The McNab Shepherd—also called a McNab Sheepdog, McNab Border Collie, or McNab Herding Dog—is a breed

Dog breed

Dog breeds are groups of closely related and visibly similar domestic dogs, which are all of the subspecies Canis lupus familiaris, having characteristic traits that are selected and maintained by humans, bred from a known foundation stock....

 of dog

Dog

The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...

 whose focus is on herding

Herding

Herding is the act of bringing individual animals together into a group , maintaining the group and moving the group from place to place—or any combination of those. While the layperson uses the term "herding", most individuals involved in the process term it mustering, "working stock" or...

. It originated from a smooth-coated dog typically reported to be the Scotch Collie

Scotch collie

Scottish Collie or Scotch Collie was a Victorian era term originally given to the various collie dog types derived from Scotland region. What a scotch collie was so varied. Largely abandoned by the end of the 20th century the name has recently been resurrected by breed historians of the collie dog...

 or Fox Collie, which was also the ancestor of the Border Collie

Border Collie

The Border Collie is a herding dog breed developed in the Anglo-Scottish border region for herding livestock, especially sheep. It is the most widespread of the collie breeds....

.

Appearance

The appearance of dogs called McNabs can vary widely, though all in all, they closely resemble a shorthaired Border Collie or general shorthaired mix breed of dog. Their shared roots with Border Collies means that they are often predominantly black or red with white markings — white muzzle with a white streak running up the head between the eyes, usually a white neck and chest, white-tipped tail and one or more white feet. Some are large dogs of approximately 70 lb (32 kg), while others are as small as 35 lb (16 kg). Some have natural bobtail

Natural bobtail

A natural bobtail is an animal's tail which due to a mutated gene grows unusually short or is missing completely. The genes for the shortened tail may be dominant or recessive....

s and others have long, narrow, short-furred tails. Its ears are medium sized and can be "pricked" or the top half may flop over. The coat is smooth or short. A strong characteristic of the McNab is its "cat-like" feet which enhance its agility.

Temperament

The primary quality that these dogs are bred for is their herding ability; they are well known as cattle

Cattle

Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...

 herders, but can herd other animals, such as horse

Horse

The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...

s, sheep, and llama

Llama

The llama is a South American camelid, widely used as a meat and pack animal by Andean cultures since pre-Hispanic times....

s. McNabs are well-mannered dogs, hard-working, good personal hygiene, and friendly with small domestic animals such as cat

Cat

The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...

s and chicken

Chicken

The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...

s, but they require extensive grounds in which to run and are happiest with a job to do. The McNab can also be an excellent deer and boar hunting dog. What is interesting to note, is that when the McNab is bred with any other breed, the temperament of the McNab will transcend that of any other breed associated with it. The McNab is also less 'high strung' or obsessive than the Border Collie. They were bred to have more "backbone" than the original Border Collie. It is common for a McNab to bark while they herd. They should exercise physically but also mentally by learning new activities or 'tricks' and being allowed to explore and learn new environments. This breed is sociable with other dogs and humans.

History

These dogs were developed by the Alexander McNab family in Mendocino, California

Mendocino, California

Mendocino is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California, United States. Mendocino is located south of Fort Bragg, at an elevation of 154 feet...

, starting in the late 1800s from collies he brought from his native Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

.