List of Scottish breeds facts for kids

This is a list of domesticated animal breeds originating from Scotland. To be considered domesticated, a population of animals must have their behaviour, life cycle, or physiology systemically altered as a result of being under human control for many generations.

Scotland has produced some of the longest established breeds of domesticated animals still in existence. There are 37 individual breeds of animals from Scotland still in existence and three extinct breeds. The Soay Sheep has prehistoric origins, and the Galloway breed of beef cattle dates back several hundred years. New breeds have also been developed more recently in Scotland, such as the Scottish Fold cat, which dates from 1961.

The North Ronaldsay Sheep is a most unusual breed, subsisting largely on a diet of seaweed, and the Boreray is the UK's rarest sheep, having been listed as "Category 2: Endangered" by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. Some breeds, such as the Shetland Pony and the Border Collie are well known throughout much of the Western world, whilst others such as the Scots Dumpy chicken are little-known, even at home. Fifteen breeds of dog have Scottish origins, including six terrier breeds. Indeed, the relative isolation of many of Scotland's numerous islands has led to a preponderance of breeds from these places being represented. Various breeds are now extinct, including the Grice, an archaic and somewhat aggressive pig.

Breeds

Breed	Photo	Species	Date of Origin	Location of Origin	Status
Scottish Fold		Cat	1961	Coupar Angus	Rare
Aberdeen Angus		Cattle	18th century	Aberdeenshire Angus	Common
Ayrshire Cattle		Cattle	prior to 1800	Ayrshire	Common
Belted Galloway		Cattle	17–18th century	Galloway	Rare
Galloway		Cattle	700–1100	Galloway	Established worldwide
Highland Cattle		Cattle	Before the 1800s	West Highlands	Established worldwide
Luing Cattle		Cattle	After 1947	Luing	"Firmly established"
Shetland Cattle		Cattle	700 - 1100	Shetland	At risk
Scots Dumpy		Chicken	11th century	Highlands	Priority; Rare
Scots Grey		Chicken	16th century	Lanarkshire	Priority; Rare
Bearded Collie		Dog	16th century	Higlands	Common
Border Collie		Dog		Scottish Borders	Common
Border Terrier		Dog	1700's	Scottish Borders	Common
Cairn Terrier		Dog	16th century–19th century.	Scottish highlands	Common
Dandie Dinmont		Dog	mid 18th century or before	Skye and Scottish Borders	Vulnerable Native Breed
Golden Retriever		Dog	1865	Glen Affric	Common
Gordon Setter		Dog	1700s	Moray	Vulnerable Native Breed
Rough Collie		Dog	19th century	Scottish Highlands	Common
Smooth Collie		Dog	19th century	Scotland	Vulnerable Native Breed
Scottish Terrier		Dog	55 B.C. - 100 A.D.	Aberdeen	At Risk
Scottish Deerhound		Dog	1600's	Probably the Highlands	Vulnerable Native Breed
Shetland Sheepdog or Sheltie		Dog	1900's		Common
Skye Terrier		Dog	pre 1588	Skye	Vulnerable Native Breed
West Highland White Terrier or Westie		Dog	16th century	Skye & Argyll	Common
Shetland Goose		Goose	Unknown	Shetland	UK and US - Priority; Critical
Clydesdale		Horse	1750's	Clydesdale	At Risk
Eriskay Pony		Horse		Hebrides	Critical
Highland Pony		Horse	16th century	Highlands and Islands	At Risk
Shetland Pony		Horse	B.C.	Shetland	Common
Boreray		Sheep	1930s	St Kilda, Scotland	Critical
Castlemilk Moorit		Sheep	1900s	Dumfriesshire, from more ancient Scottish and other breeds including Soay and Shetland.	Critical
Cheviot		Sheep	14th century or earlier	Scottish Borders	Common
Hebridean Sheep		Sheep	19th Century (Iron Age)	Cumbria, probably from sheep from the Hebrides	Rare
North Country Cheviot		Sheep	18th century	Cheviot Hills, Caithness, Sutherland	UK and North America
North Ronaldsay Sheep		Sheep	Iron Age	North Ronaldsay	Rare
Scottish Blackface		Sheep	Around the 1500s	Scottish Borders	Common
Shetland Sheep		Sheep	Iron Age	Shetland	UK and North America
Soay Sheep		Sheep	Neolithic or Bronze Age	Soay, St Kilda	Rare

Extinct breeds

Paisley Terrier

Prior to their demise, the Paisley Terrier contributed to the bloodline of the Yorkshire Terrier and the Scottish Tan Face to the Boreray sheep. Although Galloway Ponies were praised by Gervaise Markham in the 17th century for their "fine shape, easie pace, pure metall and infinit toughness", true to form Samuel Johnson described them as "common hackneys". It shares its origins with the still extant Fell Pony. A model of the Grice, whose habit of attacking lambs cannot have aided its survival, was recreated by a taxidermist in 2006.