Australian Australian Kelpies or US Australian Kelpies?

I am having a hard time finding my next performance dog! The sport mix I was going to get, the female never came into heat and she's thinking about delaying the litter until next summer. I want a puppy this summer/fall if at all possible. I thought about getting an ACD but could not for the life of me find a litter that could do performance - and I contacted a load of people who were very nice and very honest about the drive level in AKC ACDs and the expectations I have for my next performance dog in terms of drive. Plus, I want him to get along with my GSD. I basically like strong herding breeds with loads of drive and anywhere from 20-60 lbs. Maybe the fact that I'm not being super picky is making my search more difficult. I also have been contacting the local rescues and shelters and looking for what I want there.

Anyway!

I have gotten ahold of a couple of working Kelpie breeders that sound wonderful! Is there anything I need to worry about getting a Kelpie in the US vs importing one? I am open to importing if need be but it would obviously be cheaper to stick state-side. Also, any breeder recommendations that are just outstanding? Any advice in general? Everything I've read has said that Kelpies are ACDs without the bad attitude and that in general, they are dog friendly or neutral. Sounds perfect, looks fast, powerful, drivey and loves to work. Any info welcome!

You should talk to MeganP. She has a few working bred Kelpies.

Working Kelpie Info

Hey there what would the Kelpie be used in?
I know that you say you would like a dog with lots of drive if you are using the dog for agility getting from working lines probably would not be a good idea, if you are using the dog for sheep herding trails that would be a better suit but should be done with caution, they work best in what they were bred for and thats ranch work, they are a very "raw" breed and many breeders are trying to keep them within their roots and that is herding. They are very "ranchy" dogs and for training you are going to find they work better with less pressure and more instinct, sheep trials and stock dog competition do frown upon this as their instinctive actions do not fall within the guide lines. For sheep trials in general or anything along the lines I would go with a breeder from the US, for actual working dogs (being used for ranch work) I have a breeder from Canada that has great bloodlines which include Karana Abba as a 3rd generation, or from Australia. I think to people Kelpies sound great on paper, but they are a very impressionable, they can turn very soft and timid, they are not like a ACD in they way that they are "hard" you have to allow Kelpies to develop that through working cattle or sheep on their own not by commands saying go here go there walk stop, lay down, you have to let them use their mind to work, not yours.They are a truly an amazing breed, just a fore warning about working lines, this is not to turn you off of the breed, just a little info about working lines from someone who has two working Kelpies.

If you have any questions please ask, even if it about bloodlines or breeders in Canada I know ALOT about them. Goodluck!

Thanks! I have spoken to THIS breeder (the link button is broken...http://www.brokenstirrupranch.com/kelpies.html) and she said she has placed her Kelpies in working (ranch), agility and pet homes and they are fine. She has three pups and two are going to repeat buyers. I think I'm going to take the third pup. She said he likes toys, goes for tennis balls like crazy and that he should do well in my sports and make a good companion/pet. We train every night in some venue - IPO (protection, tracking, obedience), flyball, agility, rally, dock jumping (yes, we practice this) and when we can we get the dogs out to herding (just for fun until something more frequent is available) and lure coursing. I was very straight-forward about wanting a dog that could settle in the house/had medium energy but had drive to do sports with high repetition. Beyond the training, we also take the dogs for walks, hikes and runs usually every day as well, or every other depending on what we're training. If it's flyball and they're doing wind sprints for most of the evening, we don't take them anywhere else LOL What do you think?

If you get a Kelpie you need to keep me updated because they are a breed I really do like when I see the right one.

And as far as using ranch dogs for sport: Koolies are similar to Kelpies without any split in the breed and they are becoming popular for sport in Australia using farm and ranch dogs. The ranch/farm work seems to translate well into agility, disc dog and so on.

And you gotta keep in mind Megan that a lot of training is done by letting the dog figure stuff out by themselves. Learning to learn, not just lure into this, dragged into this and so on. So, I'm not an expert in Kelpies or any sports really but I think there is a lot more mental work that they would excel at going on in sports.

But, as I said, I'm not an expert in Kelpies! Just an admirer or them

I train with a few Kelpie mixes, no purebreds, and honestly they can be difficult to train and properly motivate in sports other than herding.

Two in particular I've trained heavily with:

Sarge is a kelpie/whippet, he kicks butt at lure coursing but he's been hell on training in flyball. He'll get there someday, that or agility maybe, but he's not as easy and natural as they were hoping he'd be. He's entirely positively trained.


