Working Kelpie puppies

About the Working Kelpie

The Working Kelpie was developed in Australia in the late nineteenth century from imported collie stock, to move large mobs of sheep across big, hot country with very little direction from a handler. This is a medium, lightly built dog with a short weather resistant coat, pricked ears and remarkable stamina, bred for work rather than for a show ring, so type varies from line to line. The temperament is intense and biddable at once: quick to read a handler, one of the most trainable dogs going, and never satisfied by doing nothing.

This is one of the hardest breeds to tire out. They need hours of activity, and the head needs occupying just as much, through herding, obedience, agility or scent work. Grooming is trivial, a hound mitt over the coat now and then and regular nail trimming. They rate top of the scale with children and only middling with other pets, and the herding instinct often surfaces as chasing and nipping at heels. Think hard before bringing a working bred dog into a suburban house, because what follows usually gets blamed on training.

What to expect at eight weeks

At eight weeks a Working Kelpie puppy is sleeping around 18 to 20 hours a day, is not house trained, and cannot hold on for more than an hour or two at a stretch. A medium breed puppy at eight weeks is a manageable armful that will not stay that way. Most of the growth happens between now and six months, so buy for the adult dog where you can. This is a very high energy breed. The mistake owners make is trying to tire them out physically. Training, scentwork and puzzles will do more than distance ever will. Grooming is straightforward, but start handling the coat, feet and ears in week one anyway so it is never a fight later. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything they meet calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of their life.

Health worth knowing about

Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.

• Cerebellar abiotrophy, a progressive loss of coordination in young dogs, detectable by DNA test
• Collie eye anomaly and progressive retinal atrophy, detectable by DNA test and an ophthalmologist evaluation
• Hip and elbow dysplasia, screened by hip and elbow evaluation of breeding stock

Your Working Kelpie puppy's first six months

• Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
• Worming and parasite schedule.
• Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Medium for a Working Kelpie.
• Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 12.7 to 27.2 kg adult range.
• Puppy names and the first week checklist.

Kit sizes: crate 36 inch (36 x 24 x 26 in, 91 x 61 x 66 cm) for an adult of up to 27.2 kg; chew toys made for medium breeds. Worked out the same way as the crate size calculator. PetMD bases a crate on the dog's own measurements, not weight or breed alone, so measure once the puppy is home.

Buying guides for this

• Best crate for a puppy: wire, plastic or soft, and how to size one with a divider

Other medium breeds

More on the Working Kelpie

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Sources

• akc.org for adult weight and height, life expectancy, energy, grooming, shedding and the temperament ratings, coat type and health notes
• fci.be for country of origin
• Health notes from Working Kelpie breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/working-kelpie/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.

Photo: Aliénor Wayne, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped. All photographers are listed on the photo credits page.