What Was the Smithfield Collie, Exactly?

The "Smithfield collie" or "Smithfield dog" is often cited as the main progenitor of the Australian cattle dog, but I've found it surprisingly difficult to nail down exactly what sort of dog this was. I've had the same experience researching the "English white terrier", a breed often cited as foundation stock for the English bull terrier, Boston terrier, jack russell terrier, Staffordshire bull terrier, dalmatian, fox terrier...and not really mentioned anywhere else. Was it a failed attempt at a prick-eared fox terrier for the show ring? Was it a working dog so pervasive and so game that it was used to develop practically all of the modern working terrier breeds? Was it developed through crosses with the fox terrier, Jack Russell terrier, and various bull-and-terrier breeds, or was it foundation stock for these same breeds? This article says both, not sure how that works out exactly.

Likewise, the history of the Smithfield collie seems to go around in circles, with the dogs either developed from, or used in the development of, various herding breeds. Australian cattle dog history describes them as big, heavy, hairy dogs brought over from Europe by settlers to Australia. There is a modern breed commonly found in Tasmania called the Smithfield that is claimed to be the same as the original Smithfields.

I often see the Smithfield described as basically an Old English Sheepdog, which were developed from Bearded Collies, which were developed from Polish Lowland Sheepdogs in the 1500's, which were developed from Pulis. It seems that by the 1800's there were basically two types of herding dogs in the British Isles; the hairy ones and the not-hairy ones. The hairy ones became the bearded collie and Old English sheepdog. The not-hairy ones became the border collie, rough collie, smooth collie, English shepherd, old Scotch collie, Welsh farm dog, etc.

This article claims the big hairy Smithfields didn't work very well for driving cattle in the wilds of Australia, so Thomas Hall developed his line of Hall's Heelers by crossing the native dingoes with Northumberland Blue Merle Collies. These may have been the not-hairy herding dogs of the British Isles, though this article says there were a blend of the hairy ones and the not-hairy ones with some terrier mixed in. Wikipedia cites a book passage from 1790 describing a type of fierce and frequently tailless cattle dog used in the North of England called a cur. The Northumberland dogs may have been this type.

I'm still trying to get my hands on a copy of A Dog Called Blue by Noreen Clark, which is regarded as the definitive history of the Australian cattle dog thanks to a whole ton of research via primary sources. Apparently she found little evidence that the dalmatian was used to develop the breed due to mentions of it only popping up decades after the fact, but believes bull terrier was there in the mix. Maybe she has a little more information about the precise role the Smithfield dogs played in the development of the Australian cattle dog.

At the very least, all of my sources so far can agree on two things. First, that the Smithfield dogs were of a hairy-faced herding type that eventually became the Old English sheepdog and bearded collie. Second, that these dogs did not work very well for the early Australian cattlemen. Whether or not these were the dogs crossed with dingoes to create Hall's Heelers, the original cattle dogs, seems to be a point of contention.

What in the World is a Woodhouse Collar?

Often referred to but never explicitly defined, the "Woodhouse Collar" is an extinct training tool that is best described as a choke chain with bigger, noisier links. I had read glowing recommendations for this collar in training books in the mid-1990's, including a vague mention of the collar being attached in a manner that prevented it from tightening. Never had I seen such a thing in a store, nor could I figure out just what it was. Surely not a regular choke chain, right?

This is not a real Woodhouse collar.

Nope, it seems to be basically a choke chain. From descriptions it seems the links were not quite as big as on a "fur saver" type chain collar, which doesn't work very well as a correction collar because the links are too big to get a really good pop. Nor were the links as small as those found in a standard check chain.

The links in a Woodhouse collar were o-shaped, and big enough to attach a leash clip through. The live ring could be pulled until the collar was tight enough to not slip off, and then the leash could be clipped to both the live ring and any link along the collar to keep it at the correct size without tightening or loosening. Protection sport people still do this with fur saver collars.

I have not been able to find a picture of an actual Woodhouse collar, but I did manage to find a chain with big enough links to snap my Stibbar lead to both the live ring and a random link. I'm pretty sure this is how the Woodhouse collar was "buckled back on itself". That particular description threw me off for years though, as I kept trying to find a chain collar with an actual buckle.

