I was 12 or something like that and our family moved from a house in Salt Lake to a house in Provo. My next door neighbors were actually my aunt, uncle and of course cousins. My cousin Troy is the one that owned the dog that started my love affair with the cattle dog. Well actually it was his dog Kizzy. Kizzy was a female blue heeler and she was amazing.

We lived next to a park, and a big hill. On top of the hill was an elementary school. The children would walk through the neighborhood, into the park, and up the hill to get to school everyday. As a true herding dog, Kizzy would follow one group up to the schoolyard, turn around and run back to find another group. She would do this all morning, until the children stopped coming. At this point she would wait at the school until that magical time when the children would reverse their routes. On more than one occasion the principal would call my cousin and let them know that Kizzy was hanging out at the school and they would appreciate it if he would come pick her up. I don't understand the principals logic because Kizzy never hurt a fly, except for one time, another dog.

Directly across the street from us, the neighbors had a large dog about 3 times the size of Kizzy. The paper boy, who one could argue, was not the brightest crayon in the box would throw the paper directly at the dog, in its pen. This worked well for a period of about six months until the dog escaped and proceeded to knock the boy from his bike and latch onto the boys face. Kizzy attacked the dog, causing the dog an immense amount of harm and saved the paperboys life. The paper boy did need reconstructive surgery on his face, but was saved due to Kizzy. The local newspaper even did a story on Kizzy, proclaiming her a hero.

I had totally fallen in love with this dog and I am not sure if she passed away before we moved back to Salt Lake or after. The only thing I know is I couldn't wait until I was on my own to get a Blue Heeler of my own. Several years later I briefly had an encounter with a very beautiful Red Heeler named Diggs. When I was 23 and decided to get me my very own dog, I couldn't decide on a color or a sex, so I got a blue male and a red female.

Having two of these dogs, has occasionally, been a nightmare. High energy dogs that get bored easily can destroy a lot of your favorite belongings. It has been an expensive journey but 13 years later, I don't regret it for one second.

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Often times I have told people I have a Red Heeler for a dog. I get asked "Wow, is that like a Blue Heeler?" Yes, Yes it is. I have one of those too and they are the exact same breed. As a matter of fact these dogs have several names; Red Heeler, Blue Heeler, Halls Heeler. The American Kennel Club would refer to them as Australian Cattle Dogs. A more generic name is Queensland Heeler. The term Red Heeler or Blue Heeler are a reference to the color of the dog, not a different breed. Queensland Heelers that are brown, are referred to as Red Heelers and Queensland Heelers that are grey or black are called Blue Heelers. Two Red Heelers can have a Blue Heeler and two Blue Heelers can have a Red Heeler. A Blue Heeler and a Red Heeler do not produce a purple dog. There is one difference between a Queensland Heeler and an Australian Cattle Dog. To be American Kennel Club certified they cannot have a docked tail. In other words the Blue Heeler, Red Heeler, Queensland Heeler are unwanted dogs by the American Kennel Club, because they don't have tails.

Queensland Heelers came about in Australia in the 1800's. When the ranching of cattle started to move further west, ranchers started to notice that the dogs they had been using couldn't keep up or get the job done in the deserts harsh environment. Years of experimentation yielded what we have now, the Queensland Heeler. I have read numerous books and sources about the creation of the cattle dog. There is numerous speculation about what type of dogs went in to the creation of the Red Heelers and the Blue Heelers. I don't think anyone really knows. One expert claims to know one theory and another expert claims a completely different theory. The most common combination that comes up more than any other is: Blue Merle Collie, Australian Kelpie, Dalmation, Dingo, and Staffordshire Terrier.

The Blue Merle Collie apparently has the smallest influence on Red Heelers. Their only noticeable contribution is the grey color in the Blue Heelers. Red Heelers get their coloring from one of the other breeds.

The Australian Kelpie was chosen for its innate ability to work cattle. Heelers are natural herding dogs. Queensland Heelers will nip the heels of cattle to get them to start moving, a trait that non-working dogs still carry and has given many dogs an aggressive reputation. This is why they have the name heeler, a trait they most likely inherited from the Kelpie.

The Dalmation was chosen for its natural love and affinity for horses. If you ever see a picture of an old horse drawn fire engine and a Dalmation on the seat, now you know why. Dalmations can naturally tell the difference between a horse and a cow. Nothing could be a bigger annoyance than having your dog heel your mount. The Dalmation's DNA is why Queensland Heelers are born white.

The Dingo was chosen for its endurance, stamina and ability to withstand and survive in Australias western desert. A Red Heeler unlike the Blue Heeler gets its coloring from the Dingo. Dingos were too wild and aggressive to work cattle so they had to mix it with others to make it trainable. Don't underestimate your heeler though. One animal biologist has suggested that the Queensland Heeler is as close as you can get to owning a wild animal without a special permit.

Lastly is the Staffordshire Terrier. Did I mention that the Queensland Heeler nips at the heels of the cattle to get them to move? Well if you are going to be working with your teeth all day, you are going to need a strong bite.


Now that you know that Blue Heelers, Red Heelers, Queensland Heelers, Halls Heelers and Australian Cattle Dogs are all the same dog, you can watch these movies which have featured a heeler. "Last of the Dogmen", "The Road Warrior", "Secret Window" and more recently "The Incredible Hulk".

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