The Shetland Sheepdog (or Sheltie) is a breed of dog, originally bred to be small sheep dogs ideally suited for the terrain of the Shetland Islands. They resemble a rough Collie in miniature and have been crossed from time to time with the rough Collie

The Sheltie or Shetland Sheepdog came from the Shetland Islands off the coast of Scotland. Unlike many miniature breeds that resemble their larger counterparts, this breed was not developed by selectively breeding the Rough Collie for smaller and smaller sizes. Rather, it is the result of the intermingling of Border Collies and possibly several other herding breeds over the past several centuries

Shelties have a double coat consisting of long guard hairs covering a fluffy insulative undercoat.

Several coat colors exist. There are three main acceptable show colors, sable (ranging from golden through mahogany), tricolor (black, white, and tan) and blue merle (grey, white, black, and tan). Bi-Blues (grey, black, and some white) and bi-blacks (white and black) are less common but still acceptable.

The best-known color is the sable, which is dominant over other colors. Shaded, or mahogany, sables can sometimes be mistaken for tricolored Shelties due to the large amount of dark shading on their coats. Another acceptable color in the show ring, but much less seen, is the sable merle, which can often be hard to distinguish from regular sables after puppyhood. Double merles, the product of breeding two merle Shelties together, can be bred but have a higher incidence of deafness or blindness than the other coat colors. There are few additional coat colors that are quite rare because they are unacceptable in the breed standard, such as color-headed white (majority of fur white, with the head ‘normally’ marked). There have been reports of a brindle Sheltie but many Sheltie enthusiasts agree that a cross sometime in the ancestry of that specific Sheltie could have produced a brindle coat.

Sizes of Shetland Sheepdogs differ from country to country, with the United States of America having a wide size range of 13-16 inches (at the withers), and the UK with an ideal of 14-15 inches. However, due to the number of large, but excellent, Shelties far back in the ancestry of many of the breed, a rather large number are oversize (17+ inches, over 25 pounds) and thus are throwbacks to earlier generations.

The Shetland Sheepdog is an outstanding companion dog and is intensely loyal, with a delightful temperament. It is lively, intelligent, trainable, and willing to please and obey. Shelties are loving, loyal, and affectionate with their family, but are naturally aloof with strangers and might not appreciate being petted by someone they do not know; for this reason Shelties must be socialized extensively. Most Shelties, if encouraged, will warm up to strangers if given time. Some can be quite reserved and some have varying degrees of shyness. Although they are excellent family pets, Shelties do especially well with children if they are raised with them from an early age; however, their small size makes it easy for a child to accidentally injure them, so supervision is necessary.

Unlike some dog breeds, males and females make equally good pets. The main difference is that males tend to have more impressive coats, and unspayed females will ‘blow’ coat after every heat cycle.

The herding instinct is still strong in many Shelties. They love to chase things, including squirrels, ducks, bichons (a type of little white dog that resembles a sheep), and children, and when people are milling around the yard, Shelties sometimes try to “herd” the people into a group by running around, barking, and nipping at heels. This tendency appears most when children run around the yard in a group.

Shelties usually love to play. They do best with a sensitive, yet firm, owner. The Sheltie is, above all, an intelligent herder and likes to be kept busy, although their activity level usually coincides with their owner’s level.

Like the Rough Collie, there is a tendency toward inherited malformation and disease of the eyes. Each individual puppy should have his eyes examined by a qualified veterinary ophthalmologist. Some lines may be prone to hypothyroidism, epilepsy, or skin allergies.

As with all dog breeds, diet should be monitered and adjusted as needed as many nonworking Shelties can overeat and easily become obese.

Although its coat might appear to be a time-consuming task, a once-weekly, but thorough, brushing is all that is needed, though more frequent groomings will contribute to a beautiful and tidy coat. Shelties ‘blow’ coat usually twice a year, often at spring and fall, and should be groomed more often at those times.

Written by: Kevin Hart