Australian Shepherds

[4CrazyCanines]

Thanks, Kian! We're going to go to a local park tomorrow and see if Diesel can find us!

[**Amber&Bella**]

Hey everyone! I am new to this forum, so I hope I can catch up quickly! Otherwise, I have a question about my two Aussies! Amber, who is 10 years old, is 100% Australian Shepherd. She weighs around 54 pounds, and is even a little over weight. Bella, is my 4 year old Aussie, who I don't know about! She weighs around 71 pounds and is in perfect shape! I am trying to read alot about sizes, because we got Bella from a Pet Store unexpectedly, so we don't really know her breed. She is bigger than a Male Aussie, which I find hard to believe, because the Males can get pretty tall. I just want too know if that means she isn't a purebred Aussie? I would add a few pictures that highlight what I am talking about, but my pictures are too big to add! Max limit is 256 KB, my pictures are 800+ KB.. Just check in there shared album to see the difference. I hope anyone could help me!

[**Amber&Bella**]

Wait! I got the pictures to work by editing them(: So, again, take a look at the difference?!

[Deerie me]

I don't know much about Aussies as you rarely see them here, but those two dogs have different shaped faces particularly their noses. The taller one looks a bit rough collie-ish.

[Phyrie]

The only way you can have a dog that you can call a purebred is to have registration papers that state that. There's just no other way to tell. Unless you have your dog's pedigree in front of you with all of her ancestors written down, and duly registered with a recognized, reputable registry, you simply can't say for sure what your dog is.

That said, your larger one does look like she has some rough collie in her, although I don't know if they come in merle. Kian is our resident Aussie expert, and I'm sure she'll be along to give an opinion.

[Sadie G]

I agree she looks like she has rough collie in her. I would like to see a picture of her from the side standing up. 71 lbs!!!

Like Phyrie said Kian is the expert and can help you the most.

[4CrazyCanines]

71 pounds? Wow! That's large, especially for a female. How tall is she? Can you measure her from the ground to her withers? Make sure she's standing straight and not under or over herself. Is she registered? If so, with what registry? You have to be careful with some of the registries that accept Aussies, as some of them do not have very acceptable breed standards ...

With that being said, I would also say that she probably has some collie in her. Her head appears to be lighter and somewhat smoother than the typical Aussie's head. And Collies can certainly come in merle - while sable and white is the most popular, blue merle is also one of their accepted colors.

Do you have any pictures that better show her conformation? That would help!

[kian]

That is large indeed. Since you got her from a pet store which isn't a reliable source when it comes to breeds. Her ears look rather Aussie and her eyes. The muzzle while not as pointed as a pure rough collie sure looks collie to me. The Merle can come from either breed as Merle and me stated. I agree her face is much lighter than a Aussie and her coat is more Aussie like.


I say you have a Collie/Aussie mix which is a lovely mix. Are there collies in your area, that might be a clue as well. She is beautiful that's for sure.

I too would love to a confirmation pic.

[**Amber&Bella**]

Now that you mention it, I do see some Collie in her! I just checked her pedigree, and it read that "Delilah" (Her old name) is a purebred Australian Shepherd. So now, why is she so big? I will try to get some more pictures that show more of her body and shape so maybe we could come to a conclusion on why my girl is so big!

[Deerie me]

She is a stunning dog but i still think her nose looks too long for pure Aussie. I don't mean this in an offensive way but is it a proper pedigree registered with the official Kennel club of the country she was born in?

[**Amber&Bella**]

She is a stunning dog but i still think her nose looks too long for pure Aussie. I don't mean this in an offensive way but is it a proper pedigree registered with the official Kennel club of the country she was born in?

I am definetly not going to take it the wrong way, I do also notice that her muzzle is slighty too long for an Aussie, so I did research and the sources say it could just be the genes, or she is just bigger than normal! But that's not what I wanted to know website :/ Haha, like now I know shes pure Aussie, but still, WHY IS SHE SO BIG?!?!? I know she's not mixed with Collie because she only has one Collie trait, the other Aussie features are dominant. Look at the comparison:

Like notice Bella's eyes aren't narrowed, and her muzzle isn't long enough, but there is something irregular about my Aussie girl(: Or she could just be a beast!

[Oliver & Henry's Mum]

Amber & Bella....I think we've all spent quite enough time trying to figure out why your "Pet Store" dog is so big. Let's move on please!

[Phyrie]

You didn't answer Tracy, though. Where is she registered, and with which registry? There are some registries out there in which you could register a gerbil and call it a "Thimble Chihuahua" and, for a fee, register it!

[Deerie me]

She is very pretty whatever she is. That rough collie is a stunner too.

[Phyrie]

Can you imagine how much brushing it took for that collie to look that beautiful? I like my single coated dog...

They are gorgeous, though.