The Portuguese Podengo, also known as the Podengo Português or Portuguese Warren Hound, is a hound (sight and scent)
breed
A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...
from
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
. As a breed, the Podengo is divided into three size categories that are not interbred: small (Pequeno), medium (Médio) and large (Grande). Their coats are either short and 'smooth', or longer and 'wired'. The smooth coated variety is traditional, whereas the wire coated variety is an outcome of the assimilation of various other breeds during the 20th century. In general, the breed is healthy; the Pequeno (small) variety has an average lifespan of approximately 15–17 years.
All Podengo types are hardy, intelligent and lively dogs, excelling at agility and making fine companions. Loyal and fearless, Podengos are also good house guards and are amenable to training by dog experienced people and those that enjoy primitive (unrefined, "less domesticated") dog behavior.
Keen hunting dogs, the Podengo has an affinity for game regardless of size. Typically, the dogs hunt in a
pack with their handler following. When game is found, they kill and retrieve it, or flush it towards the hunter to be shot. Each size category traditionally hunts game appropriate to their size and temperament. (Pequeno:
rabbit
Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...
s; Medio: rabbits and
wild boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
; Grande:
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
and wild boar).
Description
The Portuguese Podengo is bred in three size varieties, the Large, Medium and Small (in Portuguese the Grande, Medio and Pequeno). According to the
Clube Português de Canicultura's
breed standard
In animal husbandry or animal fancy, a breed standard is a description of the characteristics of a hypothetical or ideal example of a breed. The description may include physical or morphological detail, genetic criteria, or criteria of athletic ...
states the Large stands at the withers and healthy adults weigh , the Medium stands at the withers and healthy adults weigh , and the Small stands at the withers and healthy adults weigh .
General information
The Grande (large) was developed for
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
and wild
boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is no ...
hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
. It will exhaust and hold down the prey and await the hunter's gun. The Grande is now very rare in its home country.
The Medio (medium) was developed for
rabbit
Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...
chasing, flushing, hunting and retrieval. Its hunting style includes catlike stalking and, similar to the
Ibizan Hound
The Ibizan Hound ( es, podenco ibicenco, ca, ca eivissenc) is a lean, agile dog of the hound family. There are two hair types of the breed: smooth and wire. The more commonly seen type is the smooth. Some consider there to be a third type, lo ...
, it often jumps above the prey before landing on or near it to flush it out of dense brush, rock crevices or burrows. It will dig if necessary to flush prey.
The Pequeno (small) was also developed for flushing rabbits from cover. It is also a good mouser.
See also
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Dogs portal
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List of dog breeds
This list of dog breeds includes both Neontology#Extant taxa versus extinct taxa, extant and extinct dog breeds, Designer breed, varieties, landraces, and dog types. A research article on genomics, dog genomics published in Science/AAAS defines m ...
References
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{{Portuguese dogs
FCI breeds
Hounds
Dog breeds originating in Portugal
Rare dog breeds