Croatian Sheepdog

The breed belongs to the region of Slavonia in eastern Croatia, particularly the Baranja and Backa areas around the Danube and Drava. Small black herding dogs have been used there for centuries, and Croatian sources point to a fourteenth-century manuscript from the Diocese of Djakovo that refers to a canis pastoralis croaticus, a Croatian pastoral dog, as evidence of the type's long presence.

The modern breed was created out of that landrace by Professor Stjepan Romic, an agronomist and veterinarian who began collecting and selectively breeding the best black Slavonian herding dogs around 1935. His work produced a consistent type, and a written standard was adopted in 1951. The Federation Cynologique Internationale recognised the Croatian Sheepdog in 1969.

It is one of a handful of native Croatian breeds and one of only two Croatian herding dogs, the other being the much larger livestock guardian Tornjak. Genetically and in appearance it sits close to the Hungarian Mudi, which developed in the same Pannonian plain. Outside the Balkans the breed is uncommon, though it has a growing following in dog sport circles in Europe and North America.

This is a medium-small, agile, almost square dog. Males stand about 18 to 21 inches at the withers and females roughly an inch or two less, with most adults weighing between about 29 and 44 pounds. The build is light and athletic rather than heavy, with a well-sprung but not broad chest, strong loins and a fox-like head with a lean muzzle and erect or semi-erect triangular ears.

The coat is the breed's signature: a soft, dense undercoat under a wavy or curly topcoat roughly two to five and a half inches long over the body, shorter and smooth on the face and the front of the legs, with clear feathering on the backs of the legs and the tail. It is always black. A small amount of white on the chest and toes is tolerated by the standard, but the dog should read as black.

Some puppies are born with a naturally short tail, and both natural bobtails and full tails are seen. The overall impression is of a quick, springy dog that changes direction easily, which is exactly what herding loose stock on open ground demands.

Croatian Sheepdogs are lively, alert and intensely attached to their handler. They form a strong bond with one household and tend to work best when they have a clear person to work with, following that person closely and reading body language with unusual accuracy.

They are naturally watchful and vocal. A Croatian Sheepdog will tell you when a car pulls up, and barking is part of the herding style the breed was selected for, so noise control needs to be trained deliberately rather than assumed. With strangers they are typically reserved and observant, warming up once their person signals that all is well.

The herding instinct is strong and appears early. Without an outlet, that instinct is likely to be aimed at joggers, bicycles, cats and running children, and the breed's nipping style at the heels can be a problem in a family with toddlers. With training, structure and a job, the same dogs are excellent with children they have grown up alongside.

They are courageous, quick to learn and quick to become bored. This is not a dog that will do the same exercise ten times politely; give it variety and it will astonish you, give it monotony and it will invent something better to do.

On Croatian farms the breed's original job was driving and gathering large flocks and herds, including cattle and pigs as well as sheep, over long distances and in hot summers on the plains. Shepherds valued the dogs for stamina, initiative and their ability to keep control of stock without constant instruction.

In modern homes the breed shines at dog sports. Croatian Sheepdogs do very well at agility, obedience, flyball, disc, herding trials and scent work, and they are used in some countries for search and rescue. They will also do a competent job as a farm dog, a small-property watchdog and a hiking or running partner, provided the training keeps pace with the drive.