The Lagotto Romagnolo is an Italian breed of dog. It originates in the marshlands of the Delta del Po in the eastern part of the Romagna sub-region of Italy. The name derives from Romagnol ''can lagòt'', meaning "water dog". Its traditional function was as a

gun dog Gun dogs, or bird dogs, are types of hunting dogs developed to assist hunters in finding and retrieving game, usually quail, dove, or duck. Gun dogs are divided into three primary types: retrievers, flushing dogs, and pointing breeds. Types ...

, specifically a water

retriever A retriever is a type of gun dog that retrieves game for a hunter. Generally gun dogs are divided into three major classifications: retrievers, flushing spaniels, and pointing breeds. Retrievers were bred primarily to retrieve birds or other ...

; since the drainage of large areas of

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

habitat in its area of origin, it is now more often used to hunt for

truffles A truffle is the fruiting body of a subterranean ascomycete fungus, predominantly one of the many species of the genus ''Tuber''. In addition to ''Tuber'', many other genera of fungi are classified as truffles including '' Geopora'', '' Pe ...

History

The Lagotto originated in the lowlands of

Comacchio Comacchio (; egl, label= Comacchiese, Cmâc' ) is a town and ''comune'' of Emilia Romagna, Italy, in the province of Ferrara, from the provincial capital Ferrara. It was founded about two thousand years ago; across its history it was first gover ...

and marshlands of

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...

in the Delta del Po, in the eastern part of the Romagna sub-region of Italy. The name derives from Romagnol ''can lagòt'', meaning "water dog". Its traditional function was as a

, specifically a water

; since the drainage of large areas of

habitat in its area of origin, it is now more often used to hunt for

. It has been known since the sixteenth century, but did not become widespread until the nineteenth. It was provisionally accepted by the

Fédération Cynologique Internationale The Fédération cynologique internationale (FCI) (English: International Canine Federation) is the largest international federation of national kennel clubs. It is based in Thuin, Belgium. History The FCI was founded in 1911 under the auspices ...

in 1995, and received full acceptance in 2005. In 2018 the

Ente Nazionale della Cinofilia Italiana The , usually known as the ENCI, is the national organisation responsible for the recognition, standardisation and registration of pedigree dogs in Italy. It is sometimes called the Italian Kennel Club. The association provides judging for dog s ...

recorded new registrations.

Characteristics

The Lagotto is of small to medium size, rarely over at the

withers The withers is the ridge between the shoulder blades of an animal, typically a quadruped. In many species, it is the tallest point of the body. In horses and dogs, it is the standard place to measure the animal's height. In contrast, cattle a ...

, powerfully built and of rustic appearance. It is roughly square in outline, the body length more or less equal to the height. The coat is thick, wool-like and tightly curled into ringlets. It may be completely off-white, or off-white with orange or brown patches or roaning, or solid orange or brown either with or without white markings. A Lagotto usually lives for about fifteen years. Neurological disorders that have been identified in the breed include cerebellar abiotrophy and idiopathic epilepsy.

History

Characteristics

Notes

References

Further reading