Blue Heeler, Red Heeler, Queensland Heeler, Australian Cattle Dogs and Puppies

Appearance

General appearance

The Australian Cattle Dog should be athletic, muscular and healthy in appearance. It should not have a cumbersome build and there should be no traces of fragility and weakness. Balance of the dog is also very important in herding and even as a companion dog, it should have hard muscles and be well conditioned.

Coat and colour

The Australian Cattle Dog's coat is in two basic colors which are red and blue, however a variety of markings can be seen on the dog. Australian Cattle Dog puppies are born all white, with the exception of any markings. The dogs grow darker with maturity similar to dalmatians. More commonly, these dogs are blue with ginger spots on face, underpart and legs.

Australian Cattle Dog Quick Facts

Weight: 12-18 kg 25-50 lbs
Height: 43-51 cm 17-20 inches
Coat: Short, straight
Group: herding
Activity level: Very high
Learning rate: High
Temperament: Independent, intelligent
Guard dog ability: High
Watch-dog ability: High
Litter size: 4-8
Life span: median ~12 years
Country of Origin: Australia

Size

A female Australian Cattle Dog should measure about 17 to 19 inches (43 to 48 cm) at the withers. A male Australian Cattle Dog should measure about 18 to 20 inches (46 to 51 cm) at the withers. An Australian Cattle Dog is a well-muscled, compact dog with a dense coat of coarse, rather oily hair with a slight ruff and fine, almost woolly, winter undercoat. It has a naturally long tail, generally carried low, with a slight white tip. An Australian Cattle Dog in good condition should weigh roughly 35 to 50 pounds (16 to 23 kg).

Temperament

Similar to many herding type dogs, Australian Cattle Dogs have an extremely high capacity for energy and have very active minds. These dogs need ample exercise and a good activity driven job to do. For example, these dogs take great joy in learning tricks, participating in dog sports and other activities where they can use their minds. Some dog owners find these dogs very frustrating to train, however repetitive training is necessary. Heelers that do not have sufficient exercise will engage in destructive behavior. These dogs are innately very cautious and that increases with age. For this reason they make excellent guard dogs as they are very wary of any stranger. Cattle dogs will herd many type of animals.

The Heeler is a very friendly dog to other animals that the dog is familiar with and works very well with other Cattle Dogs, Border Collies and Kelpies. It is very important that the owner of a Heeler let the dog know who is charge, or a Cattle Dog might be much more stubborn in later age.

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