Croatian Sheepdog
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Breed at a glance
- Origin
- Croatia
- Height
- Males
- Colour
- black
- Other names
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Use
The Croatian Shepherd has a well-developed herding instinct, and is used both as a sheepdog and as a watchdog . [ 4 ] : 319
intro
The Croatian Shepherd Dog or Hrvatski Ovčar is a Croatian breed of sheepdog of South-European Spitz type. [ 2 ] It is one of seven recognised breeds of dog in Croatia, [ 3 ] and one of two sheepdogs – the other is the Tornjak . It is closely similar to the Mudi of Hungary – with which its range overlaps – but is slightly larger. [ 4 ] : 319
History
The origins of the Croatian Shepherd Dog are unknown. It is a traditional breed of the historic Baranja and Bačka regions of Slavonia , close to the border with Hungary, and may derive from dogs brought to that area from Greece or Turkey, or from elsewhere in the Balkan region. [ 4 ] : 319 A manuscript from 1374 in the archives of the Archdiocese of Đakovo–Osijek reportedly mentions sheepdogs in Croatia, using the Latin phrase canis pastoralis croaticus . [ 5 ] : 6 In about 1935 the agronomist and veterinary surgeon Stjepan Romić started selectively breeding black Slavonian dogs, leading to the development of the modern Croatian Shepherd Dog. [ 1 ] [ 6 ] Examples of the breed were shown in 1949 at a dog show in Zagreb , at that time the capital of the Socialist Republic of Croatia ; a breed standard was drawn up in 1951 by Otto Rohr. [ 1 ] The breed was definitively accepted by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale in 1967. [ 7 ]
Characteristics
The Croatian Shepherd Dog is of medium size: dogs stand some 45–50 cm at the withers , bitches about 2 cm less; for dogs of exceptionally good conformation and type, the breed standard allows a tolerance of up to 3 cm over or under the standard limits. [ 1 ] : 7 The coat is double on most of the body, consisting of a dense soft undercoat and a long soft topcoat, either curly or wavy, with a length varying from 6 to 14 cm ; the hair on the face, ears and lower legs is short. The coat is always black, although some limited white markings are tolerated. [ 1 ] : 8