Romanian Carpathian Shepherd puppies

About the Romanian Carpathian Shepherd

The Romanian Carpathian Shepherd is a mountain livestock guardian from the Carpathians, bred to live out with a flock and stand off bear, wolf and boar. This is a large dog, 31.8 to 45.4 kg and 58 to 74 cm, with a dense double coat that runs short on the head and the front of the legs and long around the neck, chest and tail. The temperament is steady and unhurried, affectionate with their own people and instinctively suspicious of anything unfamiliar coming closer.

Without a flock to mind they still want one to two hours a day of moderate activity: walks, nose work, puzzles and play. They are pack motivated far more than food or toy motivated, which makes conventional training slow going and rewards patience over repetition drills. Brushing is occasional, heavier around May and June when the undercoat comes out. Secure fencing is essential because they will patrol their territory. There is no need to push extra food: these dogs regulate themselves well and stop when full.

What to expect at eight weeks

At eight weeks a Romanian Carpathian Shepherd puppy is sleeping around 18 to 20 hours a day, is not house trained, and cannot hold on for more than an hour or two at a stretch. A large breed puppy at eight weeks looks deceptively normal sized and will roughly double every few weeks for a while. Keep exercise short and low impact, the growth plates are wide open. Energy is on the lower side for the breed, but every eight week old puppy still runs in bursts and then crashes. Grooming needs are moderate, so build the brushing habit now while the coat is still short and easy. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything they meet calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of their life.

Health worth knowing about

Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.

• Hip and elbow dysplasia, screened by x-ray evaluation of breeding stock as in any large guardian breed
• Bloat and gastric torsion, a surgical emergency in deep chested dogs
• Weight gain from overfeeding, tracked by regular weighing, since the breed otherwise stops eating when full

Your Romanian Carpathian Shepherd puppy's first six months

• Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
• Worming and parasite schedule.
• Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Large for a Romanian Carpathian Shepherd.
• Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 31.8 to 45.4 kg adult range.
• Puppy names and the first week checklist.

Kit sizes: crate 48 inch (48 x 30 x 32 in, 122 x 76 x 81 cm) for an adult of up to 45.4 kg; chew toys made for large breeds. Worked out the same way as the crate size calculator. PetMD bases a crate on the dog's own measurements, not weight or breed alone, so measure once the puppy is home.

Buying guides for this

• Do slow feeder bowls work? Choosing one for a puppy that gulps
• Best crate for a puppy: wire, plastic or soft, and how to size one with a divider

Other large breeds

More on the Romanian Carpathian Shepherd

Previous: Rhodesian Ridgeback · Next: Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog

Sources

• akc.org for adult weight and height, life expectancy, energy, grooming, shedding and the temperament ratings, coat type and health notes
• fci.be for country of origin
• Health notes from Romanian Carpathian Shepherd breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/romanian-carpathian-shepherd/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.

No published figure for coat type, so nothing is shown rather than a guess.

Photo: DannyFaQ, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped. All photographers are listed on the photo credits page.