In a message dated 97-05-08 13:07:37 EDT, you write:

<< Iris Combe book _Collies Yesterday and Today_ >>

I have this book, it is a very small one, but has several nice paintings of
Collies as well as photos.

I also have Sheepdogs, My Faithful Friends.  Gael, one of Halsell's dogs, was
a Sheltie.  He did herd with her, doing close-in work (not distance work with
long casts, though).  I wrote to him several years ago to see if he knew of
others who were working with Shelties, but he said that he didn't.

Collies came in *lots* of shapes and sizes in the early days!  The original
Beardie generally had a terrier-type or deerhound-type coat, not the Lhasa
Apso coat you see now.  (I liked the earlier type much better, you could see
the outline of the dog.)

The more I think about it, the more I think there needs to be a kennel club
for "old fashioned" dogs of many breeds!  Cats, too!  (Like the people who
are breeding the original type of round-headed Siamese cats.)  When I look at
the old photos, I usually prefer the earlier version.

Linda R.
Pacifica, CA