Australian Cattle Dogs :: Scrubby Creek ACDs

ACD Breed History
In the early days of colonisation in Australia, the first settlers, having limited availability of labour to control the large herds of cattle that grazed on unfenced properties and rugged bushland, set about to create a breed of dog to assist in mustering and moving wild cattle.		Droving Cattle in Australia
The principal requirement of this breed of dog was that it be strong, possess great stamina, and be able to bite. Initially, the cattlemen used a bob-tailed dog with a heavy coat, black in colour, with white markings around the neck extending down the front, and big hanging ears. It had an awkward cumbersome gait, was unable to cope with the heat, and barked too much. This dog was commonly known as the Smithfield.
Smithfield Markets	The name came from the Smithfield Markets of London, which were once the largest live meat market in the world. Dogs of all sizes, shapes, dispositions, types or breeds , were born at , or resided at, Smithfield Markets, and because of their association with the markets they were all called Smithfield dogs. It is variously recorded that not all the larger Smithfield dogs were suitable for working cattle . Those that came to the colony are described by Robert Kaleski as: "...a big rough-coated, square-bodied dog, with a head like a wedge, a white frill round the neck, and saddle-flap ears; he got over the ground like a native bear. Faithful enough, handy, and sensible; but he couldn't stand the heat and long trips. Besides, he bit like an alligator, and barked like a consumptive. The other faults were bad, but the last was a finisher. How could a man borrow any of his neighbours cattle with an advertisement like that..." Smithfield: An old type of English stockdog, often used as a dover's dog, the name being associated with the Smithfield livestock market in London. It was generally stocky in build, shaggy-coated, drop-eared, often bobtailed, and as a working dog had a tendency to bark and grip. The name is still used for a strain of working dog in Australia; these are strong, close workers, varying in color, with medium-long or shaggy (beardie type) coats. Old Type English Shepherd's Dog (circa 1790)
In 1830, a cattleman by the name of Timmins of the Bathurst area of New South Wales crossed the Smithfield with the native dog , the Dingo The dingo was probably introduced to Australia when the Aborigines arrived. Even though it is not a native animal, this member of the dog family has been a part of the Australian ecosystem for 3,000 to 4,000 years.
Dingos and sheep ranchers are in conflict as the dingos try to take sheep. To protect livestock, the Australian government built a 5,000 km (3000 mi) long dingo fence. The fence is nearly 2 meters (6 ft.) high and extends about 30 cm underground to keep the dingos from digging under it. The dingo does play an important role in the Australian ecosystem. They help keep the wild rabbit population in balance. This in turn helps to keep the native vegetation from being over-grazed.
The Fence indicated by the Red Line
At almost twice the length of the Great Wall of China, the Dingo Fence is the longest man-made fence in the world - built to control the spread of wild dingos into inland farming areas
Stumpy-Tailed Cattle Dog "Ch Daisell Eli" Royal Adelaide Agricultural Show 1993 - Best of Breed	The progeny were red bob-tailed dogs known as Timmins biters. They were silent workers though very severe heelers. These dogs were the early ancestors of the Stumpy-Tailed Cattle Dog,which is an entirely separate breed and not just an Australian Cattle Dog with its tail cut off.
	CH. WOODGLEN FIRE TAIL Best of Breed Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog
Smooth Coated Collie	In 1840, a landowner by the name of Thomas Hall of Muswellbrook in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales imported two smooth-haired blue merle Scotch Collies called at that time by the ignorant people Welsh Heelers. These were considerably better than the common collie, but still had some of the heading traits that were undesirable. Hall crossed the progeny of this pair with the Dingo; the resulting litters became known as Hall's Heelers. Thomas Simpson HALL was born on 19 Aug 1808 in Portland Head, NSW. He died on 28 May 1870 in Dartbrook, NSW. Thomas married Ann MCGINNIS, daughter of George MCGINNIS and Ann CUSLEY, on 1 Jul 1835 in Wilberforce.	Smooth-haired Blue MerleCollies
(circa 1800)
It is broadly believed that the Koolie's foundations are from the smooth coated Collie. Records show that a Mr. Thomas Simpson Hall from the Hunter Valley imported a pair of smooth coated Collie's in the 1840's. Reference to the Koolie breed can be found in many books which cover the Australian working dogs, such as "The Complete book of Australian Dogs" by "Angela Sanderson", "The Border Collie in Australasia" by Peidje Vidler and "Dogs of Australia" by Mr.J.Beilby just to name a few. Beilby mentions in his book that as early as 1896 that blue merle Collie's in Australia were known as German Coolie's. Mr Robert Kaleski in 1911 who was a major force behind the formation of the Australian Cattle Dog was quoted as saying that at this time there are many varieties of working dogs one particular one called the Welsh Heeler or Merle is commonly referred to as the German Coolie.
