Origin
You'd be forgiven for thinking an Australian Shepherd is native to Australia when in fact the breed hails from the Basque region of Spain. It was from here that these dogs found their way over to America where careful selective breeding produced the dogs we see today. In the States, the Aussie or Little Blue Dog as they are often called, remains among the most popular choices of working dogs and family pets.
Aussies have also gained popularity as companion dogs and family pets in other parts of the world which is understandable thanks to their intelligence and quick natures. With this said, the Aussie is not the best choice for first-time dog owners because they are high-energy characters that need to be correctly trained and then kept busy or they can start to show a more dominant and unruly side of their nature making them harder to manage and handle.
As previously mentioned, the Australian Shepherd originates from Spain where they were used as working dogs by Basque shepherds. They were taken over to the Australia by shepherds who emigrated there at the end of the nineteenth century. These "blue dogs" were then taken to the Americas where they were given the name Australian Shepherds.
Their ancestry is a bit of a mystery, but the dogs bought over to Australia from Spain were no doubt crossed with Australian working dogs. At the time, they earned themselves the reputation for being devoted dogs that boasted a higher than average intelligence in the working environment and very capable of doing their job without the need for the shepherd to be around.
The breed only arrived in the UK in the early 1980s, but over the years these attractive dogs have gained popularity both as working dogs, family pets and companion dogs. Over more recent times, they have been trained as Guide Dogs for the Blind, Search and Rescue dogs as well as being trained to help handicapped people. A lot of Aussies are used as therapy dogs in nursing homes and hospitals which goes to show just how versatile and intelligent they are.
