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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe purebred Australian Shepherd doesn’t have webbed feet. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n If your Aussie does have webbed feet, it’s more than likely that at some point it has been crossbred with some other breed that was mostly developed for swimming. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of these breeds that are occasionally mixed with Australian Shepherd are Golden Retriever<\/a> or Labrador Retriever. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Don’t mix this up with the webbed feet they have as puppies. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Almost all dog breeds have webbed feet at a very young age that goes away as they mature.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n However, this doesn’t mean that Australian Shepherds can’t be great swimmers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though they don’t have webbed feet, they have natural instincts that help them hold their own when in water. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some Aussies may be a bit reluctant at first to get their feet wet, but once they get used to the water they surely do enjoy it and can learn to be excellent swimmers<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So we’ve established that Australian Shepherds don’t have webbed feet, but what kind of feet they do have? <\/p>\n\n\n\n Aussie’s feet are rather large, oval, and compact. <\/p>\n\n\n\n They’re rather large and feature thick pads and closely-knit and well-arched toes which help them withstand any kind of environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The standard for Australian Shepherd describes the type of their feet as semi-hare or modified hare feet. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Having this kind of foot allows Aussies to trot long distances, easily change direction, and instantly alter their gait depending on the roughness of the terrain. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Like all dogs with this kind of feet, they have a longer third digital bone which helps them reach the faster initial speed, a trait that is very useful when herding livestock. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, according to the Australian Shepherd standard, the pads should be resilient and thick as it is important for traction, shock absorption, and protection on particularly rough terrain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Different dogs are developed and bred for different purposes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And, just like developing other traits over time that are useful for what a dog does, they also have different types of paws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every paw type is suited for a certain environment and the type of activity a certain dog normally engages in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, dogs that tend to swim more will have a different type of feet compared to those whose tasks involve a lot of running across the rough terrain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In general, dog paws can be classified into three main categories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cat’s paws are the smallest and the most compact of all three types of dog’s feet. In addition, they’re also the most rounded of all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n They got their name because they resemble feline feet with their neat and round shape. Of course, cat’s feet in dogs have nothing to do with retractable claws. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Dog paws that belong in this category feature high-arched toes that are closely knit together. <\/p>\n\n\n\n They have a shorter third digital bone which allows dogs to spend less energy while getting their feet off the ground and provide a good grip and stability on rough terrains. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Dogs that have this kind of feet are mostly working dogs, such as Akitas<\/a> or Dobermans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dogs with hare feet have paws with two central toes which are a bit longer than the others, similar to what you can see with rabbits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The toes are also not as distinctively arched as with the cat’s feet, which makes the whole foot seem longer than the average. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Just like rabbit’s paws, this type of dog’s feet has a longer third digital bone. This means that they require more energy to move. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, this also means that they can move faster and reach higher speeds over short distances. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Dogs with paws that belong in this category, such as Greyhounds, are known for their speed and acceleration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While most dogs have webbing between their toes as puppies, only some breeds keep this skin membrane when they mature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The feet with webbing are similar to the feet of aquatic animals such as ducks or frogs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This type of paws is the most common with breeds that were developed to assist hunters and fishermen by retrieving downed birds or capturing fishing nets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Webbed feet help these dogs swim faster and better control their movement while in water. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The best-known representatives are Newfoundlands and Labrador Retrievers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Besides swimming, some breeds, such as Dachshund, use webbed feet for digging when chasing after rodents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Healthy feet are essential for proper dog’s movement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n They support the weight of the whole body and are first in contact with rough and tough terrain, rucks, hot asphalt, thorns, and anything else that can hinder a dog’s movement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Poor and unhealthy feet can seriously limit a dog’s athletic ability, not to mention causing a lot of pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Taking care of a dog’s paws is especially important with breeds that are extremely active such as Australian Shepherds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Make sure to regularly check your Aussie’s feet and keep them clean and dry. This is something you should do after every outing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, whenever you introduce a new type of activity, make sure to ease your dog into it so their feet can get used to new surfaces and movement patterns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Australian Shepherds are among the most hard-working and energetic breeds in the world. They’re tireless, extremely active, and willing to do whatever you ask of them. So, it’s very likely … Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":6061,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[654],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6022","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-australian-shepherd"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6022","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6022"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6022\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6061"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6022"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6022"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6022"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What Kind of Feet do Australian Shepherds Have?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/puplore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/are-australian-shepherds-hypoallergenic-1-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nDifferent Types of Dog Paws<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Cat’s Feet<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Hare Feet<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Webbed Feet<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n