Caucasian Shepherd Dog
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| Caucasian Shepherd Dog | ||||||||||||||||
 Caucasian Shepherd Dog |
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| Other names | Gampr (Armenia) Çoban iti (Azerbaijan) Nagazi nagazi (Georgia) Caucasian Shepherd Dog Caucasian Mountain Dog Caucasian Sheepdog Kavkaski Ovcar Kavkaz Dog Kavkaz Mastiff Kavkaz Volkodav Kavkazskaya (...kiaia) Ovcharka Russian Kavkazskaya Ovtcharka Ovtcharka (Owtcharka) Sage Ghafghazi Volkodav |
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| Country of origin | Russia, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan | |||||||||||||||
| Nicknames | CO Caucasian KO |
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The Caucasian Shepherd Dog (Armenian: Գամփռ; Azerbaijani: Çoban iti /ʧɒˈbʌn ɪtˈɪ/; Georgian: კავკასიური ნაგაზი) is a breed of dog that is popular in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, and other countries where shepherds need strong protection for their flocks and properties.
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[edit] Description
[edit] Appearance
A well-bred Caucasian Mountain Dog should be[citation needed] a healthy, strongly-boned, muscular and even-tempered Moloss.
Excessive softness or vicious temperaments are considered serious faults for the breed. Generally healthy and long lived, as in other large breed dogs, hip dysplasia, obesity and occasional heart problems are known to occur. The ears of the Caucasian Ovcharka have traditionally been cropped, although some modern dogs can be seen unaltered. Even though any coat-types and colors exist, the preferred show-types are the long-coated grey dogs with some white markings allowed. No black or black-and-tan dogs are accepted for show, but they do exist. The minimum height is 24.5 inches with no upper limit.
These dogs are of two types: Mountain and plain. Plain dogs have shorter coat hair and are visually higher because of less muscular built. Mountain ones have longer fur and are more muscularly evolved. The breed's weight is 100–160 pounds (45–73 kg.), while height is 25–30 inches (65–80 cm.).
[edit] Temperament
Powerful and massive, the Caucasian Ovcharka can prove to be a difficult breed for an inexperienced owner, because it respects and obeys only those dominant members of the family that it deems superior to itself. They are generally good with children, but will not see them as their masters. The dog develops a strong bond with its owner but will rarely be completely submissive and blindly follow orders, for this is truly a thinking dog which relies primarily on its own instincts, sometimes even disregarding its master's directions in certain situations. A breed with a very quick reaction time and lightning-fast protection reflexes, it has even been unfairly described by some as somewhat of a "loose cannon". With proper care, handling and training, this is a well-behaved and obedient family companion.
Take care to ask the owner before touching as these dogs are not 'big teddy bears' to be run up to and cuddled. A well behaved Ovcharka will merely take a step back and avert their head; this is a good behavior as these dogs are not Golden Retrievers in their temperament towards everyone.
Ovcharka—a.k.a Caucasian Shepherds—are used to hide amongst sheep in herds. A pack of wolves (3 or 4) will attack the sheep, not noticing the Ovcharka, and the dog may fight a couple wolves at the same time.[citation needed] The fur is several layers and thick making the wolves teeth unable to reach its flesh.[citation needed] They are loyal to their duty in protecting their flock and family and will stand by and defend through any circumstance. Unfortunately they are often misrepresented as being dangerous and violent, when in fact they are not unless there is a threat or a perceived threat to family and home.
[edit] History
Located between the Black Sea on the West and the Caspian Sea on the East, the Caucasus mountain range represents a true melting pot of various cultures due to a number of nations calling it their home through the ages. Today these influences are still strong and a rich source of cultural wealth of the region, as well as numerous political conflicts. Encompassing the territories of Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kabardino-Balkaria, Daghestan, Ossetia, Turkey, Chechnya, Ingushetia and Iran, the Caucasus mountains are also home to one of the oldest living Molossers, the magnificent Caucasian Mountain Dog. In reality the term "Caucasian Dog" should stand for a group of breeds and not for a single breed or a favoured variant. There is a great variety of types among the Caucasian dogs depending on their home region, but due to the ignorance of many Westerners and strong national appetite of Russian and pro-Russian dog fanciers worldwide, a single type bearing a misleading name is being favored in the show rings and literature, at the expense of truth and other breed variants. The exotic-sounding misnomer Ovcharka is very popular in the West, thanks to the efforts of the Russian Kennel Club, even though it simply translates to "Sheepdog, Shepherd or Shepherd Dog", making it very unpopular and often insulting among the non-Russian nationals of Caucasian and dog enthusiasts. Considered a Russian breed, the Caucasian Ovcharka is a part of the Troika, a threesome of recognized Russian sheepdogs, the other two being the bearded South-Russian Sheepdog and the controversial Central Asian Shepherd Dog.
