About Us

Our Aussies have always been a part of our life on the farm.  Accompanying us on our regular horse rides, around the farm, riding in the tractors, combines and trucks with us and helping us move cattle and bring the cattle up to the barn when need be.  The dogs work the sheep regularly at our place as well, helping us load stock and hold sheep while we vaccinate, etc. We just enjoy this breed and find their mental and physical capabilities and traits to be ideal for us and our needs.

Our Breeding Program:  
The Australian Shepherd breed was founded on a strong working heritage in which it was valued for its natural instinct with livestock and its suitability as a companion and an all around farm dog.  The Aussie possessed unique characteristics necessary to fulfill these purposes and at Roanoak, we are dedicated to maintaining the heritage and traits of the old working farm Aussie and continue to develop it as it was originally intended, as an enthusiastic and instinctive working partners.

The Characteristics We Breed For:
Today, there are far more opportunities for the Aussie than ever before with the advent of competitive dog sports.  Our dogs are selectively bred for a blend of the mental and physical characteristics necessary to succeed as an all around competitor. 
 
*Natural instinct with livestock
*Physically sound and agile
* Intensity
* Biddability (desire to work as a partner)
* Trainability (learns quickly)

Why a working heritage is so important:
The Aussie has long been valued for its intelligence, intuitiveness and trainability.  They possess unique characteristics of problem solving and reasoning.  These characteristics were inherent in the breed because the dogs were being selected based on their abilities to work  livestock.  In order to be an effective stock dog, Aussies had to be capable of thinking on their feet, adjusting to ever changing situations and to reason and problem solve as they went.  Over the years, the Aussie has been developed to fulfill the role of an urban companion animal and are being bred to meet physical characteristics for the show ring with no idea as to the dog's abilities with livestock.  Without efforts being made to maintain the breed's heritage and using working instinct as a selection criteria in breeding, we are gradually losing the very essence of this breed.  We are losing the biddability, trainability and problem solving capabilities in these dogs.  If breeders are not selecting for  instinctive capabilities with livestock, these characteristics will gradually be lost.  At Roanoak, I am striving to maintain the working ability and instinct of our dogs.  We still appreciate that their mental abilities go hand in hand with their working abilities.  No matter what purpose your Aussie fulfills, it is these mental characteristics that give this breed their unique character.

Our home

 

 

 

Nick on our 'King Ranch' bred Quarter Horse Pepparetto and his grandpa Jerry on his AQHA World Superhorse Tucker's Vaquero!