Australia is witnessing
the re-emergence of a
very old breed of working dog, some believe the oldest working
breed bred in Australia, efforts are being made to record and
research this breed, much interest has focused on this breed and
the need for
correct
information and sound proper protection, is needed to preserve
this breed.
I would like to
introduce a breed that you may already be familiar with. It is
the Australian Koolie and it has a perplexing and interesting
history. All breeds began from many; the Australian Koolie is no
different. History books show that serious importations of
working breeds began around the 1800s; many books on the Kelpie,
Australian Cattle Dog and Stumpy refer to the influence of the
Merle breed in their own breed’s foundations.
One
such book, by author Angela Sanderson called "Australian Dogs",
out by the Currawong press refers to the Australian Koolie; then
called the German Collie. What is of most importance in her book
is her own reference to a much earlier German writer Von
Stephanitz and his book "The German Shepherd In Word and
Picture" released 1925 in which he writes "The Australian
grazier were sufficiently impressed with German sheep dogs to
import them”, he then names one of the breeds which were
imported, as the German Tiger (pronounced with a long "e" not a
short "i") and describes them as “long or short coated, prick
eared type of Merle colouring similar to the type already found
in Australia called the German Collie.” ( this proves that
German Tigers were imported, but it proves more importantly that
the Koolie was
establish and
recognized by its own name before actually recorded imported
Tigers arrived).There is evidence that Elizabeth Macarthur, wife
of John Macarthur who began the Merino
industry in Australia transported
a German by
the name of Joseph Pabts to her property in Camden New South
Wales in 1825 to care for her flocks; Joseph arrived with his
family and a number of his German working dogs, believed to be
Tigers. This report indicates that Tigers could have been in
Australia 100 years earlier. The earlier Tigers would have
merged with other working bloodlines, most commonly the smooth
coated Collies which were found readily in the southern and
central regions and possessed the shorter coat desire in this
hotter climate.
German Tigers, 1825 Koolie Ancestor
One of the questions most often asked is
why hasn’t the
Koolie breed been recognized before now? The answer is simple; the men
and women who bred and worked the Koolie did so to continue an excellent
working dog that could adapt to all terrains and weather conditions.
This was a dog that would work until it dropped just for the shear love
of working and still be a loyal companion at days end. It is only in
recent times that we have felt the need to register our Koolies. As
people have moved away from the area, the search to find other Koolies
for breeding became difficult, so many Koolies were simply bred to other
good working dogs. People became concerned that the Koolie may be in
danger of being bred out of existence.
In 2000 the Koolie Club of
Australia was formed dedicated individuals who began the arduous task of
establishing a governing organization to rally like minded dog
owners/breeders together to begin a Koolie Registry. One of the first
tasks of the Koolie Club of Australia was to determine a name best
needed to represent the breed. It was decided to remove the “German”
from
the Koolie name because many
people mistakenly believed the Koolie was a German breed when in fact
the Koolie is considered one of Australia’s oldest working breeds. It
was also decided the “K” would be adopted to Koolie so it would not be
mistaken for the word Collie. Many members still prefer to spell Koolie
with a “C” and according to a news piece from a NSW newspaper it was
once even spelt Kulie. it was decided by the club that Australian Koolie
would best describe the breed and adopted the name. Koolie type’s are
very diverse, they can have pricked ears, semi dropped ears or dropped
ears. Their coat can be smooth, short or medium, there have also been a
few Koolies that have had coats as long as a Border Collie’s but this
is not common. The colours range from Red or Black “better known as Blue”
Merle, solid Red or Black usually with White or Merle points. There are
solids, tricolours and bicolour as well. The one thing that most serious
experienced breeders agree upon is the colour must be a strong dark
colour
and that the white points must be minimal.
