Portugese Schaaphond

 

   

 

  History 

Living from the remotest times in the highest Portuguese mountain of Estrela, in spite of its obscure origins, he may be considered one of the oldest breeds of the Iberian Peninsula. It can be found from the foot of the mountain to its top, mainly in summer, when, after the snow, the green pastures are much sought after by the herds, which he accompanies.
 As a sheep and watch dog, he protects the flocks against the wolves and other wild animals still existent in the heights. This breed can also be found in other parts of the country, mainly in the Centre, but all have its origin in the Estrela mountain. One of the oldest breed of the Iberian Peninsula. It have his origin in the old time molosser from the central Asia, that in the time of the Visigodos invasions have been intriduced in the Iberian peninsula. There it have been breed to protect the livestocks from wolves, bears and thives.

             

 
General Appearance     Large dog very calm and peacefull. Resistent to diseas. Rustic dog, very strong. It was breed to protect sheeps from wolves, bears and thives.

Characteristics * Large dog, with a lot of muscular strengh. Typical head, strog and powerfull. Strong dog. It was breed to protect sheeps from wolves. Very rustic.

 

Temperament   One of the best guard dogs of the world. especially good for guard farms and livestock. Loves the cam and the freedon. Doen's mind living all year out doors. When is guarding it starts walking around in orfer to inspect. It is extremely agressive to intruders and never forgives a intrusion. If necessary it give his life protecting his properity and family. Extremely loyal and docile to his master and family. Loves his children, and will always play with them and protect his family of any kind of danger. Even for his size is very agile

 

Head  Strong, big, long and slightly convex, with well developed jaws. Smooth skinned skull and cheeks. Stop not very marked, about the same distance from the tip of the nose and the occiput.
WeIl inserted and in good proportion with the body, as well as the skull proportioned to the muzzle, in a whole full of harmony.
Skull * well developed, arched and convex in profile.
Slurred * occiput.
Ears * Comparatively small (11 cm by 10 cm); thin, triangular. slightly rounded at the tip, hanging; moderately high set, slightly leaning backwards; falling close to the head, leaving at the base a bit of the inner side visible. Clipped ears accepted, although natural ears are more appreciated.



Eyes Horizontal, oval eyes. Medium size, well open, neither protruding nor deep set. Keen and calm expression. Preferably dark amber in colour Well closing black rimmed lids. Eyebrows slightly marked.
Nose * Long, narrowing towards the tip, but not sharp. Almost straight but slightly convex at the tip. Nostrils, straight, wide and well open. Always darker than the coat, preferably black.
Mouth * VWide and clean cut, large lips but not very thick, not hanging and well closed. Inner and outer lips black as well as the palate. Strong white teeth, weIl inserted and well adapted.

 

Body  Neck: Straight, short and thick, weIl set into the shoulders, dewlap not too apparent.
Chest* Well filled, wide, but not barrel-shaped, deep and weIl let down.
Above Line* Almost straight back, preferably short, wide loins muscled and well connected to the croup, which should be slightly sloping.
Bottom Line* Belly firmly drawn in, not paunchy, well proportioned to the size, bottom line gradually and smoothly raising from the sternum towards the groin.



Tail  Long, not docked. Should reach the hock when the dog is at rest. Thick, sabre shaped. Set on at normal height, well provided with hair and plumed in long-haired dogs, ending in a hook. At rest, below the horizontal line, hanging naturally between the hips. When the dog is excited or in motion, the tail raises above the horizontal curving upwards, forwards, sidewards or even downwards.


Fore and Hindquarters   Upright, when the dog is in good stance. Forelimbs and pasterns well boned and approximately cylindrical in cross section. Solid bones and muscles throughout. Thick articulations, regular angulations allowing easy movement. Hock slightly down, evenly open and well directed, vertical pastern.
Feet * Well proportioned. Well built, neither too rounded nor too long, more or less between catpaw and harefoot. Thick toes, well closed and hairy in the spaces between them, and between the pads, which should be thick and tough. Dark or preferably black, well grown, nails. The hindlimbs may have one or two dewclaws each.


Coat  Hair: Strong, thick, rather rough, somewhat like goat hair. Smooth or slightly wavy, almost all over the body; very abundant, either in smooth or long hair varieties. Normally the hair is not evenly distributed in certain areas. In the limbs, below the wrist and the hock, it is rather short and dense as it is in the head; in the ears it gets gradually shorter, from the base towards the tip, becoming thinner and softer, It is longer in the tail, which is bushy, thick and plumed, in the long haired variety. It is also rather long around the neck, where it may form a dewlap, and over the buttocks. Also, specially the longhaired dogs, may present a fringe on the back of the forearm.  The undercoat is short, and dense, made of fine hair twisted around the base of the coarser hair and generally lighter than the coat. It is found mainly in the longhaired dogs.



Height  Male   65 to 72 cm.
Bitch * 62 to 68 cm.

Colours * The only allowed colours are: Fawn, wolf, yellow and brindle, either unicolour or white marked.

 

Size and  Weight   Head
Length of skull* -------- 13,5 to 14,5 cm
Width of skull* --------- 12,5 to 14 cm
Length of muzzle* ------- 12 to 13 cm
Body *  Girth *------------------- 75 to 80 cm
Width* ----------------- 18 to 20 cm
Height* ----------------- 28 to 29 cm
Above Line * Length of trunk* -------- 63 to 65 cm
Width of trunk* --------- 12 to 15 cm
Length  Body* ------------------ 68 to 73 cm
Tail* -------------------- 40 to 45 cm
Height  At the withers* ----------- 62 to 72 cm
From the fore limb* ------ 34 to 37 cm
From the croup* --------- 67 to 69 cm
Weight * Male* -------------------- 40 to 50 kg.
Bitch* ------------------ 30 to 40 kg
Gait * Free and easy movements

 

Faults   Penalities and Disqualifications:Head* Too narrow, long and sharp.
Jaws* Overshot.
Eyes* Too light or different in size.
Eears* Misplaced, too fleshy or round.
Tail* Non existent or rudimentary.
Coat* Albinism.
Nostrils* Too light or with spots.
Hair *Very different from standard. Size* Much above or much below standard, with a tolerance of about 4 cm.



Faults  Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree.

Note **  Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

 

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