Shetland Sheepdog: A Comprehensive Guide to Owning and Caring for Your Dog (Comprehensive Owner's Guide) - Hardcover

Schwartz, Charlotte

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1593782322 ISBN 13: 9781593782320

Publisher: Kennel Club Books Llc, 2003

Synopsis

Traces the history of the breed, describes breed standards, discusses care and grooming requirements, and includes information on training.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

Small yet intelligent and durable, the Shetland Sheepdog embodies the characteristics of the rugged Scottish mountain country from where it originated. Originally developed to work the herds of the Shetland Islands, and commonly known as the ‘Sheltie’, this highly skilled sheep-herder has won admirers for his working ability and stamina, while his friendly disposition and compact size have made him a favourite of pet dog owners around the world. This book provides the much-needed factual information about the Shetland Sheepdog and its ancestry, character and standard, as well as the proper selection, feeding, training, preventative health care and behaviour of the breed. The new owner will welcome advice about puppy-proofing the home, preparing for the pup’s arrival and preventing puppy problems. In addition to an extremely authoritative text, this book presents over 135 photographs in full colour, which prove to be as informative as they are attractive. Helpful hints and important information are highlighted to provide easy access to everything the reader needs to know about life with a Shetland Sheepdog. Whether it’s housebreaking problems, allergies or fleas, this book is the way to prevention, providing the reader with the necessary guidance an owner needs from puppyhood through the senior years. Recommended by top breeders and trainers, this book is the responsible first choice of every new owner of a Shetland Sheepdog. Topics discussed include: History of the Shetland Sheepdog; Characteristics of the Shetland Sheepdog; The Shetland Sheepdog Breed Standard; Your puppy Shetland Sheepdog; Everyday care of your Shetland Sheepdog; Housebreaking and training your Shetland Sheepdog; Health care of your Shetland Sheepdog; When your Shetland Sheepdog gets old; Showing your Shetland Sheepdog; Understanding your Shetland Sheepdog.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Stand atop a hillside overlooking an emerald valley. Feel the soft summer breeze rising up from the land below to bring you the scent of green grass and lush vegetation. Scan the valley that runs for several miles beneath you. Notice the beige cloud that slowly undulates across the valley, then look again. It's not a cloud. It's a flock of hundreds of sheep moving as one across the field. Wonder now at what keeps them together and forces them to move in such beautiful symmetry. Focus on the sheep cloud as your eyes adjust to the scene. Only then will you notice two small dark creatures around the outside of the flock. Those dark specks are Shetland Sheepdogs, developed for use in the Shetland Islands off the northern coast of Scotland. The dogs are doing what they've been doing for hundreds of years: keeping the flock together and guiding the path of its travel. They are herding sheep. They take directions from a distant herdsman who whistles his orders to them. The sound of his whistling starts and stops the dogs, turns them backwards and forwards, right and left. He often directs them to go fetch a stray ewe as it wanders away from the flock.

Edition details

• Publisher: Kennel Club Books Llc
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1593782322
• ISBN 13: 9781593782320
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 158