The Woodhouse collar was designed by Barbara Woodhouse, a TV dog trainer in the 1980's that used very similar methods to a current TV dog trainer. I like to use this to explain how far we've come in the art of dog training, and how far the Dog Whisperer has set things back for the general public.

Barbara Woodhouse also wrote a book, No Bad Dogs, that was published in 1982. I read it in 1992 and even when I was fully-versed in dominance theory and bought the whole thing, I found her methods appalling. Her training strategy in the book could be summed up in a single sentence: "Put a choke chain on the dog, and pop the leash until the problem goes away." This was applied to such varied situations as teaching dogs to sit, to forcing them to conquer their fears. The part that has stuck in my mind for decades is the bit where she described taking a poodle that was extremely nervous around vehicular traffic, and standing on a divider of a busy road cranking the choke chain repeatedly until the dog stopped looking scared. Nope, nope, nope.

Nowadays we call that "flooding", as in flooding the dog with a scary stimulus until the part of its brain that can be scared just gives up and shuts off for a bit, coupled with aversion training to teach the dog to stop acting fearful and hide those feelings away to avoid getting hurt. Nobody well-educated in dog behavior would use this sort of method due to the possibility of the poodle ending up even more fearful of cars without giving any warning signs.

The Woodhouse collar fell out of favor and out of production sometime in the mid-90's, I believe. At least one book published in 1992 heavily recommended them, but the collar was largely unknown when I went looking for one in 2002.

If you came here to figure out what the heck a Woodhouse collar is, I hope you found the answer you were looking for. If anyone has a picture of an authentic Woodhouse collar, I would be delighted to share a picture with the world.

The Australian Stumpy Tail Cattledog

The Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog is a little-known breed used in the development of the Australian Cattle Dog. Stumpies are primarily found working stock in the USA, and unlike the ACD they aren't recognized by the American Kennel Club. This means they are still primarily being bred for their working ability rather than their appearance or tendency to win conformation shows. They're a bit like a grittier, more intense ACD.

The most striking feature of the Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog is their natural bobtail. Most of them are born with tails less than 4" long, though they occasionally have a bit more tail. In comparison, Australian Cattle Dogs are supposed to have full tails. ACDs are not supposed to have their tails docked, but this is very common for working dogs in the USA. A possible explanation for this is that both breeds were imported from Australian to the American southwest at the same time, and early ranchers didn't realize they were separate breeds and though the natural bobtailed dogs had been docked.

Another major differences between the breeds is the colors, tan points are only allowed on Australian Cattle Dogs and not stumpies. Therefore the ACD can be red ticked, blue ticked with tan points, or just blue ticked. The ASTCD can be all red, or all blue, but not both at the same time.

Australian Cattle Dogs should be a bit longer from neck to tail than they are tall at the withers, giving them a rectangular outline. Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dogs are supposed to be equal in these measurements, giving them a square outline. This means stumpies have longer legs and shorter back than ACDs.

Developed in the 1800's in Australia, stumpies supposedly predated the Australian cattle dogs with tails and were used in their development. Australian kelpies were also used to develop the ACD, this is where the tan points came from. Stumpies were not derived from kelpies, and do not have tan points.

ACDs and ASTCDs have been crossbred quite a bit since the very beginning, and stumpies were in danger of going extinct as a distinct breed until the 1980's. The years of crossbreeding mean that an occasional stumpy with tan points crops up.

The Truth About Spiked Collars

A spiked dog collar can make a pooch look tough (or silly, depending on the dog), but what are they actually for? Is the purpose of a spiked collar just to make a dog look as badass as possible? Is it supposed to make the dog difficult to grab? Were they originally intended as human fashion accessories that migrated onto our pets, or did that work the other way around?

Photo by Erin Koski

Spiked collars aren't just a fashion statement, they're actually a historic piece of equipment for working dogs. The spiked collar dates all the way back to ancient Greece, when they were first used as neck armor for herding dogs and flock guardians. These brave dogs needed to protect their sheep and cattle from predators like wolves. The neck is the most vulnerable part of the dog, and predators know this. Most breeds have thick, dense fur around their necks, some practically have a mane.

