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Location: Utah Years In The Breed: 20+ MASCUSA Member: Yes Program Type: Preservation Breeder 1. Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your background in breeding Miniature American Shepherds? I started in Australian Shepherds at the age of 11. Originally Aussies were smaller, I believe over the years with AKC recognition they have been bred up in size, bone and coat. I have been involved with MAS long before AKC recognition, I am a petite girl and I felt like the MAS that I breed is more true to the Aussies I grew up with. I have maintained true AKC/ASCA Australian Shepherd lineage in my MAS.  2. What drew you to the Miniature American Shepherd breed, and what do you love most about them? Their brains! Such smart dogs, they have a wicked sense of humor. Of course they also are beautiful to look at as well. Every one of them is unique. 3. How do you approach the breeding process to ensure the health and well-being of your dogs? Logically, with research and study. Too many breeders focus on things that do not matter in the long run. A clear DNA breed panel is not an indication of health. Eye Caer, OFA, and longevity is far more an indicator of health. Generations of passing eyes and OFA is more important to me than DNA results.  4. What are the most important qualities you look for in a Miniature American Shepherd when considering breeding? Sound structure, movement and type. Color is only the icing on the cake. DNA results to attempt to avoid producing affected dogs. OFA results, of not only the potential parents, but generations back.  5. What challenges have you faced as a breeder, and how have you overcome them? The frustration of this being a “color” breed and pet buyers only wanting merles or blue eyes. Or of breeders not educating themselves on the breed standard, not understanding the importance of proper movement. (If it doesn’t move correctly, it isn’t built correctly). The breed is suffering so badly from over popularity. Overcoming it?? I just stay in my own lane and do what I feel is best for the breed and for my program. Letting others learn from their own mistakes is best.  6. Can you describe your kennel’s environment and how you ensure that your dogs are well-socialized? Handling a lot as newborns, exposing them to things such as the dremel, the dryer, other dogs and cats. My grandchildren are an amazing asset.  7. How do you select prospective owners for your puppies? What qualities do you look for? I require a phone interview to gauge their potential environment. Getting to know their individual needs is important for both the puppy and the buyer. Forming a relationship to be a constant resource for them is invaluable.  8. What advice would you give to someone interested in becoming a breeder of Miniature American Shepherds? FIND A MENTOR. Attend AKC shows, read the breed standard, find…

MASCUSA Honorary Member – Jeanine Perron of Taycin From Karen Keller-Ross of Timeless Miniature American Shepherds, Granddaughter “Jeanine Perron, Vice President of this club, MASCUSA when it first formed, passed away peacefully 11/10/23 with her daughter, Cindy Taylor at her side and her stuffed doggie from her grandson in her arms. Though she no longer remembered anyone a dog in her arms still brought a smile to her face. Jeanine loved our breed. She knew structure & would tell you like it was no matter what. Also known by many as Grandma, she will be greatly missed.“ From Kathy Munson of Destiny Aussies: “I first met Jeanine back in 1988-ish. At the time, I had mini Aussies (MAS) and she had Aussies, but she had her heart set on moving into Mini Australian Shepherds. What started as a simple connection between two breeders quickly turned into a long and meaningful friendship. We worked together in the most natural way—she used a female I’d bred as her foundation – and I used her stud dogs. It was never complicated between us; we both just wanted to build strong, healthy, well-minded dogs. She did exactly that. Her approach to breeding was always pragmatic, steady, and thoughtful—not overly emotional, just deeply committed to the dogs and the work. That’s probably why she became so successful and why her bloodlines still show up in many of today’s Mini American Shepherds. Her influence truly carried forward. But beyond the breeding programs and pedigrees, she became a friend. Someone I could talk dogs with for hours, someone who understood the ups and downs of the breeding world, someone who cared in her own grounded, quiet way. She left a mark on the breed, yes, but she also left a mark on the people who knew her—me included. She will be missed, not only for the dogs she produced, but for the steady presence she was in our dog community. I’m grateful our paths crossed all those years ago. Rest easy, my friend. Your legacy lives on in every pup that carries a piece of your work.” Pictured from Left to Right: Cindy Taylor (Daughter), Jeanine Perron, Lucille Harris, and Kathy Munson (formerly Crosswhite)

by Sue Ritter INTRODUCTION Every breed comes from the desire of individual breeders to develop a dog that fills a need that other dogs just don’t fill. As breedings toward that purpose continue, a breed emerges with dogs that have an identifiable look, temperament and function. So is the case with the development of the Miniature American Shepherd breed. However, the Miniature American Shepherd’s origin is deeply rooted in the Australian Shepherd. This is well-accepted and visually obvious since the main difference between the two is size. Some people have voiced that the size difference is due to breeding Australian Shepherds to smaller breeds, but anyone who has had a connection to Australian Shepherds prior to the 1990’s knows that 2 phenotypes existed even then in Aussies. There were lines of Aussies that consistently produced dogs below 18” and then there lines that produced dogs that grew as large as 25”. Selective breeding produced dogs that fit the current Aussie size standard, but selectively breeding the smaller Aussies did produce even smaller ones that were called the Miniature Australian Shepherd. With AKC recognition, they were then called the Miniature American Shepherd. Most acknowledged that there were breeders who brought in other breeds to decrease the size of the Miniature Australian Shepherd. On the other hand, it’s also common knowledge that some Australian Shepherd breeders brought in other breeds like Rough Collies or Border Collies to add coat or improve herding ability in the Aussies as late as the 1990’s. Prior to DNA parentage testing these “mixed” breedings could not be proven nor stopped. But those breedings were only minor contributors, if much contribution at all, to the development of the size difference between the Australian Shepherd and the Miniature American Shepherd since the genetic basis for size difference existed in the Australian Shepherd already. The history of the Australian Shepherd below will show the origin of the two size phenotypes. Further proof that the Miniature American Shepherd had its genetic roots firmly planted in the Australian Shepherd breed is that on the first day that the AKC accepted registration of the Miniature American Shepherd, hundreds and hundreds of AKC Australian Shepherds were transferred by their owners into registry as AKC Miniature American Shepherds. Hundreds more followed suit by transferring within the next years. United States Australian Shepherd Club of America (USASA), the parent club of the Australian Shepherd, had determined that over 15% of their breed’s registry were dogs that could be registered as Miniature American Shepherds based on size. Since the AKC Miniature American Shepherd comes from the AKC Australian Shepherd, then why are they called the “Miniature” American Shepherd when there is no American Shepherd. Even more curious is why aren’t they called the Miniature “Australian” Shepherd? Again, we must turn to the Australian Shepherd’s history as they entered the AKC registry to find these answers. BRIEF HISTORY OF THE AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERD Beginning in the Basque region in the mountains of Northern Spain, it was a practice to…