Mini Aussies

ORIGINAL: neapolitanpitbull

First of all, I want to say I know a Mini Aussie is not a real breed. But how do people 'create' them? Is it just years of inbreeding?

i honestly don't know how they are bred, but I suspect that it varies with the breeder. Some that I've seen really do look like scaled down versions of aussies, and they may have been bred primarily just by breeding smaller aussies to each other and picking the runts of the litter for the next generation. This wouldn't necessarily require any exceptional amount of inbreeding, by the way. Unrelated small aussies could be bred together just as well as relatives.
But, I've seen several "mini aussies" that looked surprisingly like papillon mixes. Or maybe a dash of pomeranian and a pinch of sheltie thrown in. I've met a couple mini aussies that have actually seemed like ok dogs, but most that I've encountered have had health issues, deformities (besides their small size), and very un-aussie like temperaments. I put mini-aussies in the same category as "doodles" - usually, if not always, a mixed breed bred to fill a market niche, rather than bred for a particular type and temperament.

It's done by breeding the smaller than the standard, Aussies. For pets small Aussies are fine, but they aren't allowed in the show ring so they are sold as pet quality and have to be fixed. But then you get the stupid people who decide to not fix their dog regardless of the fact that they signed a contract saying they would. So they find someone else who has a small Aussie of the opposite sex and they decide, "hey, I can make money by breeding these 2 and getting a smaller version of the Aussie."
 
So no, it's not inbreeding. Inbreeding wouldn't neccesarily make smaller dogs, mainly very unhealthy ones. Unfortunately they are getting more popular which is stupid. The Aussie club does not accept them and condones the breeding of them.
 
Shiva

Like Border Collies, Aussies have a huge amount of genetic variety in their gene pool still. I had a Border Collie that weighed 18 pounds, for instance. Purebred, healthy - pretty well bred in fact. She stood 15 and a half inches tall - we had a crowd the first time she was measured at a flyball tourney. Then I had several people chase me down and ask whether she was fixed. [:@]

So the genetics are there to a certain point. I've seen mini Aussies that were clearly just on the small side of purebred.

However, I am unwilling to believe that the little bug eyed, smooshie faced, eight pound "Aussies" are truly purebred. I am not expert, but it takes many years to safely get from 40 pound genetics to something that size. If the 40 pound genetics are still in play (ie, within eight to ten generations), you can get a throwback pup from a 12 pound bitch that would kill her before it comes to full term. You have to breed in dogs where the small genetics are set in the breed. Since it would be on the sire's side, it would be easy to do and none the wiser.

This is reason #476 why breeding for non-functional size is a lousy idea. They aren't doing this because there are sheep in small holes in the ground, they are doing it so Aussies can fit in the purses of people with lots of money to spend on fancy puppies. [:-]

Amen to everything brookcove just said. I hate when people ask if Luna is a mini. "No, she's a puppy. There is no such thing as a mini Aussie. "

For anyone interested, here are the major breed club comments on minis:

From ASCA:>http://www.asca.org/ASCA+News:
"The club wishes to respond to the breeders of small and tiny  dogs resembling Australian Shepherds who claim they are producing a  size variety. The Aussie was never intended to be selected for size:  it was developed to be a functional working dog capable of handling  tough stock and going for miles in the back country or snow drifts.  Changing the appearance of the breed to personal aesthetic tastes  rather than suitability for work does not fulfill ASCA's mission statement: "to preserve the Australian Shepherd as an intelligent working dog of strong herding and guardian instincts."

From USASA:>http://www.australianshepherds.org/miniaussie.html

"The United States Australian Shepherd Association - tatement concerning the Miniature Australian Shepherd, and the Toy Australian Shepherd.

Recently there has been a rise in the movement to breed miniature and toy versions of the Australian Shepherd.  The Miniature Australian Shepherd and the Toy Australian Shepherd are not recognized or considered varieties of the Australian Shepherd by this organization, the United States Australian Shepherd Association, Inc. (USASA), or by the American Kennel Club (AKC).   Since these dogs are not AKC registered, they cannot be verified by USASA as purebred, and therefore are not considered Australian Shepherds by this organization.
The USASA does not support the purposeful breeding of Miniature Australian Shepherds and Toy Australian Shepherds, and expects all members who have breeding programs to breed to the USASA/AKC recognized standard of excellence. The USASA further expects all members to be ever vigilant in the preservation and protection of the Australian Shepherd."

I don't know much about canine genetics or breeding, but seeing all the ads in the newspaper and Thrifty Nickel around here for "cheap mini aussies" is absolutely disgusting. Just another fad that puppy mills can make a few bucks off of. Granted, I've never met a well-bred one that just happened to be smaller than average. I'd have no qualms about one of those. But the few that I've seen were bred from other "minis" and really don't look much like Aussies at all. Like Buster said above, more like papillion mixes. The owners I've talked to claim that they make better house dogs, but if you wanted a 10 lb dog, why not get something that was meant to be that size? My sweet 55lb boy is a better behaved, more even-tempered house dog than most of the "minis" I've met anyway!

There is no size standard for Aussies, because the primary goal should be to produce a dog that can work cattle.  Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it would be darn hard for an 8 pound dog to convince most bulls to "git along little dogie, git along".   Some of the smaller working dogs are just as tenacious, and maybe quicker, than the larger dogs, but 8 pounds??? C'mon - not a working dog.  Some of the show dogs are too heavily boned, and their coats would make them a nightmare to care for in a working environment (not to mention that they'd probably get heatstroke).  Deviation from the working characteristics is something that breed purists detest.    Rebecca is right that it takes many generations to accomplish such drastic size reductions, but I've seen dogs as big as Sequoyah advertised as mini's (18", 30 pounds).  And, I've seen the ones that look like Papillons. (from a well known puppy mill in Maine).  I think I'm a purist - I want my dog to look and behave as if I could buy cattle tomorrow and not worry. Funny, but some of the people who buy those mini's don't realize that you sometimes get the original Aussie temperament, just in a small package.  May not be able to herd cattle, but the mailman will lose a digit when he pokes the mail through the slot perhaps.  Aussies are not always everyone's friend - they were also bred to guard the property and the owner of the cattle.