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Oh. Seeing his picture (Handsome guy!), I can see why the mix was a consideration. His coloring does resemble some Australian Shepherds, very much, & I can see what looks like Border Collie in his face.

The MDR1 thing still applies- especially if breeding. 15% of English Shepherds carry the gene (compared to 50-70% of Collies, for example). MARS would still be a helpful contact because even many breeders whose breeds are affected have been browbeaten into disregarding it & most vets discount it or play it down.
It is a terrifying, cruel, & expensive thing to go through. In the future, I would err on the side of caution rather than trust the U of Washington test. It won’t save your dog. :-X

This can happen with almost any dog, btw. Unless there is a pedigree that documents both parents all the way down their line, it’s impossible to know if there is a herding breed or sighthound somewhere that can throw back to this gene.

Someone said that people will lie to you. That is devastatingly true.

Another issue to consider is whether they can be affected by “double merle” genetic issues. Google “lethal white” or “double merle”. Some of these have come into Eskie rescue; blind, deaf, or both, & have, literally, pure white coats.

Here is another informative website for you, if you haven’t seen it already.

englishshepherds.net

especially this article, as it pertains to breeding

http://www.englishshepherds.net/articles/color1.html

Hope this helps.