March 2025

Autumn. We’re all hoping “cyclone” Albert/Alfred brings a good dump of rain this week, but past experience says it’s unlikely…hard to guess with such unseasonal weather over most of the country so fingers Xd for some rain with the wind.  It’s very dry after a super lush start to summer. Many are harvesting early sown sorghum crops while later ones are battling, but it seems to be the most favoured crop. A few paddocks of sunflowers, some Faba beans, and even one cotton crop where it’s never been grown before. The patches of some sort of irrigated vegetables make this photo more interesting, but it’s mainly the rust red sorghum crops that stand out…the view as I head home from Nobby, a yellowy ripening sorghum crop next to the road.

March 1 was a day I won’t forget in a hurry. I was letting the dogs out and McKenzie got her foot caught in the wooden slats next to the wall. I caught her and lifted her back, she was super good, no biting or yelling. I had to turn her to pull the foot out and when she jumped out she couldn’t stand. Several vets were booked up, I should have rung Pittsworth first. They did some excellent X-rays which showed everything normal so far as could be seen, but she’s paralysed in her hind legs as I write this. So I got her home and settled, went to run more dogs and found the two young bitches I’d left out(I don’t even remember going back to do it, I usually leave them in when I’m away!) had a dead brown snake in front of their kennels, minus its head!! 

 

 McKenzie with Naka.

They looked fine and the snake looked a bit dried out with ants on it, but as Libby’s in pup I thought it best to get them both checked_ so back to Pittsworth. Lovely young vet, super nice about being called in, she was so good. They’ve had a lot of snake bite cases this year and their toxicology is well used and understood. The advice is to give 2 doses of anti venine now to dogs with high results. I got home around 8pm and fed up in the dark. Tonight Kenz managed to get her back feet under her and stand! Very briefly. She couldn’t resist some fresh roo meat. Adam Russell our dog physio kindly called in just after that with some magic to rub over her hips and had a good feel. He’s hopeful she’ll come good. So a lot more positivity around than this morning.

When something like this happens you begin thinking about what the bitch or dog has left as a legacy. We have two really nice young bitches from Kenz, GracieH(x Eventine Ralph) and McCoy x Karmala Sid. The later is very cute, I took these photos this week.

 

Only a week until Gossip and Speedy are due to whelp. Not sure if Min is in pup yet, if she is it will be a single. There’s absolutely no doubt about old Gossip who’s in pup to Barney.

I went down to Trangie to collect her from Di and Lynnton Martin and when I drove in she came straight up to me and wanted to get in the ute!! It was nice to catch up with a couple of other dogs that had been up with me, Cassie was delighted to see me, and Barney came up for a long pat. Lynnton has mentioned Digby as being his toughest dog but I hadn’t seen him work, so it was a very pleasant surprise when he cast out around Lynnton’s Aussie White killer mob. He’s 9 and moves like a younger dog, is very fit and has some  style…and has a strong nose bite. Lynnton has been reluctant to use him on his clients’ sheep for that reason, but it has proved very handy on cattle.

 

I’d forgotten all about him. He has a bit of history…his sire, Karmala Clyde was in the litter from Spice by Driftwood Clyde. At that time I didn’t have a bitch to mate him to, and he went down to Bill Scott for some work and stud duties. He finished up working for Peter Whiteman at Mt Margaret, and when Peter tragically died in a plane crash he was passed on to one of his employees, Brad Cavanagh. I sold Karmala Win(R.Glide x Karra Gift IV) to Brad and when she was older he asked if I’d like her back and I asked him to try her to Clyde. She had two dog pups and Quota morphed into Digby! So this opportunity to go back to a good chunk of Driftwood Clyde is a nice surprise. I’m hoping to mate Vamp to him and boost that family which has little Wills blood. Quite a bit of similarity between Digby(L) and grandpa  Driftwood Clyde, both old dogs here.

                  

I’m always surprised by how quickly my pups become “civilised” so quickly when handled on their own. I keep an eye on them and if there’s a pup that’s a bit shy I spend more time with it, but I haven’t had any in these last litters. They’re very happy, confident pups. The Jack x Sun ones that are just leaving home recently are super sensible, and one of the Sid x McKenzie boys, McDuff, had a long trek up to Nhulunbuy and arrived happy as! I asked Mary to put a label on his crate saying DON’T FEED because he overnighted in Darwin and I was having nightmares about what he’d look like if he got his first big feed of kibble there. Instead I got a photo of him hopping into a buffalo bone! Click on the 17 to see his new bestie( apart from Mitch)!

