Shepherd Bulgarian: a description of the breed, features of nature and reviews

This strong, powerful and amazingly hardy dog in Russia you meet infrequently. In recent years, several specialized nurseries have appeared on the territory of our country, where a Bulgarian (Karakachan) sheep-dog is bred, but there are still too few of them.

Probably, this is due to the fact that these animals are allowed to be exported outside of Bulgaria only if there are a large number of accompanying documents.

From the history of the breed

The Bulgarian Shepherd is one of the oldest shepherd breeds in the Balkans. It is not yet officially recognized in the world, but well known outside of Bulgaria. This is an achievement of the National Club dog handlers.

The Bulgarian Shepherd, whose photo can be seen in many cynological publications, is a relative of such breeds as the Illyrian Shepherd (Sharplanin), Serbian, Romanian, Greek, Central Asian and Caucasian Shepherds. All these animals are large, powerful, distrustful of strangers, unpretentious and hardy.

For the first time the Bulgarian Shepherd (description of the breed) is mentioned in the records of Prince Utturgurov, who date back to the sixth century. He describes a large, white with black or red spots, a dog, with hanging ears and a high tail. Dog handlers are sure that this is the ancestor of a shepherd Bulgarian dog. Since ancient times in the Balkans people have been engaged in sheep breeding. Therefore, they needed a reliable defender of huge flocks.

They could become a large, fearless and very strong dog. For many centuries, very strict requirements were imposed on breeding - as a result, the Karakachan dog (Bulgarian Shepherd) experienced a complex natural selection.

At the beginning of the 20th century Bulgaria experienced a serious crisis in sheep breeding - the number of sheep decreased, and the sheepdogs were "unemployed". Many of them died, some wandered around the neighborhood in search of food, some individuals were sold to neighboring countries, some of the animals moved to the houses of shepherds. The breed was threatened with extinction.

But the Bulgarian cynologists interfered in the fate of these powerful animals. In December 1983, the National Endangered Species Club appeared in the city of Pazardzhik. Today these dogs are the pride of the Bulgarian cynologists. Her breeding is engaged in several large nurseries. But more than others, Ticho Elit is known - a nursery that belongs to the famous breeder Stefan Popov.

He also became the founder of the National Club. This enthusiast gave more than 40 years of life to the revival of the gene pool of this amazing breed, the preservation of its best representatives. Today, this dog is no longer threatened with extinction. The National Club in the homeland of this breed has more than 2600 breeding animals. Every year more than three hundred puppies are born in the country. At the national exhibition held in 2015, 168 beautiful Karachi representatives were represented.

Recognition of a new breed (even having such a long history) ICF - a laborious and long process. Bulgarian cynologists sent the breed standard for approval more than twelve years ago. But there is a prerequisite - eight independent lines and at least 2,000 animals registered in the stud book must be submitted for FCI recognition.

External Features

The Bulgarian Shepherd, whose photo you can see in our article, has a very impressive look. She has a massive head, with a smooth transition from forehead to muzzle, powerful jaws, large and strong teeth, short muscular neck, wide chest, and well developed respiratory system. These shepherd dogs are endowed by nature with beautiful sight, smell and hearing.

The legs are strong and set straight. Paws are not very large, and the pads on them are rough, dark in color. An important feature of this breed is the fifth profitable finger. Fluffy tail is located high enough, relative to the line of the back. When the dog is not calm, it rises high, resembling a fluffy crescent moon. Shepherd Bulgarian has a loud and loud voice. With its help, animals warn shepherds of danger. The height of the male at the withers is 65 cm. The bitches are slightly smaller - 60 cm.

Wool

This working dog has a thick and dense coat. Wool is straight and stiff hair. They have an average length of at least 7 cm. The undercoat is well developed. This coat requires regular brushing. To this it is necessary to accustom the dog from puppyhood, so that later this procedure does not turn into torture for the owner and for the animal.

Another unique feature of this breed, which will not confuse it with any other. Shepherds cut one ear to the faithful four-legged assistants. To the males is the right, the bitches to the left. This is due to the desire to combine control over the natural position of the ears, which must certainly be hanging, and the strict expression that is achieved by cupping. In puppies, which are prepared for the exhibition career, the ears are kept in a natural state.

Color

Sheepdog Bulgarian can have a different color, but most often there is white, with red or dark spots. Much less often there are animals of the original color "red Nouz". They are spotted with reddish color, a nose of a meaty shade and bright amber eyes. This dog looks very impressive and is appreciated by connoisseurs of this breed.

