The Huntaway (also known as the New Zealand Huntaway) is a large, strongly-built

breed A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. ...

used for general sheep-herding tasks in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, where they originate. They were bred to use their loud, deep bark to drive sheep. The breed dates from the late-19th century, and is distinguished only on working ability. There is no prescribed appearance or lineage, but they are usually black-and-tan coloured. Only dogs that win at trials may be registered by the New Zealand Sheep Dog Trial Association in their studbook. Clive Dalton.
Farm dogs – Heading dogs, huntaways and all-purpose dogs
, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 1-Mar-09 , Retrieved 4 August 2012

Description

Huntaways are large, deep-chested dogs that generally weigh in the region of . Their coats can vary in colour; colours include black and tan (usually) with some white or brindle. Their coats can also come in different textures; they can be smooth, rough, or grizzly and they are generally floppy eared. A Huntaway's height is usually in the range of . They are required to have great intelligence, agility and stamina for days of working on steep, rough country over large distances, driving very large mobs of sheep. Their bark is deep and repeating, usually with a short pause between barks, which allows the barking to be sustained for very long periods.

History

The Huntaway was developed as a breed in response to farming conditions found in the New Zealand high country. The vast pastoral runs or "stations", such as those in the high country of the South Island, required teams of dogs who could work mustering for days on end, covering great distances on rough steep country. High country stations typically cover many thousands of hectares, and were often unfenced. British

sheepdog A sheep dog or sheepdog is generally a dog or breed of dogs historically used in connection with the raising of sheep. These include livestock guardian dogs used to guard sheep and other livestock and herding dogs used to move, manage and con ...

s used by early New Zealand farmers mostly worked sheep silently, but occasionally a dog would use its bark to herd sheep. This characteristic was liked by some farmers, especially for driving sheep on rough, steep hill country where a dog may disappear from view, making a dog that drives stock by sight less useful.

Collie Collies form a distinctive type of herding dogs, including many related landraces and standardized breeds. The type originated in Scotland and Northern England. Collies are medium-sized, fairly lightly-built dogs, with pointed snouts. Many type ...

s and other working sheepdogs with the barking trait would have been crossed with any other breed that had other desirable traits, including size, stamina and a steady barking ability, as these are the traits that differentiate the Huntaway from the heading dog today, but the exact lineage is not known. The earliest references to Huntaways are in the late 19th century. A sheepdog trial with a specific class for Huntaways was advertised in the Upper Waitaki in 1870. "Wanted" advertisements for "huntaway sheepdogs" were in the ''

Otago Daily Times The ''Otago Daily Times'' (''ODT'') is a newspaper published by Allied Press Ltd in Dunedin, New Zealand. The ''ODT'' is one of the country's four main daily newspapers, serving the southern South Island with a circulation of around 26,000 and ...

'' newspaper in 1884, heading and huntaway collies were advertised for sale in 1885. The Huntaway was further developed as a separate breed from the heading dog during the 20th century.

Breed recognition

As of August 2013 the Huntaway breed was recognised by the New Zealand Kennel Club (NZKC).http://www.nzkc.org.nz/pdf/rules_regs/registration_regs.pdf, Retrieved 16 March 2014 This is the first recognition of a dog breed of New Zealand origin.http://www.nzkc.org.nz/, Retrieved 16 March 2014 There is an NZKC standard for the Huntaway breed, but the standard notes: :It is the opinion of the New Zealand Sheepdog Trial Association that a Huntaway should never be shown, due to the large variance in colour, type and size and the inability to prove in a show ring their core (and only) task of working stock. It is the opinion of the New Zealand Sheepdog Trial Association that a New Zealand Huntaway should not be kept solely as a pet. No changes to the official breed standard of the New Zealand Huntaway will be made without consultation with the New Zealand Sheepdog Trial Association.http://www.dogsnz.org.nz/breeds/info/nz-huntaway/535, Retrieved 11 October 2017

Health

A possible predisposition to

dilated cardiomyopathy Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a condition in which the heart becomes enlarged and cannot pump blood effectively. Symptoms vary from none to feeling tired, leg swelling, and shortness of breath. It may also result in chest pain or fainting. C ...

has been identified in the breed. Some hereditary diseases have been identified in Huntaways, these include:

mucopolysaccharidosis Mucopolysaccharidoses are a group of metabolic disorders caused by the absence or malfunctioning of lysosomal enzymes needed to break down molecules called glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). These long chains of sugar carbohydrates occur within the cel ...

, sub-aortic stenosis,

black hair follicular dysplasia Follicular dysplasia is a genetic disease of dogs causing alopecia, also called hair loss. It is caused by hair follicles that are misfunctioning due to structural abnormality. There are several types, some affecting only certain breeds. Diagnosi ...

, and

fetal anasarca A fetus or foetus (; : fetuses, foetuses, rarely feti or foeti) is the unborn offspring of a viviparous animal that develops from an embryo. Following the embryonic stage, the fetal stage of development takes place. Prenatal development is a ...

General information

They have been bred to muster in the hills and mountains of New Zealand where it is difficult to walk or ride, so worded commands and whistles are used to communicate commands to these dogs when they are at a distance. They are well known for being a noisy dog, especially when working. They are the second most common breed of dog in New Zealand, after

Labrador Retriever The Labrador Retriever or simply Labrador or Lab is a British list of dog breeds, breed of water dog retriever gun dog. It was developed in the United Kingdom from St. John's water dogs imported from the Newfoundland Colony, colony of Newfoun ...

Hunterville Hunterville is a small town in the Rangitikei District, Rangitikei district of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located halfway between Taupo and Wellington on State Highway 1, and as of the 2018 census has a population of 408. The town ...

in the North Island of New Zealand is known for its statue of a Huntaway.

References

External links

General Huntaway Information

Huntaway Club UK
{{Pastoral dogs Herding dogs Dog breeds originating in New Zealand