Casey is a kelpie/border, he did okay in agility until his joints fell apart. He's ball obsessive, slightly stranger aggressive, can be pretty reliably aloof with strange dogs, has pretty high prey drive for strange small dogs, slow and frustrating to train, but a pleasure to work with over all. He was on his way to a MACH when he was injured and he's now had 5 surgeries and he's got the best winners attitude I've ever known. I'm honestly not sure how many other dogs would be able to smile and play after all he's been through. He's been trained with a lot of correction.

That sounds like a Whippet. We have numerous in my area that are in flyball and that is exactly what they are - difficult to motivate and get to pay attention and do the thing that is being asked. Once they are trained though, they are awesome. Just a slow process

Interesting perspective. Hope it's true!

Eh, he's not very whippety, when he goes against other whippets in training he's even lower. I trained with TnGs whippets though so they may be at an advantage.

He's a Connie Croley dog so it could be the breeding too.

Sweet, sweet boy but it's a miracle anything interests him. I think he'll be a stellar therapy dog though.

I do think Kelpies are really cool dogs, I'd love to know some purebred ones to see how they are.

We now have 2 in my agility club and i know 2 that another agility lady has, all from the same breeder and related somehow. Super smart dogs with their primary activity being agility, they do settle in the house nicely if that's what you reinforce early on. I love them, super fun goofy boy kelpies but serious when they need to be. My friends is only 6 months old and he knows basic manners and some cute tricks and is just an awesome boy. They're considered "true" Australian working kelpies as the breeders stock is from Australia itself and are used on the ranch for working purposes.

I don't really have much to add to this thread, but when I briefly looked into Kelpies I was pointed in the direction of the breeder you linked to (Broken Stirrup). The person that recommended them has a female Kelpie from there that she just adores. I think her Kelpie is just over a year old now. She had Dobermans forever but now has her Kelpie girl (and a Dobe) as she wanted a healthier dog that was not overly prone to SSA that would also excel in Agility. Everything she told me about her dog made her sound like an awesome, all around versatile dog willing to try anything. She also highly recommended looking into a breeder called Windrush.

If you do get a Kelpie I look forward to hearing more about him/her! They're still a breed I really like.

I know who you are talking about! I was googling for Broken Stirrup Kelpie and her post on the Dobe forum showed up - I saw all the cute pictures of her little girl and I sent her a message via Flickr asking about her now as a one year old What you are telling me is exaclty what I was hoping to hear! I am so excited I was looking for the exact same thing as she was. I will check out Windrush but I think I'm going to jump on this little guy that's left in the Broken Stirrup litter. The breeder thinks it is a good fit and I've dealt with very high level dogs before (KNPV Dutch Shepherd) and adored them. Cannot wait!! Now for a name....

ETA: I contacted Windrush too, I don't think they have anything right now. Those two and one other breeder I contacted sounded like it might be a good fit and that was all the looking I did. I thought about importing but it sounds like this guy should be perfect for me.

How exciting! Everything I was told about Jill made her sound fantastic. The only thing she seemed to have issues with was that she's so intelligent that she said when she was rewarding her for unpleasant things (dremeling), suddenly Jill started associating treats with negativity rather than associating the fact that treats meant getting your nails done was good like most dogs would. Instead she associated treats with a thing she didn't like and therefore treats were bad too. She said she is less forgiving than her other dogs in that way as she remembers sequences of events. She told me she was also sound sensitive but not in a negative, fearful way. But she likes to investigate and check things out to make sure all is well.

All in all it sounded like she was/is really, really enjoying her. She's apparently a very people pleasing, willing to learn and very trainable dog when it comes to most things. She was only 7 months old when I first asked about her so you might get different answers now as she's maturing, but everything she said about her as a puppy sounded wonderful to me.

If you get one I want pictures EVERY day!!

I find them to be such gorgeous dogs, but thankfully I realize that I will probably never be the right home for one. So therefore I need to live through someone else's pictures!

They really do have the *best* eyes

There is one handler here (name escapes me atm) who has done VERY well with kelpies in agility. As in beat out the likes of Susan Garrett and one nationals well . So they can excel in dog sports. I believe she has even gone to worlds with them.

I don't know much but I too an admirer.

Here as in Ontario? Or just in Canada.

One of the ones I spoke about is named Lynda Caughlin who won nationals last year with her Kelpie Coolhand Luc, she went to the WAO this year too. She lives a few hours north of me, cool lady with a cool dog.

No Ontarian, but remembered her name

http://www.infinitidogsports.com/Site/My_Dogs.html so the OP can see the kennel name of her dogs.

^ I've watched her and her dogs run Agility a few times. They seemed very intense but very focused and FAST (but accurate)! I loved watching them. Kelpies are so intriguing.

Thanks! Will definitely keep an eye on them too!