Character

These beautiful dogs are excellent watchmen and guards. However, it should be noted that they have a somewhat original idea of their "work" - they actively protect the territory and property of the owner, since they consider it their property. If a stranger comes to visit the owner in the presence of the owner, then the Bulgarian Shepherd will treat his appearance quite loyal, though cautiously. She will not let the stranger out of sight, watching him from the side. Unlike representatives of other breeds of dogs, the Bulgarian shepherd almost never gets used to one guest, even if he visits your house very often. Therefore, the dog will be closely watched even by a close friend of the family, and in case of even a minor quarrel, without hesitation, she will rush to defend the owner. If a frequent visitor for some reason tries to enter the house in the absence of the owner, the attack of the dog is inevitable.

Bulgarian Shepherd: photos, puppies

If you want to have such a charming puppy, then you need to know that he needs to allocate quite a lot of free space for games. These babes like to play pranks, frolic and throw out their irrepressible energy. It is important for the owners to know that these charming babies should be taught to people from an early age, otherwise they will be considered enemies of all people. They will have a desire to constantly bark at strangers and at the first opportunity they will try to bite. This behavior is alien to a well-bred dog - it can become aggressive only if the host family or he himself is in danger.

At the age of 1.5 months the puppies of this breed are cute black and white "cubs", but already during this period they show a strong and independent character. Since the first days of the appearance of the puppy in the house, it is necessary to pay more attention to the upbringing of the animal, which will become the key to successful training in the future.

Since the Bulgarian Shepherd is by nature a leader, she recognizes only a strict and strong-willed master. Therefore, doing training with your pet, do not allow indulgence, at the same time you can not fall to stiffness or rudeness. This dog is smart, it is easy to learn, because it quickly remembers the team and understands well how to behave in this or that situation.

Attitudes towards children

The Bulgarian Shepherd (reviews confirm this) can become an excellent family dog in case she was taken into a family by a puppy or teenager. Growing up with the child of the owner, she will also consider him a member of his family and become a devoted friend for him. At the same time, she does not tolerate a familiar attitude and not very friendly games of young children and will even be able to give change. Therefore, do not consider these dogs as nannies.

Growing up with the children, Bulgarian shepherds are very attached to the small owners. This is due to the "popular selection" of this breed - often the shepherd's children grew up with these large dogs. Dog growling at the child, mercilessly destroyed.

Relationship to animals

With other animals living in the house, Bulgarian shepherds rarely find a common language. This is understandable. Protected territory, they reasonably consider their property, to understand that the cat that appeared in the house, for example, is also part of the family, it is not easy for them. Therefore, it is more expedient to exclude the residence of this dog in one territory with fighting dogs or cats.

And one more detail - these dogs are prone to domination, so they can show aggression towards animals of the same sex.

Health

The nature of the shepherds has awarded Bulgarian sheep with good health. They are very sore, there are no specific diseases. According to the data of Bulgarian cynologists, there is not a single case of dysplasia in this breed. Life expectancy with proper care reaches 14 years.

Bulgarian (Karakachan) Shepherd Dog Buffy

Modern statistics say that in Russia the most popular domestic animal is a cat. But Russian President Vladimir Putin is very fond of dogs. He has three of them: Labrador Connie, the beautiful Akita Inu Yume and the magnificent Bulgarian Shepherd Dog Buffy. All dogs live in the presidential residence of the Novo-Ogaryovo residence.

Labrador Connie is a female person. It was born in 1999, when V. Putin became the official successor to Boris N. Yeltsin. The dog was presented to Putin in 2000 by S. Shoigu. Many Russians are interested in whether Connie is alive, because her age is very respectable. Especially a lot of such questions began to appear after in the press there were photos of the president on a walk with Buffy and Yume. Connie is alive, but she is already very old, moves slowly and can not play with young animals.

The Bulgarian shepherd Buffy was presented to our president by Boyko Borisov (Prime Minister of Bulgaria). Vladimir Vladimirovich was so pleased with the gift that he kissed the puppy at the solemn ceremony of delivery. The gifted kid was named Yorgo, but this name was not liked by the new owner. They announced a contest for the best name for the dog. Dima Sokolov won the contest - a five-year-old Muscovite.

The Bulgarian Shepherd Dog is a strong dog that was formed under harsh conditions. We hope that it will develop in Russia, while preserving its outstanding protective qualities, and will find many loyal fans in our country.

Owner feedback

Despite the fact that there are not so many owners of such animals in our country, they leave feedback about their pets in nurseries. The vast majority of owners believe that this is really a reliable and loyal guard, to which you can leave your property.

In relation to the owner and his family - this is a dear, kind and affectionate creature, despite its rather frightening appearance. The owners of these animals especially note the importance of early socialization of these dogs in order to rule out the appearance of unjustified aggression.