Short about the Podengo Portugues breed
Here you will find some information about the Podengo Portuguese breed. The Podengon is Portugal’s national breed. It is an ancient dog originally descended from the pharaoh dog of Egypt. In Portugal it has been known since the end of the 12th century. The Podengo is used for, among other things, hunting rabbits, wild boars, etc., rat catcher and alarm on the farms, but also as a companion.
As you can see in the pictures, Podengos are available in 6 different breeds divided into three sizes with two coat types. The sizes are Pequeno/small 20-30 cm 4-6 kg, Medio/between 40-54 cm 16-20 kg, and Grande/large 55-70 cm 20-30 kg, and the fur types are Liso/smooth-haired and Cerdoso/wire-haired respectively.
The breed is active with a lot of energy. It is a robust and all-round breed that can therefore be successfully used for various activities, for example Agility, tracking, Nosework and Lure Coursing. The latter is a form of artificial rabbit (cloth) hunting.
Fur care
The Podengon’s fur is very easy to care for and does not require special care. The wire-haired one does not need to be trimmed, but many pick on and in front of the ears and in front of the eyes if the dog is very furry.
Colors
The colors of the Podengo Portuguese must be yellow, fawn, in all shades from light to very dark with or without white markings or have a white ground color with spots in the described colors. In the small podengo, the following colors are also accepted, but according to the breed standard they are not desirable; black or brown with or without white markings or white ground color with spots in these colors. Color that is brindle, black with teeth, tricolor or all white are not approved.
Please read Åke Esperi’s nice article Podengo Portuguese a colorful dog breed below. You can read more about tri-colored and black with tooth marking in Tan-signed and tri-colored small podengos below.
Small tings about podengo
The Podengon belongs to group 5, Spitz and breeds of primeval dog type, and is part of the Swedish Greyhound Club. They therefore get to participate in Lure Coursing, something that many podengos really love and become really good at. At an LC test, the dog is assessed based on five criteria; endurance, mobility, enthusiasm, compliance and speed. These are scored and dogs with the highest total points are best placed and receive a certificate. Based on certain criteria, the dog can also become an official Lure Coursing champion.
Links
You can find more about Lure Coursing, the breed, activities, podengo clubs etc. under the tab Links.
Many thanks to Mary Kvarnström, Åke Esperi, Monika Johansson, Mimi Albrecht, Irene Öberg, Eija Tammi, Carol Cheney and Tuija Kotka-Ritavuori who helped us with the pictures.
The dogs shown on this page are:
You can find more about Lure Coursing, the breed, activities, podengo clubs etc. under the Links tab.
Pequeno Liso: Feuer Frei Jägermeister ”Ressu”
Pequeno Cerdoso: Krullets Kalle ”Kenzo”
Medio Liso: Epico Da Aquae Flaviae ”Epico”
Medio Cerdoso: Irdalens Spellbound ”Freddie”
Grande Liso: Camaro do Vale de Fermedo ”Camaro”
Grande Cerdoso: Alvao Do Alto Da Cideira ”Alvao”
