The Shetland Sheepdog:
A Guide to
The Sheltie Breed
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The Shetland Sheepdog is a beautiful, intelligent, friendly, loyal, affectionate, gentle, and quirky dog breed. Shelties are family-oriented dogs, making them very loyal to their human pack.
Typically standing at 13 to 16 inches tall and weighing 15 to 23 pounds, Shelties are a small to medium dog breed with a moderate need for exercise. Unlike some herding dogs, they don't need to run around all day. They are perfectly happy living in a City apartment or a country residence - as long as you're there to give them attention!
This section is dedicated to the basic Sheltie dog breed information, including the breed history and standard, the family tree, common coat colors, cross breeds and myths about miniature Shelties.
A Brief Sheltie History
The Shetland Sheepdog is often met with cries of "Oh look! A mini Lassie dog!" -- because it resembles a miniature Rough Collie. But Shelties come from different breeding lines, with Collie crosses only in the last 100 years. Take a look at our fascinating Sheltie History, tracing the evolution of the Shetland Sheepdog from its herding dog origins in Scandinavia, to Collie crosses in the Shetland Islands.
The Sheltie Colors
There are three different Sheltie colors defined by the AKC breed standard: sable (including sable merle), black (including bi black and tri color), and blue merle (including bi blue). There are also more Sheltie breed coat variations like double merle and color headed whites (CHWs). Check out our pictures of these beautiful coat colors and their genetic variations.
The Truth About Miniature Shelties
Discover the truth about miniature Shelties - that there is no recognized AKC breed standard. This is often the result of unethical breeders lowering the quality of the Shetland Sheepdog breed. What's worse, many toy Shelties are prone to more health problems because they are created by breeding the smallest runts.
The Sheltie Family: Collie Cousins
The Sheltie family includes many Collie breeds. They were mainly crossed with Rough Collies and Border Collies during the 19th and 20th centuries, which is why the three modern breeds share so much in common today. Take a look at the different types of Collies and the characteristics of the famous Rough Collie (aka Lassie!)
The Shetland Sheepdog Breed Standard
The Shetland Sheepdog Breed Standard is a set of guidelines that describes the ideal characteristics, temperament and physical appearance of the Sheltie breed. Learn about the exact requirements breeders have to fulfill in order to successfully breed and show Shelties. Plus, further reading on The Standard if you are thinking about becoming a Sheltie breeder.
Why Breed to The Standard?
Charlotte Hulett of Sunridge Shelties in Missouri considers the breed Standard after breeding Shelties professionally for 50 years. Her guest article Why Breed to The Standard? includes comparisons of US and English Champions, and offers five excellent reasons why people should endeavor to breed Shelties correctly.
I hope you enjoy this introduction to the Shetland Sheepdog. To learn more about the Sheltie breed, click next at the bottom of each page...
