Andalusian Podenco - Discover this characteristic breed from southern Spain
The Andalusian Podenco is a very characteristic race of southern Spain, which although it can also be seen as a company dog, the truth is that It is still used to hunt, an activity in which few races make it shadow.
- Size: between 32 and 64 cm
- Weight: 8 to 33 kilos
- Hair type: Very short and smooth
- Character: He is shy, ready and very active
- Health: Very robust
- Life expectancy: between 12 and 15 years
Origins of the Andalusian Podenco
There are many theories about the origins of this race, but the truth is that its typology is very similar to that of other podencos, a class of can that we can already see represented in cave paintings.
Podenco -type dogs are not only seen in Spain, but are common in the Mediterranean basin and it is said that their origins are lost millennia behind, although in the case of the Andalusian podench it has always been said that it comes from the dogs that the Phoenicians brought to the Peninsula.
This theory is very romantic, but in recent years the specialists have resorted to Genetics, which has shown that the Andalusian Podenco is not older than the rest of the European hunting dogs.
These studies have demonstrated something that is known looking at this podench, and that is that its DNA is the closest to that of the wolves, which explains their behavior and how resistant it is to diseases.
It is currently recognized in Spain, something that happened in 1992. No international association has done so, since it is practically equal to the Portuguese podench.
Characteristics Andalusian Podenc
The podench selection has not been carried out due to its external appearance, but has prevailed its ability to hunt. That has caused its external appearance to vary a lot from one dogs to others
This looks very good in the hair, since there are three varieties such as the Sardinian type (with long and hard hair), the sedeal type (long, silky hair) and the smooth type (with fine and short hair).
What the three types coincide is that they have no subpelo, so they are not the best animals to live abroad if it is cold.
The hair tone can be white or cinnamon, combining both and without any black spot.
Your body is very muscular and with a saber -shaped tail. Thus, as soon as we see it, we realize that we are facing an athlete who will not get tired no matter how much it runs.
Like the hair There are three sizes: girl, median and big. They range from 32 to 64 cm, with a weight that begins in the 8 kilos and that reaches 33 in the males of large size.
As you can see, it is almost possible to talk about three different races by combining sizes with hair, although in Spain it is recognized as one.
Character of the Andalusian Podenc
This podench has an ambivalent character, since it is one when he is at home and another if he goes to the field.
Inside the home, the Andalusian podencus is a quiet animal And very attached to its owner, who will be very faithful and will continue everywhere, predisposed to learn what we teach and very obedient.
With the strangers it is distrustful, so it can be a good guard dog when you get to bark if you see someone who does not know. In fact, long ago he kept the farms of his owners.
When it goes to the field it is a different dog. Here appears its hunter and independent vein, since it has been selected so that it can hunt autonomously, looking for rabbits and taking them to its owner.
Therefore, it is said that it is a stubborn dog, but in reality it does not respond more than what man has asked him for centuries, no matter anything else.
Andalusian Podenco Education
Educating it is not easy, since you have to know that the instinct is there and that once it goes out to the field there will always be a struggle between the education that we give and the smells that it detects.
If we want it as a company dog you have to work hard with him since he is young, insisting on obedience exercises and even taking them a little further and practicing obedience that is called as advanced.
We must insist a lot on this, because only this will be able to control when we are in open areas in which there is the presence of animals such as rabbits, as it is scheduled to hunt them.
It is best to go to a professional training that can help us, and never stop practicing with him, since if we have it as a company animal that will make your mind be busy.
Andalusian Podenco Health
If we are looking for a healthy dog, a race that is not predisposed to genetic diseases like others, this is the Andalusian podench in any of its varieties.
The reason for your health is that you have never raised to be pretty, nor have crosses with other races have been made in order to set some specific characteristic, but its breeding has been based on its usefulness.
He has only raised with dogs that were good hunters and those who had good health. Thus, and although it sounds hard, those who had some kind of illness did not live much, so only the most suitable have reproduced.
This means that now You just have to go to the veterinarian in order to vaccinate it and deworm it every three months.
Andalusian Podenco Care
The care is very simple. The hair needs more or less attention depending on the variety, but even if it has long it is formed to brush it a couple of times a week.
We must give it a good feed, which contains a lot of energy, since it will spend it. It is not a dog that has a tendency to gain weight, so we can leave the food at your disposal to eat when you are hungry.
Need a lot of sport and be entertaining, so it is not the best dog to live in a city, in the classic small floor and go down a few minutes to the park.
He will be happy next to a hunter, more if he can go out for rabbits, and also with a very athlete person who takes him to run, to do hiking, to the mountain or we can change this for the agility, a sport in which he is going to have a great time.
While he is at home, idle, always We can buy a Kong type toy, with which it will have a good time While taking out all the food inside, and it is also a good idea to make dog toys at your disposal from those who stimulate the brain.
Adopt an Andalusian podench
The adoption of an Andalusian podencus is very simple, since when the hunting season ends they leave quite a lot or take the shelters in the best case.
If we call any Andalusian protector or look at their website, it is not uncommon for several podes to be adopted, being able to choose sex and age without problem, as there will even be very small puppies.
Before taking it home, you have to think about how much exercise we will be able to provide, since if you spend the whole day in a floor it will soon give problems, barking too much or destroying everything for anxiety.
Thus, Maybe it is best to adopt it only if we live in a house in the town With a wide garden, and where to get to the field does not cost us more than cross some streets.
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