A dog with a neck full of spikes was more likely to walk away from an encounter with a wolf. I used to do medieval reenactment, and of course Brisbane needed to have a period ensemble. His collar is not a deliberate recreation of a historic design, but it is a lot easier to live with.

Photo by Erin Koski

The oldest spiked dog collars tend to have long, nasty spikes that extend several inches from the collar. Some of them are made from twisted metal links with forged spikes. Brisbane's spiked collar was custom made at a Society for Creative Anachronism event, and follows the trend in historic dog collars. As spiked collars became more widespread, the spikes became less nasty and more decorative.

Photo by Erin Koski

The next dogs to sport pointy bits on their necks were mastiffs, the dogs of war, along with guard dogs. Again, these dogs were expected to face combat of some sort, and the wide spiked collars helped prevent anything from attacking their necks. Next, the concept migrated to fighting dogs, bull baiters, and other dogs with tough jobs.

Today spiked dog collars are a fashion statement, but they can still serve a purpose. A heavy spiked collar is protective neck armor, if it is wide enough it will also distribute force and help prevent damage to the throat when the dog pulls on the leash.

With that in mind, spiked collars do not belong on any dog that can be reasonably expected to play with another dog. Wearing a spiked collar around town is cool. Wearing a spiked collar to the dog park is stupid, especially if the outing is for a highly social dog that loves to play. Back when we routinely visited dog parks, I saw plenty of happy, silly dogs attempting to wrestle and play while wearing collars intended to injure dogs that joined them. I'm pretty sure that's not what the owners had in mind, but this doesn't seem like rocket science. Maybe I'm wrong...

The Truth About Chihuahuas

There was a time when I truly believed that a chihuahua would behave like a 'real dog' if it were treated like a dog instead of a fashion accessory or human infant. This was before I got a chihuahua. I have since learned that 'real dog' is actually a continuum. On one end are endothermic dogs that willingly eat food and can survive in less than triple-digit temperatures without sweaters; on the other end is Ru.

Just like a dog only smaller!

At slightly over 6 pounds, Ru isn't going to win any tininess competitions. He's not even close to looking like a showdog, with his extra-long back. I'm also not certain his expression is nearly saucy enough for the AKC breed standard. That said, Ru is very much a proper chihuahua in temperament and personality.

There are a lot of delightful rumors and stories about the origins of the chihuahua. Were they bred as a single-serving meat animal in a hot climate? Were they developed as a baby replacement for mothers who lost their infants? Did priests turn them loose inside the walls of buildings to hunt mice? Was the chihuahua of today developed from tiny dogs found running around Aztec ruins in Mexico in 1850? I love asking people where chihuahuas come from because I often hear a new story.

What we do know is that chihuahuas are one of the older modern breeds, with the first ones being shown in 1904. Most of our modern breeds are less than two centuries old, and and were developed during the 1800's when purebred dogs became a popular sport. Wealthy dog fanciers traveled in search of new and different breeds to develop, and for good reason. After all, only one person at the dog show can have the best terrier, but a dozen people can win if there are a dozen different types of terriers, right? A landrace is a type of dog you get when breeding is utilitarian without consideration for appearance. All breeds of dogs were originally landraces until someone came along and attempted to both define and refine them. When the dogs are bred to win conformation shows rather than do a job, they tend to lose their working ability and turn into a very different type of dog.

Ru and fosterdog Candace

Most dogs of the New World were replaced by European dogs in the centuries before purebred dogs became a fad. Very few of the original landraces of the Americas survived, and when a dog is claimed to be descended from native dogs, genetics usually shows that it is a European attempt to recreate that breed in the 1800s. According to various authorities on dog breeds, the people who developed the chihuahua never set foot in Mexico. What they did do was travel by train in the southwestern United States. In border towns, Native Americans would approach the windows of stopped trains with souvenirs to sell to the travelers. Among these souvenirs were the small village dogs that lived in the area.

