Criteria for the appearance of the Picardian Shepherd Dog, its temperament and health features, care for hair, ears, teeth, walking, nutritional composition. The cost of the puppies. The Picardian Shepherd Dog or Berger Picard is a type of herding dog bred in France. It is considered one of the oldest, if not the oldest, variety of French herding dogs. These dogs have been mentioned in the historical records of Northern France since the Middle Ages. The correct pronunciation of the breed name in English is "bare shay pee carr".
Picard is known for its slightly unkempt, mischievous appearance, friendly but cheerful temperament and excellent working ability. Almost ousted by the world wars, the Picardy Shepherd Dogs nevertheless revived and acquired a stable state of their livestock. Berger Picard is best known to Americans for his appearance in Thanks to Winn-Dixie. Although most American residents and other people who saw the picture believed that the role in the film was played by a mixed breed - an ordinary mongrel.
The Picardy Shepherd is currently a member of the American Kennel Club Registration Service Foundation (AKC-FSS), but officially changed class on January 1, 2013. Berger Picard is also known as "Picardy Sheepdog", "Picardy Shepherd Dog", "Picardy Shepherd", "Berger de Picard" and "Berger de Picardie".
Criteria for the external parameters of the Picardian Shepherd
Berger Picard has a very unique look and feel. The breed can be recognized unmistakably. It tends to be similar to other continental canines, but has a coat that closely resembles that of many terriers. The appearance of these dogs is often compared to "country", and many Americans mistake her for a mongrel.
Picardy Shepherds are slightly larger than average. Most males have parameters of 58, 5 and 63, 5 centimeters in height at the withers, and most of the female specimens stand between 53, 4 and 58, 4 centimeters. Although weight is highly dependent on the height, sex, structure and condition of the animal, many representatives of the breed weigh from 22, 68 to 31, 76 kilograms.
- Head varieties are proportional to the size of the dog's body. The skull is actually domed, but appears flat due to the breed's hair. The brow ridges are well developed, but also covered with fur.
- Muzzle tapers slightly, but looks strong and never tapered. The connection of the head and muzzle of the "Picard" is very fluid, like wolves.
- Nose - large and should always be only black, regardless of the color of the dog's coat.
- Eyes The Picardian Shepherd Dog is medium in size, oval in shape and dark brown in color. Their shade is determined by the color of the dog's hairline, but it should never be lighter than ocher. The set of the eyes is deep enough, but they are not placed close to each other. The general expression of most members of the breed is intelligent, confident and slightly mischievous.
- Ears Berger Picards are about 7.6 centimeters long, wide at the base and slightly rounded at the tips. The cartilage of the ear should always be completely vertical, ideally as close to each other as possible.
- Neck - harmoniously placed, of moderate length, well muscled.
- Frame this herding dog is well balanced, and slightly longer from the ribcage to the croup than the height from the ground to the withers. Most of the body of the Berger Picard is covered with hair, but underneath it is a very muscular and athletic animal. The breed is firmly formed without being in any way thick or stocky, although its coat often makes it appear so.
- Tail - is of medium length, tapers strongly towards the tip and is usually a direct continuation of the spine, ending in a J-shaped curve.
- Front limbs - Moderately long, not very narrow set and straight. The hind ones are erect, parallel to each other. The thighs are well muscled and strong.
- Paws - Rounded, with slightly elongated toes, dense skin on the pads and strong nails.
- Coat The Picardian Shepherd is probably the most important and defining characteristic of the breed. The animal has a double-coated "fur coat". The undercoat should be soft and dense. The outer guard hair grows shaggy, coarse, coarse and dense to the touch. The "coat" of the breed reaches 5 to 5.8 centimeters in length all over the body, with the exception of the head, where it should be approximately 2.54 centimeters in length. The hair on the head and muzzle forms the eyebrows and whiskers, which are the hallmark of the variety. The hair on the ears often looks tousled, but is not really different from the hair on the rest of the dog's body.
- Coloration Berger Picard is available in gray, gray-black, gray with black highlights, gray-blue, gray-red, light pale, dark pale, tiger, or any other mixture of these shades. Small white markings on the chest or legs are acceptable, but large white markings on the chest that form the "shirt" are highly undesirable. These dogs are sometimes born in alternative colors such as solid black, solid white, marbled, or speckled. Such animals are unacceptable for participation in the show ring at competitions. These individuals are culled and removed from breeding. But, in other areas, they make excellent pets or working dogs, like other breed representatives.
Picardian Shepherd Temperament
Berger Picards were primarily bred to help farmers like herding dogs. Therefore, the manifestations of character that one would expect from such a breed are consistent with its intended purpose. The "Picards" are extremely loyal to all of their household. They form close bonds with their family. These pets will not get tired of the constant company of relatives, the dog will by no means suffer and be very worried about being separated from his family.
Many of these shepherd dogs are very affectionate, and a minority of them are extremely intrusive or demanding. When the kids have a normal relationship with them, most members of the breed are extremely gentle and compliant with them. Dogs become very close friends to children. Berger Picards puppies may not be the best choice for families with very young children, as they can accidentally knock them over in an attempt to play.
