Gottabe Aussies & Miniature Australian Shepherds

Shiloh, a Sam/Mikey son doin what he does best! Shiloh lives with John & Sherry in Reno, NV

A bit about how Gottabe Started:

Gottabe started in 1994 when I purchased my first aussie.  I had been showing and breeding schipperkes for over 10 years and decided that I wanted another breed, a dog who was a little less independent, one that wanted to do what I wanted to do.  I also wanted to expand into other fields of competition and wanted a dog my daughter could do junior handlers with.  I checked out corgis, shetland sheepdogs, and Australian Cattle dogs before I realized they all came from the herding group.  

A friend had suggested aussies, but I dismissed them as those "muddy spotted dogs" I'd seen on ranches.  Then one day I flipped my calendar and fell in love.  There on January 23, 1993  was a blue merle puppy with two blue eye.   It's a shame to say I fell in love with a picture and not a dog, but the more I investigated, the more I felt this breed was the "one". After contacting several breeders, I bought my first Aussie, Jazmin, from Sunshine Kennels (thank you Lynn Cobb!). Jazmin was a black tri who never got into trouble, never chewed up the hose, never barked too much and was very easy to housebreak. One problem - Jazmin hated to show.

I then purchased Katie from Windfall Kennels. Katie loved to show, wiggled her butt so much that she slapped her cheeks, and thought people were here just for her. Due to an unknown deadly bacteria, I lost Jazmin at the age of three. Katie missed Jazmin so much, Lynn gave me Sam. Sam is also a black tri and thinks that the world is here for her to herd, guard or kiss.

I loved my Aussies, but I soon found out that a 50 pound dog takes a LOT more time to groom for show, takes up lots more space, needs larger crates, heartworm, food, etc. In 1998 I was surfing the web and came upon a Mini Aussie site. These dogs looked just like what I felt a smaller Aussie should look like! I followed the links to several other sites and realized that these dogs were just the size I had been looking for. A smaller version of the dogs I had come to love.

I purchased my first mini in January, 1999 . Her temperament is EXACTLY that of my bigger girls, and she exhibits great herding instinct. She is also a ball fiend! But, she was not the type that I wanted. So, I decided to cross my standard girls with a mini in hopes of bringing in the standard aussie "type" that I loved. I bred my first mini/standard cross litter in 2000. I got the wonderful headtype, coat and bone from my standards, and the smaller size from the minis. Mult. CH. Gottabe's Spot The Winner, Multi. CH. Simon Says Fairplay, and OTCH MACH6 Multi-agility-titled Gottabe's Sparking Cider, and our wonderful Gottabe's Ima Makin U C Red were from these crosses and started the foundation of my kennel. They also show great instinct and drive.

The Miniature Australian Shepherds are not shown in AKC or ASCA shows but in ARBA and IABCA, as well as CKC and Rarities shows.  They were accepted for several years in UKC but have now been refused.

There has been confusion as to what a mini looks like compared to a non-mini. Here is a picture of MY opinion of what a mini is, and what I base my breeding program on - Aussies of a Smaller Size. I do not intentionally breed for a dog unable to do what aussies were bred to do. Since breeding is not an exact science, we don't always get what we want (ask anyone with a teenager!).From left to right: Katie - 18.5" standard female; Freckles - 17.75" mini male, Sam - 19" standard female; Cider - 16.5" mini female.

Wow!  Gottabe pups are now on European soil!

Please visit Jessica Buswell's (great) web site at http://www.miniaussies.co.uk/

Jessica has imported the first Miniature Australian Shepherd into the UK AND has bred the first litter of mini aussies in the UK.

Got Minis?

Jewel, (a Stormie/Shiloh daughter) giving me the aussie "eye" - not the herding eye, the "lets play ball" eye!  Jewel is loved by Connie in Reno, NV.

Gottabe Miniature Australian Shepherds     Lori McClelland, Reno NV  775-425-4040