Appenzeller Sennenhund
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Breed at a glance
- Origin
- Switzerland
- Weight
- 22–32 kg (49–71 lb)
- Height
- Males
- Coat
- double
- Colour
- tricolour: black or Havana brown, with white and reddish-brown markings
- Other names
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Use
The Appenzeller Sennenhund was traditionally used by the Alpine cattle-herders and dairymen of the Appenzell region both to herd cattle and to guard property. [ 3 ] It is often kept as a companion dog . [ 3 ]
intro
The Appenzeller Sennenhund is a Swiss breed of medium-sized working dog . It originates in the Appenzell region of north-eastern Switzerland, and is one of four regional breeds of Sennenhund or Swiss mountain dog, all of which are characterised by a distinctive tricolour coat.
History
The Appenzeller Sennenhund is the traditional working dog of the Sennen – Alpine cattle-herders and dairymen [ 2 ] – of the Appenzell region of north-eastern Switzerland. The earliest written description of it is that of Friedrich von Tschudi in Das Thierleben der Alpenwelt , published in 1853. [ 3 ] [ 4 ] : 553 In the late nineteenth century Max Sieber, a forester who had seen the dogs at cattle shows in eastern Switzerland, asked the Schweizerische Kynologische Gesellschaft [ de ] to recognise the breed; [ 5 ] a commission was established with financing from the canton of St. Gallen [ 5 ] and the Appenzeller Sennenhund was recognised in either 1896 [ 6 ] or 1898. [ 3 ] [ 7 ] : 88 Eight of the dogs were shown at the international dog show in Winterthur in 1898; they were entered in a new Sennenhunde class. [ 5 ] In 1906 a breed society , the Appenzeller Sennenhunde Club, was established at the instigation of the cynologist Albert Heim , who in 1914 drew up the first full breed standard . [ 5 ] The breed was definitively accepted by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale in 1954. [ 8 ] It has spread from Appenzell to other parts of Switzerland and to other European countries. [ 3 ] A study published in 2004 found it to be the most-registered breed in the canton of Appenzell , with 259 out of a total of 1358 registrations in the canton, or about 19% ; in the whole of Switzerland it accounted for 360 of a total of 33 470 , or about 1.1% of all dogs registered by the Schweizerische Kynologische Gesellschaft. [ 9 ] : 226 It is the only Swiss dog breed considered to be at risk by ProSpecieRara , which lists it as gefährdet , 'endangered'. Numbers are stable but the gene pool is narrow; the association is in collaboration with the breed society, the Schweizerischer Club für Appenzeller Sennenhunde , to broaden it. [ 1 ] [ 10 ] It is listed by the Canadian Kennel Club among the herding dogs , and is included in the Foundation Stock Service of the American Kennel Club . [ 11 ] [ 12 ]
Characteristics
The Appenzeller Sennenhund is the third-largest of the Sennenhund or Swiss mountain dog group, which also includes the Grosser Schweizer Sennenhund , the Berner Sennenhund or Bernese Mountain Dog , and the Entlebucher Sennenhund . It is a medium-sized dog: dogs stand some 52–56 cm at the withers , bitches about 2 cm less; [ 13 ] weights are in the range 22–32 kg . [ 14 ] : 66 The coat is double, the top-coat thick, straight and glossy. It is always tricoloured: the principal colour may be either black or Havana brown, with white markings to the chest, face and feet, and reddish-brown areas between those and the base colour. [ 13 ] The tail is set high and is carried in a tight curl over the back when the animal is moving. [ 13 ] The ears are set high and are triangular and fairly small; they hang close to the cheeks when the animal is at rest, and are raised and turned forward when it is alert. [ 13 ] Among the faults that disqualify a dog from registration are a wall eye , a kinked tail, a single coat and a coat that is not three-coloured. [ 7 ] : 88 Dogs may be expected to live for some 12–14 years. [ 15 ] : 290 According to the breed standard, the Appenzeller Sennenhund is lively, high-spirited, athletic and suspicious of strangers. [ 8 ] [ 13 ]