Dog Breed Guide

Australian Cattle Dog

Profile

Size

Medium

Country of origin

Australia

Origin

19th century

Bred for

Cattle herding

Height

male 46 - 51cm (18 - 20in), female 43 - 48cm (17 - 19in)

Weight

15 - 22kg (33 - 49lb)

Life span

12 - 16 years

A cattle dog with a solid, muscular body and a short, dense coat. It comes in two colors: blue, where black and white hairs mix to give a bluish look, and red speckle, with red flecks scattered through the coat. These colors give it the nicknames Blue Heeler and Red Heeler. Puppies are born pure white, and their color comes in as they grow.

Smart, tough and tireless, it is a hard worker. It earned the name "heeler" because it moves cattle by nipping at their heels. It is extremely loyal to its family, especially to one person, while being wary of strangers.

Its exercise needs and drive to work are among the highest of any breed. As a family dog, it needs plenty of exercise and mentally stimulating play every day. Its instinct to nip at heels can be directed at children, so training should keep it in check.

Good to know

The oldest dog on reliable record belonged to this breed. Bluey, who herded cattle on a farm in Victoria, Australia, was born in 1910 and died in 1939 at the age of 29 years and 5 months, a record recognized by Guinness World Records. In 2023 a dog in Portugal was announced as having broken the record at 31, but after a review the title was withdrawn, and Bluey was restored as the record holder.

In 19th-century Australia, as cattle stations grew enormous, the herding dogs brought from Britain could not cope with the heat and long distances. So ranchers crossed herding dogs with the wild dingo to create a tough cattle dog that could work in Australia's harsh conditions.

By the 1880s, dogs much like today's are said to have been established.