17 

I’ve been hearing stories about the ‘southern’ kelpies for some time and this short report from a client was very interesting. I haven’t been game to put it on my FBook page yet!

“Things down here are getting interesting. With the wool prices the way that they are there is very little confidence around. Merino people are going hard on their culling and offloading any excess stock. Most farmers who have cross bred sheep and composites are selling and if they still want to produce prime lambs are going for shedding breeds and ‘ nudies’- Aussie whites, meat masters ect. Work this year will be varied, crutching trailer, more shed work and I’ll probably do more classing. A lot less mustering and processing. 

On the dog front, there is a lot of rubbish being bred, mainly by the weekend yard trialers and farmers who should concentrate on farming. But they all run to any market that they think they can make money out of. 

Stamina is a big issue. 

Just my opinion 😂”

I asked another friend in SW Vic. why dogs were making such huge prices at auction and his reply was “maybe they’re cheaper than young staff!” He also says stamina is a big problem. No wonder when the parents spend a fair bit of time riding bikes! Our stud dogs are tested for stamina before being mated, the heat and humidity make it essential. The couple that haven’t made it are perfectly fine working in cooler country.

Many people think they can’t train dogs, either, another reason for buying a trained dog. Well it depends on the dog! A pup with a lot of natural ability isn’t a problem once you get a call and stop. I’ve recently met a young fellow who loves Kelpies and is doing a great job with a couple of older pups I ran on and then decided not to keep. He’s entered them both in a yard trial this weekend, one of them after only a few weeks’ training from scratch! 

The size of a lot of kelpies is also a major worry and I’m getting a lot of feed back re short legs and grown dogs the size of my pups. While so much inbreeding of ‘yardy’ lines continues and generations are raised on kibble you have to wonder where we’re headed! No fear of short legs here anyway using these sires!

From top…Black Jack, Snooker and Sid

 

Snooker came for the ride down to Trangie and was delighted to find Lynnton’s bike…he’s still there, thanks Lynnton! Hoping for some nice pups from him this month.

     

Time to feed up…again. If you breed ’em you have to feed ’em! I’ve had a few ask about the full text of this article so will post it here again. Well worth a read.

I just read this excellent piece on Facebook….posted by That Dog School. Those of you who work Kelpies and visit this blog regularly can skip it of course!

BUT…if you are wondering about asking me about getting a pup as a pet, please read all of it… I already have a very brief version on my Puppies for Sale page. This lady knows what she’s talking about. 

𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗞𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗣𝗲𝘁𝘀 ~ 𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤
📺 The recent release of the ABC tv series Muster Dogs, has placed a spotlight on an iconic Australian breed – the Kelpie.
🐕 If we have learnt anything from past film releases such as 101 Dalmatians, Eight Below, and Max, it is that the A list breed is about to get a real popularity boost in the eyes of the pet loving public
These shows and films utilise dogs that are either:
✅ Animated
✅ Mature aged and already very highly trained
✅ Young and under the training of a highly experienced handler
🤫 Unfortunately, clever editing, a feel good story line, and the general public’s love of dogs can blind a lot of people to the actual reality of living with the breed of dog in question.
😎 There is so much to love about the Kelpie, beyond their obvious athletic good looks.
➡️ As an owner of two Kelpies, I’m here to point out what’s good about them, what’s bad about them, and deliver a healthy dose of reality as to why these dogs are not for everyone.
𝘼𝙣 𝙄𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣
☝️The first thing I want to bring to your attention if you don’t already know, is that there are actually 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘺𝘱𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘒𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘪𝘦.
🐕 The Kelpies in Muster Dogs are what we refer to as 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝒊𝒏𝒆.
🇦🇺 The Working Kelpie is bred to work stock animals in the harsh and varied terrain of Australia.
✌️The second type of Kelpie is the 𝑩𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒓 𝑺𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝑳𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑲𝒆𝒍𝒑𝒊𝒆.
🐩 These dogs are shown in conformation competitions and are bred primarily for their appearance rather than any kind of work ability.
Think Koko from the movie Red Dog.
📏 Bench Kelpies are smaller in stature than the Working Kelpie. They are generally only found in solid black or red colouration, and, while still active, they are a little less relentlessly athletic than their working cousins.
🏃‍♀️ If you are not a staunch Working Kelpie connoisseur, a show Kelpie can make a really fun suburban pet for someone that just wants a nice compact dog to run and be active with.
🤓 The remainder of this post will be focusing on the Working Line Kelpie.
💭 My love affair with the Kelpie began when I was 12 years old.
📕 I was gifted a copy of the book Red Dog, and I was so seduced by the story of this Australian legend that I knew one day I would have a Kelpie of my own.
🗓 That one day was 10 years later, when I got my first Kelpie.
At the time I knew next to nothing about the right questions to ask, and was just excited to finally be making my dream come true.
🤕 I’d always read how hardy the breed is, and had no idea that these dogs could come with some pretty significant health issues.
What a hard learnt lesson that was.
🩺 Dog breeds more commonly recognised and bred to be pets are more likely to have stringent health standards that good breeders stick to.
They will test parents and resulting litters for various breed specific genetically inherited diseases.
🧬 The country working dog world has been a little slower on the uptake of genetic health testing.
😔 I just so happened to have the misfortune of buying from one such breeder.
I love my dog and wouldn’t trade him for the world, but at a relatively young age he was diagnosed with both Epilepsy and Hip Dysplasia.
👩‍⚕️ Prior to Hamlet’s diagnosis, I had no idea just how commonly these conditions occurred in Working Kelpies.
💪These dogs are tough! They are incredibly driven to work, and this drive will often cause them to mask the pain of serious underlying health issues.
🏥 It is easy for a stock dog breeder to believe that their breeding dogs are completely healthy, simply based on the fact that the dog does not show obvious signs of physical distress while working.
💰 If purchasing one of these dogs, I recommend asking your breeder about their stance on health testing, specifically probing into the health history of the potential parents of your puppy.
𝗖𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗿
👤 No one knows these dogs better than the person that lives and works with them day in and day out.
Working dogs breeders can vary hugely in the requirements they set for their own personal dogs. This will depend on things like the stock they work and the terrain they work on, this then drives the outcomes of their breedings.
👏 You 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕 be honest and upfront about your capabilities.
Don’t lie about your past dog experience and don’t lie about your living circumstances.
Tell your breeder:
✅ What you are looking for in a dog – helpful hint: this should not include your preferred coat colour.
✅ The other people and animals the dog will be expected to live with.
✅ The future purpose you have for it – hobby herder/agility/jogging companion/family pet etc.
✅ The amount of time and effort you envision being able to devote to the dog.
❓You should also ask them a bit about their standards. What factors they are breeding for in terms of working behaviour, temperament, sociability etc.
🐕➕🐕 A highly skilled working father paired with a highly skilled working mother does not immediately equal an entire litter of highly skilled puppies.
ℹ️ If you are honest with the breeder, they will be able to identify the puppies in a litter (if any) with average potential for work, and they may be able to accomodate your request for a sport dog or active family companion.
🔜 However, don’t expect this to happen immediately and don’t be offended if they plainly tell you no.
🤷‍♀️ Some people just do not have the current means or motivation to really provide for a working dog.
If a breeder feels you are not a good fit for the dogs they are producing, don’t take it personally.
🙏 Be grateful they are honest, because they could just take your money.
𝗚𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗰𝘂𝗲
🥇Kelpies are hugely popular even without the influence of shows like Muster Dogs.
Go to any local shelter or look up private rescue groups on Facebook and they are a dime a dozen.
☑️ Getting a Kelpie through rescue is always best done with a specialist organisation.
Places like Dogs4Jobs or Australian Working Dog Rescue are operated by very knowledgeable people who specialise in herding type dogs.
