The Shetland Sheepdog is probably descended from Scottish Rough Collies brought to the Scottish island of Shetland and crossed with the Icelandic Yakkin, a small island dog (now no longer recognised) brought over in the boats of fishermen. By 1700, the breed was completely developed. For centuries these little dogs were used to herd and guard the sheep flocks of the Shetlands, those rugged islands off the Scottish coast where many of the animals are rather small in stature. Refinement of the Sheltie took place mainly in the twentieth century after the export of Shelties to mainland Scotland and beyond. These small shepherds were very gentle when herding the miniature stock. One of the top obedience competition breeds, the Sheltie is an extremely smart and willing worker. Because of his kindly disposition, the Shetland Sheepdog has become one of today’s most popular companion dogs.

Appearance
The general appearance of the Shetland Sheepdog is that of a Rough Collie in miniature. A male Sheltie should appear distinctly masculine and a female distinctly feminine.

Character
The Shetland Sheepdog is affectionate, loyal, highly intelligent and an extremely willing worker. Shetland Sheepdogs may be wary with strangers but are intensely devoted to their family members, including children and other dogs. Shetland Sheepdogs excel in performance events, and many still serve as working farm dogs. Shelties make excellent guard dogs, alerting to any intrusion with enthusiastic barking. Owners of a Shetland Sheepdog can expect a very loving and responsive dog. It is an excellent guardian of children and is friendly, yet reserved, with strangers. Shelties do especially well with children if they are raised with them from an early age; however, their small size makes it easy for a child to accidentally injure them, so supervision is necessary. The Sheltie loves to please its master and is an excellent candidate for obedience work. The Shetland Sheepdog can live outdoors in a temperate climate, but it is strongly advised that the Sheltie be a house dog. The Shetland Sheepdog is too attached to its family to do well separate from them.
 

Temperament
The Shetland Sheepdog is an outstanding companion dog and is intensely loyal. It is lively, intelligent, trainable, and willing to please and obey. Shelties are loving, loyal, and affectionate with their family. Some can be quite reserved and some have varying degrees of shyness. Although they are excellent family pets. Shelties have a reputation as vocal dogs, but that might be undeserved. Ill-bred dogs often display a terrier-like personality--hyper and yappy, always on the go--but can just as easily be overly timid and may become a fear-biter. The intelligent Sheltie can be trained to be an excellent watch dog, and not yappy, giving two or three barks to alert its owner to a person at the door.

Unlike some dog breeds, males and females make equally good pets. The main difference is that males tend to have more impressive coats, and unspayed females will 'blow' coat after every heat cycle.

Exercise/Training
The Shetland Sheepdog is energetic, but its exercise needs can be met with a good walk, short jog or active game and training session. Playing and obedience are very good types of mental exercise. 20 minutes obedience and playing with your Sheltie will be more useful for the dogs exercise then an hour walk on the leash can provide.

Color
Acceptable colors for the Shetland Sheepdog include: black, blue merle, sable, sable merle, and predominantly white. The black, blue merle, sable, and sable merle are marked with varying amounts of white, tan, or white and tan trim. Sable ranges from golden through mahogany. The predominantly white has a sable, black, blue merle or sable merle head, with or without tan trim, and the body has small amounts of like-colored markings. White should never predominate on the head and should never surround the eyes. The ears should also be predominately colored. When evaluating the relative merit of dogs, faults and merits of color and markings are always secondary to those of physical soundness and gait, except that a dog with the serious color faults described below should never be considered for awards in conformation competition.

Grooming
The thick coat of the Shetland Sheepdog needs brushing or combing every other day. A good nutrition and regular brushing keeps the proper coat shine and the skin healthy. Bathing doesn’t harm the coat of the Sheltie as long as you use a good quality shampoo that doesn't dry the skin and coat and is formulated for a canine coat. The ears of the Shetland Sheepdog should be kept clean and regularly inspected as well.

Any breed described as "good with children", the dog must be accustomed to children. Any dog that is not well socialized with children will not behave predictably around them. As with all dogs, they should never be left alone with young children.