Breeds / Medium
Spanish Water Dog puppies
Loyal, hard working and quick to learn, the Spanish Water Dog is a herding and water breed that attaches closely to its own people and needs a job to stay calm.
The facts
- Size class Medium
- Country of origin Spain
- Adult weight 14.1 to 22.2 kg
- Adult weight in pounds 31 to 49 lb
- Adult height 40 to 50 cm
- Energy level High
- Grooming High
- Coat type Medium corded and curly
- Typical lifespan 12 to 14 years
- Good with children Usually good
- Good with other dogs Fine with supervision
Where these come from:
About the Spanish Water Dog
The Spanish Water Dog worked the farms and coasts of Andalusia, herding goats and sheep inland and helping fishermen with nets and lines on the water. It is a sturdy, athletic dog of 40 to 50 cm and 14.1 to 22.2 kg, covered in a woolly curly coat that forms cords when it is left to grow. It behaves like the herding breed it is: intense, quick, strongly bonded to one or two people, and naturally wary of strangers.
Plan on a proper run every day plus training that uses the brain, because an under exercised one gets noisy and pushy. The coat is never brushed. It is either left to cord or clipped down to one length all over, and cording takes ongoing attention and someone who knows this particular breed. Shedding is minimal, which is a different thing from being safe for allergy sufferers. Early socialisation is the priority, since the wariness hardens without it. The usual error is careless clipping followed by a long fight with mats.
What to expect at eight weeks
At eight weeks a Spanish Water Dog 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 medium breed puppy at eight weeks is a manageable armful that will not stay that way. Most of the growth happens between now and six months, so buy for the adult dog where you can. This is a high energy breed. At eight weeks that shows up as intensity rather than stamina, and it will need a job to do long before it needs long walks. Grooming needs are high. Start daily brushing and short, positive handling sessions at eight weeks, well before the adult coat arrives, or the first professional groom will be traumatic. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything it meets calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of its 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 dysplasia, which breeding stock should be x-rayed and scored for
- Progressive retinal atrophy and other eye anomalies, screened by DNA test and ophthalmologist examination
- Congenital hypothyroidism with goitre, detectable by DNA test on both parents
- Allergies and ear infections under the dense coat, found on veterinary examination
From Spanish Water Dog breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/spanish-water-dog/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.
Your Spanish Water Dog puppy's first six months
- Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
- Worming and parasite schedule.
- Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Medium for a Spanish Water Dog.
- Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 14.1 to 22.2 kg adult range.
- Puppy names and the first week checklist.
Other medium breeds
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Not veterinary advice. Breed information is general. Your own dog, and your own vet, always win.