-and-tan, and he carries his tail upward in a slight curve. Aside from driving cattle, the Lancashire Heeler is equally adept at hunting rabbit and rats.

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A multi-purpose working dog, the Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog is a moderate breed in all facets: he neither resembles a sighthound nor a bulldog. The Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog has a well-muscled, powerful body that’s medium to large in size and just slightly longer than it is tall with a broad head, short coat, drop ears and undocked tail. He gives the impression of agility and endurance. Contrary to his name, the Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog has many different coat colors and patterns and varied eye colors besides the typical leopard pattern and blue eyes.

Recognized for his corkscrew-curled coat, expressive semi-erect ears and quirky expression, the Pumi is undeniably cute with an affinity for both work and play. This Hungarian herding breed is medium-sized, compact and agile, always on alert and ready for action. Versatile and adaptable, the Pumi is used to herd cattle, sheep and swine, and is equally skilled at gathering, driving and keeping livestock within its boundaries as directed by the shepherd.

The Belgian Shepherd Dog is a majestic yet hardy dog of medium size and good proportion. Versatile and adaptable, he is quick and agile, with the endurance needed to herd flocks of sheep all day, the purpose for which he was originally bred.

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This is a square-proportioned, thick-set dog, combining agility with strength. The compact body of the Old English Sheepdog is broader at the rump than shoulders. A distinguishing characteristic is the topline, which is lower at the withers than the loin. The gait is free and powerful, ground covering, yet gives the appearance of being effortless. The dog may pace or amble at slower speeds. The ambling gait is sometimes described as a “bearlike” roll or shuffle. The coat is profuse, but not excessive.

The Beauceron is not a dog of extremes, but is a solid, balanced dog as befitting a true multipurpose dog ready to do a long day’s work. This breed’s body is powerful yet agile, jaws are strong, and gait is fluid, effortless, and ground covering. The head is not held high when moving, but is lowered to the level of the back, as is typical of herding dogs. The Beauceron’s outer coat is straight, dense, and coarse, of medium length; this, combined with a dense undercoat, offers weather-resistant protection.