🏡 They will often find themselves taking in failed working dogs that couldn’t meet the requirements of working life on the farm.
These organisations will be able to more accurately assess the dogs in their care to be placed in the most compatible homes.
🐶 If you are a pet person in love with the Working Kelpie, this could be a good avenue for you.
𝙄𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙮𝙥𝙚 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙉𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙧𝙮
🙄 At this point I can almost hear peoples eyes rolling in their heads.
“ 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑛 𝐽𝑢𝑙𝑖𝑎, 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑠𝑒𝑒𝑚𝑠 𝑎 𝑏𝑖𝑡 𝑒𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑑𝑜𝑔. 𝐼’𝑣𝑒 𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑑𝑜𝑔𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒.”
🛋 There are the people who will say “I had a Kelpie for x amount of years and it was a lazy couch potato”.
📖 Breed standards exist for a reason, but yes, there will be the odd exception to the rule. That is no excuse to dive in blind because the dog you saw on tv was so amazing.
🤔 Taking on the responsibility of any animal is a significant commitment that should be considered carefully.
𝙇𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙆𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙞𝙚𝙨.
1️⃣ 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶.
💥 These dogs are bred to have grit and determination like no other.
Boy do they love a challenge!
🙃 It is a long, painful, and often fruitless experience to force a Kelpie to behave the way you want them to.
💡 You must get really good at understanding what motivates your dog, and then manufacturing training scenarios in which your Kelpie thinks the behaviour was their idea in the first place.
2️⃣ 𝘗𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘦𝘹𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥.
🙅‍♀️ A common misconception about working breeds is that they need heaps of exercise. Sure it has its place in a well adjusted dog, but it is not the be all and end all.
👉 Barking? Digging in the garden? Escaping the yard?
It just needs more exercise.
❗️Wrong!
Mental fatigue is so important for these dogs.
💤 If all you do is condition your kelpie to exercise, as the dog matures it becomes more and more difficult to tire it.
The dog is constantly switched on and seeking the next thing to do.
🧘‍♀️ For any dog, but especially our working Kelpies, we should be spending time early on teaching them how to switch off and cope with periods of boredom.
3️⃣ 𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨.
👉 There will be exceptions to every rule, but it is normal for Working Kelpies to bark 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵!
⚠️ This can be made exponentially worse when we factor in their high sensitivity to novelty.
🛹 Alert barking is not something you will erase completely. However, it goes a long way to spend plenty of time familiarising your dog in a positive way with new and novel experiences while they are young.
🏙 Teaching them how to be resilient in an ever changing suburban environment will reduce some of the hysteria they might otherwise develop if they feel the need to notify you of every dropping leaf and walking dog in the neighbourhood.
4️⃣ 𝘋𝘰𝘨 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥.
😅 Ok, so it’s no secret that I have long hated dog parks. I don’t recommend them to anybody.
For Working Kelpies this is especially the case.
👮‍♀️ Working dogs thrive on order and control. They are bred to identify disorder in an environment and bring it under wraps.
👀 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒎𝒊𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒓𝒔.
🤪 Anyone who has been to a dog park will know it is hardly an orderly place.
🐑 For a purpose bred Working Kelpie, this becomes the perfect opportunity to tap into its unfulfilled herding instincts and work the other dogs around it.
💁‍♀️ This is incredibly satisfying for them, and it is often not discouraged by the humans around because “he’s just doing what a herding dog does”.
🤯 When given free reign to “play” this way, with no control or parameters set by the handler, they quickly begin to experience frustration when they go walking on the lead and see dogs on the street that are out of their sphere of influence.
🌋 When the leash blocks their access to their usual source of fun, the frustration and arousal can become a frightening combination that leads to many troubling behaviours directed at these other dogs.
4️⃣ 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬.
🥰 If you want a dog that will naturally fawn all over you, look elsewhere.
🙌 A bond with one of these dogs is incredibly rewarding, but it does not come cheap.
They have enough of an independent streak, that they will happily satisfy themselves elsewhere if you are not investing in them.
💟 I’m a dog trainer and have been a general Working Kelpie enthusiast for many years.
I knew full well what to expect by the time I added my second Kelpie to the mix (thanks Clermont Kelpies).
😅 Still, they test me on a personal and professional level every day and I love the challenge, but some days even I just want to pull my hair out.
❤️‍🔥 They have certainly made me a better dog handler, but they are not for the faint of heart.
👨‍👩‍👧 If you’re a normal suburban pet dog owner who has their heart set on a Kelpie and nothing will dissuade you, where to from here?
⭐️ Understand that a 𝒑𝒖𝒓𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒅 Working Kelpie, the likes of which you see on Muster Dogs, is there to fill a highly specific need.
These dogs carry their working ability in their very genes and pass these traits on to their offspring.
💯 In my opinion, at the end of the day very few of these dogs actually make suitable suburban pets, and that is just the honest truth.
⭐️ Do some reading up on Bench versus Working Kelpies. Consider whether one may be better suited to your lifestyle than the other.
⭐️ Look into reputable breeders and/or responsible rescue organisations.
⭐️ Listen to the professionals around you. Take your time and don’t insist on taking home the first dog/puppy you meet.
⭐️ Invest in training straight away.
Whether you are taking on a puppy or a mature aged dog, herding breeds have behavioural quirks and physical/mental needs that require understanding.
Get in touch with a qualified dog trainer to help you get off on the right foot with your new dog.

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