Dog fanciers like James Watson bought these little dogs, took them home, and attempted to turn their landrace into a breed. It's probably they mixed in some other breeds in their attempts to shrink the wee beasts all the way down to 2-lbs, but a 2-lb dog can't give birth naturally, maintain its body temperature, or prevent its blood sugar levels from crashing. The dog fanciers finally settled on a 5-lb dog, which remains difficult to attain even today. Breed a couple of 5-pounders together, and you're likely to get progeny that grow from 4-6 pounds. Breed the 6-pounders and get 5-7 pound offspring. Even a pair of tiny dogs can randomly produce a puppy that grows to 10-lbs, and as soon as unscrupulous breeders stop deliberately breeding for tininess they end up with a pack of 10-lb chihuahuas with non-spherical skulls.

Are chihuahuas actually descended from native Mexican dogs? Or are they an attempt to recreate an extinct breed via European dogs? They do have an awful lot in common with the Techichi skeletons found at archaeological sites in Central America. To my delight, this study published last summer shows that a particular copy of a particular gene is unique to chihuahuas...and those ancient dogs interred at those archaeological sites. The chihuahua is the Techichi. Meanwhile, the Mexican Hairless Dog, or Xoloitzcuintli, appears to be descended entirely from European dogs.

In the Beginning...

Once upon a time, on June 11th, 2005, I brought home the most amazing dog. No, wait, actually I brought home a possessed demon deceptively shaped like an adorable puppy. It was a trap.

<---Really, who would suspect that?

I had spent most of my 22 years reading every dog training book I could get my hands on, and had trained my cocker spaniel to do every trick I had ever seen or heard of, so I figured I was now an experienced dog owner. It was time to start fresh with a brand new puppy of my very own, to mold and shape and socialize into the perfect dog. I had just graduated college and was working at a pet store, it was exactly the right time to get a puppy.

This was going to be my ultimate dog. He would be a canine athlete and excel at agility, obedience, flyball, tracking, dock diving, scootering, disc dog, musical freestyle, and herding. He would be a therapy dog and an animal actor. This puppy held the promise that I could do everything I had read about while I was growing up, everything that my cocker, Oakley, was too old for. She knew oodles of tricks, but was already blind and arthritic by the time I was adult and finally able to fully participate.

Of course, life has a way of sending you the dog you need instead of the dog you want. Brisbane was devastatingly cute, but was also a monster that came packaged with issues I wouldn't recognize for years. He was, and continues to be, a whole lot of dog in a relatively small package. Briz cut his baby teeth late, and finished getting them in just in time to start losing them again. This meant roughly six months of teething puppy. He also had noticeable spinal issues from about 4 months on, and various veterinarians have speculated that he could have been born with damaged discs.

That was just the physical stuff. Behaviorally, Brisbane was also a terror. When he wasn't sleeping adorably, he was biting something. Not chewing, he was never a big fan of gnawing on random objects. He just liked biting stuff in an obsessive fashion. Anything was fair game, from shoes and books on the floor, to the pants I was wearing, to Oakley's ears. I used to cover everything in Bitter Apple spray each morning.

On top of all the biting, Brisbane was overstimulated by everything. In retrospect, the biting was actually because he was so overstimulated. Basic handling, grabbing his collar, trying to clip his nails, everything sent him into a screaming, flailing meltdown. None of my puppy books had taught me how to deal with this. I took him to puppy class at Petsmart, and the trainer there was equally baffled. It took me most of a year to find the right books, the right online communities, and people who understood how Australian cattledogs work. It took even longer for me to learn the right words to describe his behavior, and the right books to read.

Owning Brisbane has been a fascinating education in all things canine. His innate behavior issues drove me to learn everything I could about dog behavior, body language, and behavior modification and management. His physical issues forced me to abandon the plans to make him an agility champion and flyball star, but taught me far more about conformation and structure than I ever would have learned with a more functional dog. He is confident enough to let me know how he feels about things, and infinitely trainable. Brisbane will be nine years old in a couple of months, but he still looks like a dog in his prime. I'm sure he has plenty more to teach me, and he has worked hard to train me to listen.