There’s a certain amount of irony in the fact that were it not for the objections of Collie fanciers in 1909, the Sheltie would still be known as the Shetland Collie, (ironic since we bet every Sheltie owner has been asked at LEAST once, “Is that a miniature Collie?”). That said, as early as 1844, Shelties were identified as a special dog found on the Shetland Islands. In an article by Pat Ferrell, ASSA (American Shetland Sheepdog Association) Historian, she writes that while the beginnings of the breed are somewhat clouded, it’s been long supposed that the earliest dogs of this breed could be traced to a….”Northern Spitz type dog brought from Scandinavia by the early inhabitants, a King Charles Spaniel, the original Pomeranian and other dogs indigenous to the islands as well as the Scotch Collie.” Later in the early 20th century, James Loggie added a small Rough Collie to the breeding stock, and helped establish what would become the modern Shetland Sheepdog.

Photograph of a Shetland sheepdog from 1915, from Wikicommons