The Koolie size has been
known to be as large as a Border
Collie to the size of a small Kelpie, bone structure can vary from heavy
to fine, the reasons behind such diversity is in the Koolies very
ability to adapt to all terrain’s and situations. The men and women who
breed them, bred them for what
was needed at the time, if you worked
truck and transporters you needed a small agile hardy dog that could
move quick and work hard. In the paddock on the station or droving you
needed a dog that could eat up the distances and have great stamina with
a short coat, shorter the better to keep off the burrs. In the high
country the dog worked better if the coat was rough and double with a
softer water resistant undercoat to keep out the chill of the snow and
up north with the semi-wild cattle you required a dog with heavy bones
to lend strength needed for this job.
When it comes to sheep you
looked for a steady worker that would willingly jump up on the sheep
backs in the yards and bring them to you from the fields. The Koolie
meets all these requirements and responds to the work with a willingness
and devotion that have their owners refusing offers of ten’s of
thousands of dollars when offered for their
prized partners. Koolies
have shown their metal in every form of work from on the land to
Obedience, Tracking, Agility and Rescue Service, Koolies have been used
as therapy dogs in nursing homes and as animal educators for children at
school.Currently many Koolies, are
participating in workshop clinics to prepare for future endeavours with
the Sporting Registers Trials and events or just practical application
of the Koolie on the land. We are making every endeavour to actively
promote and present clinics in Victoria, Nsw and Qld and aim to provide
good strong qualified instruction in the training of Koolies.
American members of the Koolie Club of
Australia have chosen to also become members of the American Herding
Breed Association, Their Koolies have been certified through the HCT
which is a Herding Instinct Test - the test is used to determine how
strong the herding instinct is. There are 2 legs of the test that the
dog must pass in order to be certified. They have also become members of
the Australian Shepherd Club of America this membership is used by the
ASCA to track our members participation in herding events. Without
membership no points or certification can be awarded. A person can
participate without membership but it would only be for fun with no
recognition.
Medically our American members Koolies are registered with the Canine
Eye Registry Foundation that certifies they are free of all know
hereditary eye diseases. And are preparing to x-ray for HD , we hope
through these effort to preserve the Koolies working ability and retain
healthy bloodlines for the future.
The Koolie Club of Australia aspires to
meet our members and breeds needs by focusing on all facets of the
working dog, this includes herding workshops, agility & obedience
clinics for the training and DNA testing and genetic research for the
breeding. Koolies registered with the Koolie Club of Australia Inc. are
accepted for registration on the Sporting Registers of both the
Victorian Canine Association, the Royal New South Wales Canine Council &
the Queensland Canine Control Council. Koolies on these sporting
registers can now compete in events run by those bodies such as herding,
obedience, agility, tracking and receive full recognition as Koolies, in
all results published and on certificates. They can also compete without
the requirement of being de-sexed before entering and are no longer
noted as an “associate” breed on documentation.
Genetic Technologies Services Australia have recognized the Koolie Club
of Australia as official collectors of Koolie DNA, this is offered to
all members who wish to have their Koolie tested.
correct
information and sound proper protection, is needed to preserve
this breed.
One
such book, by author Angela Sanderson called "Australian Dogs",
out by the Currawong press refers to the Australian Koolie; then
called the German Collie. What is of most importance in her book
is her own reference to a much earlier German writer Von
Stephanitz and his book "The German Shepherd In Word and
Picture" released 1925 in which he writes "The Australian
grazier were sufficiently impressed with German sheep dogs to
import them”, he then names one of the breeds which were
imported, as the German Tiger (pronounced with a long "e" not a
short "i") and describes them as “long or short coated, prick
eared type of Merle colouring similar to the type already found
in Australia called the German Collie.” ( this proves that
German Tigers were imported, but it proves more importantly that
the 
industry in Australia transported
a German by 
Koolie breed been recognized before now? The answer is simple; the men
and women who bred and worked the Koolie did so to continue an excellent
working dog that could adapt to all terrains and weather conditions.
This was a dog that would work until it dropped just for the shear love
of working and still be a loyal companion at days end. It is only in
recent times that we have felt the need to register our Koolies. As
people have moved away from the area, the search to find other Koolies
for breeding became difficult, so many Koolies were simply bred to other
good working dogs. People became concerned that the Koolie may be in
danger of being bred out of existence.
