Dog
Lagotto Romagnolo Champions
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Pronunciation:
Lagotto Rrrromanyolo
Breed Description:
The Lagotto is a small/medium sized dog, well proportioned, square built, hardy muscled. The head is quite big and supported by powerful neck. Its teeth should form a scissors bite. The eyes are round and relatively big they can be in any color between dark yellow and dark brown, it usually depends on the color of the coat. The coat can be off-white, solid white, white with brown or rust patches, different shades of brown, or rust solid color, a brown mask is acceptable. Lagotto's wooly coat is dense and curly. This dense hair protects him from thorns it can find in the bushes while searching truffles. Its dropping ears are triangular with rounded tips, they are well proportioned to the head. The front legs must appear straight from any angle. The topline should be straight.
Temperament:
The Lagotto is a working dog. It has a natural gift for searching and its very good nose has made this breed very efficient in truffle searching. While on the search he is not usually distracted by the scent of wild animals or other dogs. The Lagotto is loyal, keen, affectionate, very attached to his owner and easy to train. It gets on well with other dogs and the other pets if sufficiently socialized. A Lagotto is supposed to get along with any dog. In Italy they are kept in packs, so they need to get along. It is an excellent family companion and a very good warning dog. The lagotto is a good pet and loves people, but in addition to needing plenty of exercise, they also need to use their brain. This intelligent dog needs a job to do, something to keep its mind occupied. Tracking, games of searching for people in the woods or searching for mushrooms are some ideas. Obedience is also something they like and are good at, and Agility is a favorite! If you’re not interested in competition, you can always play hide and seek at home. As long as you let the dog use its brain, it won't have to find things to do on its own (that’s never anything good!) In Sweden the breed is very popular. For some this breed is perfect, because of its allergy friendly, non shedding coat, its medium size, its happy disposition, its intelligence and its willingness to work. Make sure you are this dog's firm, but calm, and consistent pack leader. Proper human to canine communication is essential.
Living Conditions:
Thanks to its small size, the Lagotto would do fine in an apartment if properly exercised. Where you live doesn’t matter, as long as you can walk the dog and keep it active, at least 3-4 times a day. If you do have a yard, and like your flowers… well, then you have to fence in your flowers. In the Lagottos nature lies a desire to dig. They love to dig big holes and then stick their head in the hole. These dogs can dig a big hole in matter of seconds!
Exercise:
The Lagotto needs plenty of exercise. They love to search for things, it has a natural instinct for retrieving. This breed loves to walk next to its owner and need to be taken on a daily long walk. While out on the walk the dog must be made to heel beside or behind the person holding the lead, as in a dog's mind the leader leads the way, and that leader needs to be the human. The Lagotto loves to swim. Some are even known to make the kitchen floor in to a puddle by tipping the water bowl over. They also love mud and other gooey stuff.
Grooming:
Its dense, curly coat needs regular care. When you buy a Lagotto you hear different stories from different people about how to care for the coat. Some say that you should only clip it down with clippers twice a year and nothing else. Some say you have to brush it sometimes. One owner states "Well, I have learned the hard way that it is more difficult than it seems. The coat easily gets matted, and to prevent that, you have to comb through it on a regular basis." You should not show a brushed Lagotto (like a poodle) in show ring. It’s not a fur ball, it’s a working dog, and should be showed that way. This breeds sheds little to no hair.
Origin:
The Lagotto has been selected for the search for truffles on all kinds of ground: its the only breed recognized for this purpose. The Lagotto is an ancient breed for water retrieving known in Italy since the XVI century in the lowlands of Comacchio and the marshlands of Ravenna. Over the centuries, the great marshlands were drained and turned into arable land. Since the XIX century this intelligent breed has been utilized as an excellent dog for searching truffles in the flat open country and the hills of Romagna, thanks to his very developed sense of smell ad high ability to concentrate on the search. Comments
The standards for all the breeds accepted to the AKC are used here for breed information, and those not part of the AKC are resourced from FCI standard information, where it is written and coded into the club rules for those breeds.
