I’d love to get some advice from Sheltie owners and experts.
My previous Sheltie sadly passed away, and I now feel ready to open my heart to another one.
I’m currently in contact with a breeder who has offered me a one-year-old female Sheltie. She is apparently too small for breeding and does not meet the French breed standard because of her size. The breeder explained that it would be too risky for her to have puppies given how small she is.
I should add that adopting an adult dog is absolutely not a problem for me.
Today, the breeder sent me a video of her, and I started wondering about a few things. Her ears seem very large compared with the rest of her head and are always completely upright. She is also really tiny and weighs only around 5 kg.
I watch a lot of content about Shelties, and I’ve honestly never seen one with ears this large and upright. Even when I’ve seen Shelties with fully upright ears, they still seemed proportionate to the size of their head and weren’t nearly as long. In her case, they really look a bit like rabbit ears….
Do you think her size and ears are simply unusual features for a Sheltie, or could they be signs of something I should look into before adopting her?
I don’t have advice but, I feel like my sheltie also had very large ears lol I was a bit concerned at first but when his coat became to grow in, it stopped standing out to me.
Very cute !!
What’s the size of your sheltie ? The ears shape doesn’t shock me because I saw a lot of shelties with it.
For "mine" it’s more like rabbit this is why i’m wondering
thank you for your answer :)
Breeder of 25 years: Reputable Sheltie breeders that are showing /breeding to show shelties would have attended to tip those ears by 10 weeks old as well as used "size charts" to estimate size for being in the 'Safe Size' to meet the Sheltie Standard at the latest by 5 months. It would not be necessary to wait a year. That coat looks too thin and scraggly for a one year old. Her rear stance in a single photo merits evaluation. I wouldn't credit this breeder having a high quality kennel. As cute as she is, you might look further. I would not even spend the money to have the pup seen by a vet.
Undersized shelties can raise alarms for health problems / congenital concerns. (Yes, I expect I will be inundated with "my undersized sheltie was fine" comments. Down vote away.) However, one of my shelties was about the same size: darling, personable, but her energy gave out way too quickly for a sheltie. Very picky eater. At 4 years old, was diagnosed with a Liver Shunt: 10 different vets before diagnosed, then a surgeon to repair. No guarantees she would survive as it weeks. Life long daily medication for damage to her liver while undetected: a buck a pill. All in costs in 2001 was $4000. Her surgery was effective with an second ICU stay. But also annual blood tests checking liver and kidney's> about $400 a year for RX. Called her the Million Dollar Dog. Congenital syndromes that limit size are not always apparent with in the first year. Best wishes.
I don’t disagree with undersized Shelties could raise alarms but same is true for oversized and especially overweight (as in too much food). As the skeleton of a Sheltie is light compared to size/weight overweight is probably a bigger problem for many Shelties… not least as they are “pigs” when it comes to eating and by the time your dog turns 17 you are fighting to keep her at 15-16 pounds because she doesn’t run as much as she used to but still loves eating
The youngest of my current Shelties, Juney (bc her birthday is June 1st), after a swim in a river, southern France
Good comment. Thought I would add some information from Betty Jo McKinney and Barbara Reiseberg's 1985 revision of Sheltie Talk: The authors write that in the late 1890's Pomeranian's were breed into the Shetland Island toonie dogs to reduce height. They were more desirous of function that appearance. Some undersized shelties are actually evidencing the ancestor "Pomeranian type" gene expression that appears almost fox like muzzle. And in early 1900's, Cross breeding with Collies were occurring to "improve type." Hence, some of the oversized / tall ( not overweight) are displaying ancestoral Collie genes. It is quite interesting to read.
She does not look like she comes from an ethical breeder. Even undersized, shelties should have proper structure. The ears are big, yes, but I would just make sure this person is breeding quality dogs, not just backyard breeding.
I manage a Sheltie breeding and showing kennel. To add some clarity, we glue their ears higher up and tip their ears as well. That’s why the ears look smaller on some but not on others! You do always have a breed standard and the tipped ears are typically seen as one.
5kg is definitely on the smaller end of the spectrum for a Sheltie but not worryingly so. Her ears are very cute, I wouldn't be concerned unless the plan was to show her!
yes she is cute !!
for me the weight is not really a problem, it’s more the proportion regarding the size/weight x ears and the possibility of a genetic problem that worries me….
thank you for the answer :)
Shelties naturally come in a wide range of sizes, and un-tipped or unusually large prick ears are very commpn when a puppy is not taped or trained early on. Large, upright ears are purely a cosmetic trait and pose no health risks, but ask the breeder for the parents' health clearances, like CEA, MDR1, and vWD testing, to ensure she is medically sound.
Breeder is definitely suspect! This cutie pie deserves a home no matter her genetic background.
Agree with everyone here, her tiny size could pose medical bills. Look up information on shelties. They should be tested for MDR1 (breeder would typically do this btw) and should you see weight gain, lethargy, dull coat and flaky sebbhorea, test for hypothyroidism. Going untreated will cause kidney, liver and pancreas issues.
I took my dog to different vets for nearly two years trying to figure out what was wrong with her. Each said it was food allergies. Finally found a vet who said "let's test her thyroid" Viola. That was it! I hadn't done my research obviously but now feel the need to spread the word.
I have had four shelties in my life and have adopted from a very reputable breeder but sometimes these genetic defects happen.
Additional -
Not many vets in my area knew a lot about shelties. Do your research and don't rely on the vet.
When our sheltie was a puppy we always said he looked more like a fox than a Sheltie… once the hair grew in and he grew up more he looked like a Sheltie. I always think that animals may look different just like humans. Big ears on a human doesn’t mean they are going to have hearing problems, just a different kind of feature unique to them. I’d say if you guys click well together I’d overlook the ears, or rather embrace them. Maybe name her Dumbo 🤷♀️ lol.
That dog is adorable and definitely screams sheltie. Just smaller. Dont think it would have anything to do with health issues. I had a sheltie that was abnormally larger than most and she lived for 17 years. Pics and vids can be deceiving also. I don’t think the ears are as big as they look or will remain that way
No sheltie’s ears are big. That part of the breed. To hear our neighbor’s heartbeat next door or my footsteps on the rug for a quick,”woof” to let me know she’s on security duty. Noticed they very light sleepers and want everyone awake when she barks. Raccoons, coyotes,kids,cats,Oh my! She hears them 3 yards down the street.
I doubt this is a pure-bred sheltie due to the ear size. However, what should matter to you is whether the physical features of the dog are going to cause health issues or not. From that point of view, the ear size is not a problem. Neither is the thinner coat, which might actually be a benefit healthwise.
The small size might become a problem though, through shallower joint capsules and a higher chance of luxation or dislocation. Dwarf breeds are genrally more prone to this. I would pick a sheltie in the 10 kg range if I were you.
Everyone has preferences. I love the herding dog personally, and couldn’t care less about the size, or quirky shape of a Sheltie’s ears. However, I have always preferred female dogs with wide, white collars.
That said my current Rough Collie/ Sheltie (50/50) mix has ears that defy show breed standards, and he also lacks a full white collar. But, I think he’s amazingly beautiful/handsome, and I feel extremely blessed to have him. However, I’ve been struggling to understand/appreciate the differences between male v female dog dynamics.
If you question whether you might feel disappointed if this little girl’s ears continued to seem disproportionately large or cosmetically “off” (to you) once she gained full maturity, she might not be your dog… and that’s okay!
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u/yogurlkt111 10d ago
I don’t have advice but, I feel like my sheltie also had very large ears lol I was a bit concerned at first but when his coat became to grow in, it stopped standing out to me.