Of Dogs and Shepherds: Sheepdog Culture and the American Pastoral

Abstract

This text analyzes American sheepdog culture through the lens of American pastoralism, taking its cue from the obvious connection between pastoralism and shepherds, but also locating elements of the American pastoral – in particular the tension between nature and civilization and ambivalence towards technology – in the development of sheepdog trials in the US, the figure of the American shepherd, the shepherd’s attitude to the dog and the training methods used in the process of training a sheepdog.