.

Australian Shepherds New Mexico Are Devoted Pets And Work Dogs

By Janine Hughes


In the early 1800s, Australian shepherds or Aussies were developed to herd livestock on farms and ranches in the western regions of the United States. They were especially helpful with sheep, geese, ducks and rabbits. They also performed in rodeos. They have been trained in recent decades for search and rescue, guide and service, therapy, disaster and detection.

This medium-sized breed weighs up to 65 pounds and stands up to 26 inches tall. They are born with either long or bobbed tails. The life expectancy of Australian shepherds New Mexico is approximately 12 years. The American Kennel Club recognized this breed in the herding group in 1991.

These canines are easy to train due to their high level of intelligence and yearning to please their master. They exhibit strong devotion and obedience to their owner and prefer be with him or her at all times. Although goodhearted and loveable, they do bark when strangers are detected.

This breed is very energetic and requires daily exercise to maintain their physical shape and mental alertness. Playing and exercising with them no less than two or three hours a day helps burn off that energy. Without daily exercise, they will find destructive ways to burn off their pent up energy. Their playful nature makes them ideal for agility contests and playing Frisbee.

Aussies come in various shades of black and red. They can be either black or red with white or tan. Those with marbled black, gray and white coats are known as Blue Merles. Others with marbled buff, red and white are Red Merles. Tri-colored animals are red or black with white and brown. Others with just brown or white along with their black or red coat are known as bi-colored. The red-colored breeds sport brown lips, noses and eye rims. The other two color categories are black on these body parts.

These dogs sport various eye shades of blue and brown. Their eyes can be the same color, one blue and one brown or one or both eyes can be half blue and half brown. Black colored breeds usually have brown eyes, and red breeds often have amber eyes.

This breed is prone to vision problems like red eye, pink eye, watery eyes, cataracts and blindness. Other health issues include epilepsy, deafness, skin problems, heart conditions, and respiratory ailments like bronchitis. Hypothyroidism is low levels of the hormone that regulates metabolism, and canine hip displasia is an abnormal hip socket that causes arthritis and difficult walking later in life.

Inherited conditions include iris coloboma that is a defect or hole in the iris. Another possible inherited ailment is Pelger-Huet anomaly that is abnormal white blood cells. This is not a health issue for animals with just one gene of this. However, afflicted animals should not be bred with other Aussies affected by this gene since their pups will inherit multiple genes and have a very short life span.

This breed makes loving pets and hard-working canines. Gorgeous Aussies in Albuquerque, NM exhibit fiercely loyal and loving personalities with the natural instinct to protect. They interact well with individuals, couples, children and larger groups of humans.




About the Author:



No comments :

Post a Comment