Swagman is located in a small town at the base of the Sequoia National Park in the Central Valley of California.  We got our first Mini Australian Shepherd in 1995 and promptly fell in love with the breed.  At the time, the Miniature Australian Shepherd was only recognized by rare breed venues in the US and Canada.  Over the past several years the movement has been to gain recognition with the AKC and other world-wide organizations.

In early 2011 the USASA (parent breed club for the Australian Shepherd), the AKC and NAMASCUSA (the largest breed club and registry of the Miniature Australian Shepherd) developed an appropriate plan to allow the Mini Aussie the recognition they deserve.  They did this by agreeing to split the AKC Australian Shepherd into two separately recognized breeds, and changing the name of the Mini Aussie to the Miniature American Shepherd thus providing a new home in the AKC for the previously unrecognized Miniature Australian Shepherd.  The Miniature American Shepherd is currently recognized for performance events with AKC and should be fully recognized in the herding group by 2014.

MASCUSA (formerly NAMASCUSA) has become the parent club for the Miniature American Shepherd in AKC.  MASCUSA will continue to provide the best representation of the breed in the future and is in the process of planning new and exciting opportunities for it's members and their dogs.  NAMASCUSA will continue to conduct business as a registry for the Miniature Australian Shepherd during this transitional period and will act as a passageway into the AKC for those who choose to go.