Tell me about these dogs...

My parents have a red heeler (the white/orangish ACD) named Trinity and she is a great dog.  Her body is built tough and she is one brave little dog.  She is from a heerding line of working dogs.  They can't keep her in a kennel without a top because she can climb the fence up to 6 ft.  Very clever but also acts like a watchdog as well and will let the family know when somone is neer by.  She loves to be around livestock and given the chance will try to herd the cows and horses.  She got kicked once by a horse but bounced back really fast and almost didn't seem like she was injured at all.

She is the only dog that Giz will play with.  While playing with Giz she often nips at Gizzy's feet, and Giz does the same back to her both in a playful way.  It's fun to watch two herding dogs play together.

Here are some pics of her:


Play time


Bath time


Black and White photo:

A kelpie can make a malinois look like it is moving in slow motion.  These dogs are only happy when working day in and day out at a pace that would exhaust most individuals.  ACDs can be similiar, but not to the same degree since there are some lines in which the drive has been toned down a bit.  Dog aggression can be problematic.  Tend to be much harder than gsds or belgians.  Far more likely to take the "my way or the highway" approach compared to gsds and belgians.

Thanks, Xebby, that's the color I like best.  Are there any other breeds of dog colored like that (the orange and white mixed in)?  I love white and orange/light reddish combos (like Shibas and red huskies).

ORIGINAL: Liesje

Thanks, Xebby, that's the color I like best.  Are there any other breeds of dog colored like that (the orange and white mixed in)?  I love white and orange/light reddish combos (like Shibas and red huskies).

 
English Setters can be that color.

Border Collies have the same genetics (ticking, white factor, and the bb red/liver) and you'll see all the stars converge in the right way sometimes to produce a pup that looks like a red ACD! I had a rescue once that no one at all believed could possibly be a Border Collie at all, much less purebred. In fact, he was extremely well bred, being a full brother of the second place working Border Collie in the country at that time. He had short hair (smooth coat), was liver colored, but the only solid spots on him were over one eye and ear, and one big blotch on his back. Then he had that very heavy ticking all over. To top it all off he had prick ears, too.

I've only had a few experiences with the breed.  3 in total actually...  Cricket was a pretty cool dog.  Smart as a whip, loved to get out and run...  She got away from me(not my fault, I swear!) and managed to get about 5 feet into a nasty bushy patch before she got stuck.  (As a reference, I only got 2 feet in)  Then there was the young mother with a litter of 5.  She was a transport that only stayed a night.  I'm not sure what had happened to her, but she was so nervous I couldn't even get close enough to touch her.  The pups were all sorts of friendly and happy though.  There is one more named Sheila... She's a nutcase.  She's gotten much better since she came in.  There's this ultra-submissive thing she does where she starts licking your chin, then nibbles at it.  Needless to say, she overdid it and left a nice gash on the inside of my nose.  The owner of the humane society used to have a Cattle dog back when the shelter did animal control.  I wish I had had the chance to meet her.  From everything I heard about her, she was just an all-around cool dog.  Then again, she was outside helping her out every day, so excersize and mental stimulation was definately not lacking.  I think that dog's the reason she took Sheila in, even though she was not quite right.  I think that if they're out of good parents, raised properly, treated well, and givin lots of excersize and mental stimulation, they are some of the best dogs you can find.  If you can't provide that...  it's just a bad idea to get a dog like this.