Although its first official Western Show-Ring appearance was in the 1930s in Germany, the Caucasian Mountain Dog has existed since ancient times and, like many Eastern Molossers, was introduced to the bloodlines of many of today's World breeds throughout history. The Armenian Plateau was one of the earliest cradles of civilization and the first appearance of dogs of this type is closely linked to that area. The Armenian Gamprs are seen as a variant of the Caucasian Mountain Dog, and while that may be the case, it is also important to note that the Gampr comes in two distinct varieties, both of which are believed to be much older than the modern Caucasian and Central-Asian Sheepdogs. Some believe that the Caucasian Mountain Dog was a result of crossing the mountain Gampyrs with the spitz-type dogs in ancient times, but this theory, although not without merit, is understandably not very popular.[citation needed]
[edit] Recent history
The main Russian bloodlines can be traced to Moscow, Ekaterinburg, Tambov, Orenburg, Magnitogorsk, Cheljabinsk, Novosibirsk, Donetsk, Lugansk, Ivanovo, Perm, Nizhny Novgorod, and Saint Petersburg, even though there are many different Caucasian strains still found in the Caucasus mountains. In recent years, the term "aboriginal" is being used to describe older, non-show mountain bloodlines, but this is very misleading and often used as a trendy marketing ploy by some breeders.
Even though most dogs in the Caucasus are working hybrids between various types, there are still some distinguishing characteristics among regional variants. For instance:
- The Georgian dogs are divided into the large, longhaired and often multicoloured Mkinvartsveri Kazbek type and the slightly smaller wolf-grey Nagazi dogs of medium-length coat with longer muzzles, but there is also a separate breed known as Tushetian Nagazi or Georgian Caucasian Sheepdog in Georgia, which represents the original Georgian population of the breed, with the pure white dogs being the most valued.
- Daghestan dogs are tall, wide-headed and athletic, always short-haired and multicoloured.
- Astrakhan type is found in the Kabardino-Balkarian region and is believed to be a cross between the Russian show type and the old Circassian and Kazbek dogs, but Balkarian Molossers are also rooted in the Sarmatian Mastiff.
- The Turkish Caucasus dogs are divided into four types, those being the Garban, the Akhaltsihnske type, the Circassian variant and the Kars Dog.
- The large, short-muzzled, shorthaired fawn, brown, red, with or without white markings and extremely vicious Garban (Gorban) was developed from the Kars and the Kangal, as well as other Turkish dogs being crossed with the Armenian and Kazbek types.
- The Akhaltsihnske type was then created from the Garban crosses with the Georgian Nagazi variant and possibly Turkish Akbash, resulting in longhaired, lightly built solid-coloured white, fawn and grey dogs. The Circassian variant is believed to be a result of crossing the Kangals with the Cherkes dogs introduced to Turkey after the Russian-Circassian wars.
- The Kars Dog is a variety closely associated with the Kars province of modern Turkey and is today seen as a separate breed. The Armenian Gamprs are usually slightly smaller than the Georgian dogs and are shorter-necked and more squarely built, also allowing for a great variety of colours, even brown or black.
- The Azerbaijan Volkodav variant also comes in two types, with the longhaired mountain and short-coated steppe dogs both being smaller than Georgian and Armenian types, always having black masks.
- A result of matings between the dogs of southern Kavkaz with the Sage Mazandarani and the Kars Dog of Turkey, the Iranian Sage Ghafghazi is a lean, powerful and richly coated mastiff, used as a caravan protector of the Shahsavan nomads, who have been breeding it since the 17th century. These Iranian Caucasians come in a variety of colours, both solid and bicoloured.
- There is also a rare shorthaired Kavkaz mastiff, known as the North-Caucasian Volkodav, which is on its way to receive a separate breed recognition.
Even the legendary Alaunt, the breed considered to be the key progenitor of all bulldog breeds, is also originally descended from this Caucasian stock of mountain dogs.
As mentioned above, most working Caucasian dogs are hybrids between established types, as well as some lines of the Central Asian dogs, in effect making the Russian show type appear to be a superiorly-bred dog in the eyes of the West. This is of course due to in part to the main difference between the Eastern and Western ways; the dogs being bred strictly for work in the East and primarily for show and companion life in the West. The fighting strains of the Caucasian Ovcharka can contain blood of some European breeds too, from certain mastiffs to even American Pit Bull Terriers and Bandogs, but these crosses are a minority in the breed. The Caucasian Molossers were used for centuries to protect properties, guard livestock, kill wolves, hunt bears and for many other duties, but today and especially in the West, they are most commonly employed as companion animals and watchdogs. Most prized as an aggressive property guardian, the mighty Caucasian Ovcharka is an intimidating and committed protector with no equal. The Caucasian Mountain Dog is generally a low activity dog, seemingly lethargic when not working, but extremely agile and convincing when it feels its family is threatened. Although certain strains are more vicious than others, all Caucasians are very territorial and fairly dog-aggressive, needing early and careful broad socialization, as well as firm, but never forceful handling. This wonderful ancient breed makes a good family dog, but it isn't the same thing as a Newfoundland, a Bernese or a St. Bernard and potential owners should be aware of the breeds history and temperament before deciding to tackle the task of raising a Caucasian Mountain Dog.
[edit] See also
