Page 102 - Aussie Magazine - 2023 Issue 2

History

and her work on numerous revisions when the During the years of ASCA inactivity from 1957
Animal Research Foundation (ARF), one of the through the late 1960s, the International Australian
breed registries prior to ASCA’s registry origination, Shepherd Association (IASA) was formed on the
adopted this well-crafted and insightful document west coast (approximately 1966). Their first breed
in 1967. It states: standard, adopted in 1969 states, “TAIL: The tail is
an extension of the spine; natural bob or docked.
Tails: bob -- the shorter, the better – but NOT tailless. A tail longer than four inches at maturity shall
Purebred Australian Shepherds will produce a disqualify in the conformation ring.” Their thoughts
high percentage of puppies with natural bobtails. on a full-tailed exhibits are clear…it was enough of
These natural bobs will vary all the way from a 2 a distraction from the breed and breed type to be
inch [sic] tail bone to about ½ of the length of the designated a disqualification.
normal tail length of other breeds. Aussies retained
for breeding purposes should be selected for the The following guide was created by Harold E. May,
natural bob factor -- again, the shorter the better. who was the Secretary-Treasurer of ASCA from
Other things being equal, no Aussie should be used 1967 to 1972. The Mays discuss tail docking and
for breeding if it has a tail more than 1/4 the normal the importance of the bobbed tail for the breed.
length. Long-tailed Aussies should never have a tail
in which the bone reaches below the hock-joint of
the rear leg. Pups with tails over ¼ normal length
should be docked shortly after birth. Owners and
breeders of good Aussie bitches should always
base their breeding programs on a Foundation or
"Hub" stud, which has a natural bobtail in which the
bone is no longer than 2 or 3 inches. Only through
this type of selective breeding, can the true type of
Australian Shepherd be produced.

Never has a clearer statement about the importance
of the natural bob tail trait in the Australian
Shepherd been written. While this detailed and
lengthy statement was eliminated from later
versions of the breed standards, it is important
in terms of the breed’s development and from an
historical perspective for you as a breeder.

After their original 1962
breed standard, ASCA
created what I would
consider their first formal
breed standard in 1968.
Their wording on tails
is abbreviated from the
detailed description of their
predecessors, but their
intention on the preser-
vation of the natural bob
tail remains. “Tail: Should
be natural bob, or on long
tails should be docked for
working dogs.”

102 | A Worldwide Magazine for the Aussie • Issue 2/2023