As the Dingo trait is to creep silently from behind and bite, the pups followed this style of heeling and were welcomed by grazier and drover alike for their ability to handle wild cattle, their stamina to travel great distances over all types of terrain, and their endurance in extremes of temperature. The progeny were generally of Dingo type, colour being either red or blue merle. Hall continued his experimental breeding until his death in 1870. Around this time there were landowners who experimented with the crossing of the Dingo and Collie. George Elliot of Queensland produced some excellent workers, entering into his diary on the 12th of February 1873 that his two month old quarter Dingo worked so silently on cattle, he called her "Munya", which is aboriginal for silent.
Black and Tan Kelpie	In the early 1870's a butcher named Alex Davis proudly displayed the ability of a pair of Hall's Heelers at the cattle saleyards in Sydney. Two brothers, Jack and Harry Bagust of Canterbury in Sydney, were among several cattlemen to purchase pups from Davis. They then set about to improve them. Firstly, they crossed a bitch with a fine imported Dalmatian dog. This cross changed the merle colour to red or blue speckle. As with Dalmatians, the pups are born white, developing their colour gradually from approximately three weeks of age. The main purpose of this cross was to instil in the dogs a love of horses and protectiveness toward master and property. Unfortunately, some of the working ability was lost with this cross, so, after admiring this ability in the Black and Tan Kelpie, the Bagust brothers crossed the Kelpie with their speckled dogs. This produced highly intelligent, controllable workers, built like thick set Dingoes and with peculiar markings known to no other dog. Through selective breeding, these dogs became the forebears of the present day Australian Cattle Dog.
A Barb "Bangle's Son" The 'Barb', named after a famous Australian racehorse. ("The Barb" won the Melbourne Cup in 1866) This dog introduced Rutherford blood to the Kelpie line. Sired by Tully's Moss, (Yarrawonga Clyde x Lassie ), The dam was Sally, ( Grand daughter to Brutus and Jenny). Barb was a solid looking all black dog and gained a reputation as a strong forcing type dog. His offspring were referred to as Barbs and they became established as a separate strain of Kelpies for a number of years. Even today, although there are no true Barbs left, many people still refer to a black Kelpie as a Barb.	There have been 'discussions` over the years that the Bull Terrier was used in the initial setting of the type. There is probably food for argument here as there are often dogs today with obvious Bull Terrier fronts,hardly any "stop",heavy jaws and rabbit ears appearing from well-established lines. The Barb, a black sheepdog, was another infusion that was not successful, mainly because the Barb, a good header, could not handle wild cattle. Early attempts to produce cattle dogs included a Russian Poodle - Collie cross; a Bull Terrier - Collie cross; and the Kangaroo Dog - Bull Terrier cross, none of which proved successful for one reason or another. Kangaroo Dog
In 1893, Mr. Robert Kaleski took particular interest in this breed, developing and stabilising it, and drawing up a standard of the breed. This standard was endorsed initially by the Cattle and Sheepdog Club of Australia, then the Kennel Club of New South Wales in 1903. Kaleski's standard has been expanded over the years, but the essence of it is still very much a part of the official standard approved and adopted by the Australian National Kennel Council in 1963. Coincidental with the writing of Kaleski's standard, the breed's name became official as the Australian Cattle Dog, commonly known and the Blue Heeler, the Australian Heeler, or the Queensland Blue. From these unique beginnings the Australian Cattle Dog has developed into one of the most popular breeds of dog in Australia today.		Robert Kaleski and "Stanmore Ruby"