Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog

The Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog

 

Pepper - ASTCD - Altkeith kennels

 

Origin and Purpose: Country/State of origin - Australia, Working cattle all round knock about dog,protection of property and people.

Temperament: Loyal,protective,watchful and obediant.

Size: Males average about 18 - 20 inches. Females average 17 - 19inches for pedigreed dogs, many working lines are bigger though.

Bundy - Working bred Stumpy - K Hartwell

Coat and Colour: Coat- Short and Double coated, some lines have a hard wire haired coat. Colour- Blue speckled or mottled, red speckled or mottled, with or without body and head patches. Liver coloured dogs and tan points are considered a fault in show dogs but as neither effect working ability they can be found in working bred lines.

Eyes: Alert and expressive, almond shaped and usually dark coloured.

Head: Broad between the ears, tapering to a blunt muzzle with a slight stop. Nose is black in all but liver coloured dogs.

Sheila - ASTCD - Altkeith Kennels

Ears: Moderatly small and pricked.

Scent Finding: These dogs can make good moderate range finders. They will stop a pig but many do not have enough bark to be useful to locate them, tracking collars are recomended. Be aware that some carcass damage can occur as some of this breed tend to nip the rear of the pig to stop them before holding clean. Most will lug, especially on smaller pigs or with another dog.

Appearance: These dogs should have a tough,hard bitten appearance. They are medium sized dogs and are as tall as they are long. They should give the impression of being a tireless worker. The show standard calls for a tail no longer than 4 inches, however in the working population this can vary greatly. Long tailed pups can also be produced from stumpy to stumpy matings, and stumpy dogs when bred over other breeds can also throw stumpy pups.

Squeak - ASTCD - Altkeith Kennels

Training: Easy to train, and intelligent, this is a breed that shouldn't be owned by somebody offended by owning a dog smarter than they are. They can learn bad habits just as quick as they can good. They are busy and need to be mentally stimulated, they thrive in a home where they can go everywhere with their owner. Pups start young and this dog craves routine. They do not tolerate unfair disipline. They need to be socialised from an early age with children, small pets and other dogs.

Abilities: Stumpy dogs live to work. These dogs are a lot of fun to own and are up for anything you can throw at them. They do however have a strong distrust of strangers, they need a lot to do to keep them busy and if you cannot give one the education or exercise they need they will find their own way to amuse themselves, which is usually a bad thing. They work cattle and goats well but are usually to much for sheep and lambs.

Warning: The biggest problems this breed faces is deafness, blindness and poor temperaments. Deafness is due to lack of pigmentation, head patches should be encouraged. I will not breed two dogs without head patches together as it increases the risk of producing deaf pups. Deaf pups are pretty easy to spot or if breeders live close to the city they can use a BAER test. PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy) is a disease that can send dogs blind, usually at about 4 - 5 years. It is easy to DNA test for and breed out. Poor temperaments are usually the result of poor breeding. These dogs should be hard and tough and are not uncontrollably aggressive or soft and sappy.

Tagatarl Stumpy Sundown - ASTCD - K Hartwell

Purchasing: Be clear about what you want. If you want a pedigreed dog, go to a registered breeder. If you want a working dog go to somebody who breeds for working ability. Be very clear about what you want, there are people who work stumpys on ducks in show dog type working trials and claim their dogs have working ability. If you have a lot of ducks to muster this is great, but if you need a hard working dog then it is probably not the way to go.

Pig Hunting Traits: If your after a good all round dog then the stumpy is worth a look. They will mind your ute, find and catch pigs, work cattle and be a loyal and faithfull mate. The breed handles the heat better than average and has plenty of endurance. They are not suited to a home where they do not have a lot to do. By himself the stumpy is a good to average pig dog but they can make a great addition to a team or bloodline.

 

Submitted by Katrina