Aussie-Flat

The new hybrid that is known as the Aussie-Flat is either so new or so rare that is not yet registerable with either The American Canine Hybrid Club or with the National Hybrid Registry. The modern Australian Shepherd was actually developed in the farmlands of the United States in the late 19th century rather than in Australia, as the name would suggest. This breed was developed by cattle and sheep herders, most likely from Basque shepherding dogs that traveled from Australia to America in the early 1800’s. The herding dogs developed by the Basque people, most likely Pyrenean Sheepdogs that had been crossed with a Collie type breed are believed to have been crossed with other hard working stock dogs in America in order to develop an agile and enduring herding animal. The Flat Coated Retriever, like most retriever breeds, was developed as a gun dog, employed to flush birds and retrieve them when shot. The original “retriever” was a large Newfoundland-like canine mixed with Setters, Spaniels, and water dogs. It wasn’t until the mid to late 1800’s that a distinction was made between a curly and a flat coat, known then as smooth coated. The Flat Coated Retriever was recognized by the Kennel Club of England in 1874, and by the American Kennel Club in 1909. The mix between the Australian Shepherd and the Flat Coated Retriever is frequently bred for and well-suited to the job of guide dog for the blind. The Australian Shepherd tends to be an efficient guide dog moving quickly with little hesitation, and the Flat Coated Retriever is a more careful and deliberate guide. In most cases, the Aussie-Flat is an F1 cross, meaning that the parents are both purebred rather than hybrid dogs being bred to other hybrids of this type. At this point, breeding only F1 crosses may help to avoid many of the problems like blindness and deafness that are associated with a dog that has a double copy of the Merle coloration gene. Canines of this variety that are not used as guide dogs may make suitable hunting partners, and will definitely make a companionable and somewhat protective family dog.