The history of Miniature Australian Shepherds actually starts with the history of the standard Australian Shepherd. Several theories exist regarding the origin of the Australian Shepherd as it is known today, but it is believed that these dogs were bred to aid the Basque Shepherds with their flocks of sheep in the United States.
Despite its name, the Australian Shepherd as we know it today was developed completely within the United States. It is believed that the name Australian Shepherd was given to these herding dogs because they were used to herd and guard large flocks of sheep which had been imported from Australia to the western United States. These hard working dogs impressed the American ranchers and farmers, who also begin using them.
During the 1960’s, a California Australian Shepherd enthusiast acquired several small working Aussies. She was intrigued by their compact size; she worked with a veterinarian to develop a breeding program. Her main goal was to preserve the traits of a standard Aussies, which quickly resulted in litters producing both dogs only 13 to 14 inches tall as well as larger Australian Shepherds. The smaller dogs eventually became known as “Miniature” Australian Shepherds.
The first registry to accept the miniature Australian Shepherd was the National Stock Dog Registry (NSDR). The same to first recognize the Australian shepherd. A 15 inch blue merle male, was the first mini Aussies to be registered.
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