You don’t need to own sheep or other livestock to love the wonderful dogs that fit into the sheepdog or herding breeds category.
On our page here you will find a list of all those breeds that share an instinctual ability to control the movement of other animals.
Owners of these intelligent and lively dogs will often tell stories of them trying to round up other dogs they meet while out walking (particularly white, fluffy things that look like lambs!).
Children and adults may also find themselves being gently rounded up by their family pet with its hyper-herding instincts.
But with skilled training, lots of exercise and stimulation, sheepdog breeds can make excellent, loyal, and loving companions.
Some of the more intelligent and loved dog breeds belong to this group, along with breeds that are extremely popular in other countries but may not be well known in the US.
Our sheepdog breeds list includes:
- The perennially popular German Shepherd dog – known for its loyalty, intelligence, courage, confidence, high levels of ‘trainability’ and ability to be both gentle family pets and guardians.
- Border Collies – perhaps the most intelligent of all dog breeds. Border collies are agile, athletic, packed full of energy and simply love having a job to perform – whether it is herding, obedience work, agility trials, flyball or dock diving!
- Pembroke Welsh Corgi – affectionate, lively, strong, athletic, and companionable without being needy. No wonder the Pembroke Welsh Corgi is one of the world’s most popular herding breeds and one of America’s most loved dog breeds.
- Shetland Sheepdog – the smaller cousin to the Collie, Shelties are bright, easy to train, sensitive and affectionate family dogs. They excel as competitors in obedience, agility, and herding trials, while also making great watchdogs.
Almost all the dogs in our sheepdog breeds list are high energy dogs. So, they are best suited to high energy owners who will put the time into training them, and can give them lots of exercise, socialization, and meaningful work.
They can be a bit aloof with strangers and their herding instincts need to be carefully monitored around young children. Without careful management the strong herding instinct in these breeds can turn into unwanted barking and nipping behavior, particularly if a dog is bored or frustrated.
But if you can match their energy and love the idea of having a highly intelligent, trainable and agile companion that is protective and might help you bring home your first agility trophy, take a look through our list and get your running shoes ready!