The Picardian Shepherd Dogs have a well-developed defensive instinct, although usually to a much lesser extent than similar breeds such as the Beauceron and Belgian Malinois. When animals are properly socialized, many of them will be very polite and pleasant to receive strangers, but some of the general mass will remain on the sidelines, and strangers will not interest them. Dogs, which were not socialized as it should be, do not have the ability to correctly distinguish: a threat to their safety, friends from enemies, and sometimes show nervous and aggressive behavior.
This breed is not only a great good defender and watchdog, the dog can scare the intruder quite hard. Many of the breed are effective guards, although these dogs usually go out of their way to restrain the culprit with a growl before resorting to an attack. The Picards also excel at personal protection as bodyguards. With a pet that feels like he needs to protect his family from physical harm, you don't have to be afraid to walk the dark streets.
Berger Picards usually accepts other canines. Most breed representatives will be very tolerant of other dogs if they are properly socialized and trained. Bred as herding dogs, most of these shepherd dogs also treat other animals very well with proper training practice. Some specimens of the species have a strong pursuit tendency and may be aggressive towards members of the fauna they have not yet met. This breed also has a tendency to lightly bite other animals in an attempt to gather them into a herd, but this behavior can be weaned.
Health features of the Picardian Shepherd Dog
It is very difficult to draw definitive conclusions about the physical health of a species when there has been very little research in this area. Many breeders say that Picardy Shepherds are quite healthy animals and get sick extremely rarely when compared with similar canines.
External defects that occur in a species are, first of all, ocular and ciliary deformities, such as "entropion" and "ectropion". These are considered the most common problems among Berger Picards. Some breed individuals also suffer from hip dysplasia, although this does not appear to be as noticeable as in many similar breeds.
Therefore, breeders need to constantly check their pets for problems of the bone apparatus and eyes even before the time when the diseases manifest themselves. Screening can be done at the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) and the Dog Registration Foundation (CERF). OFA and CERF carry out various animal health tests at the highest level. This allows not only to prevent the development of hereditary diseases, but also to remove the affected individuals from breed breeding, which guarantees the purity of the health of future puppies of the variety.
Here is a complete list of diseases believed to be present in Berger Picard: dysplasia of the hip and elbow joints, volvulus and eversion of the eyelid, progressive retinal atrophy, cataracts, retinal dysplasia, and eye infections.
Requirements for the maintenance and care of the Picardian Shepherd Dog
- Wool this dog has a much lower “stowage” requirement than one would expect from looking at it. In fact, most breed members only need to brush and brush once or twice a month. If they are not combed with a comb, then the pets can get tangled mats, but to a much lesser extent than many other breeds with a similar cover. These animals should be bathed occasionally. Frequent washing will create conditions for the loss of natural oils that help protect against infections and the effects of negative weather factors. "Picards" practically do not get dirty and usually they do not have a "doggy" smell. Do not forget that the shampoo, when applied directly, must be diluted with water so that the dog does not have dandruff. During the procedure, do not allow moisture to enter the ears, this may cause inflammation. All detergents must be completely washed off. You can dry the doggie with a hair dryer, but if the apartment is warm, it can dry out in a natural way.
- Teeth Berger Picard is best kept clean to prevent possible diseases. To do this, you need to buy a flavoring paste and a soft brush for dogs. After squeezing a little bit of the paste onto the silicone brush, brush the dog's teeth in a circular motion. Repeat the procedure every day or every other day. The preventive effect will be created by special bones and dry food.
- Ears these dogs do not have such problems as dogs with closed, hanging ears. But, periodically, at least once every two weeks, it is still necessary to inspect and clean them. The healing lotion will remove the accumulated sulfur, thereby preventing inflammation. After applying the product to the auricle, make a light massage and after two minutes, wipe off the separated dirt.
- Eyes These shepherd dogs can sometimes become inflamed due to protruding hairs that get into them. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully cut off excess hairs with scissors and periodically wipe the mucous membrane of the eye with pharmaceutical products.
- Claws Berger Picards should be shortened if the dog does not grind them naturally when walking or running on walks. The use of nail clippers is recommended for experienced breeders, but beginners are advised to start with the use of a nail file.
- Feeding fastidious shepherd dogs from Picardy depend not only on you, but also directly on them. The point is, Picard can be very picky about food. You can turn to ready-made feeds. First, the concentrate must be selected according to the weight category of the dog. You can buy dry food by weight with different flavors and try which one your pet prefers. The selection of natural food will be much more difficult.
- Walking. Berger Picards are capable of working for long hours because they have a very high energy level. This breed needs a huge amount of daily exercise. Less than an hour of vigorous activity every day is perfectly acceptable, but if possible, you can give the dog more exercise.
This breed is great as a running partner, but in fact, it craves not limited, but free movement in open areas. If "Picards" do not waste their accumulated energy, they will almost certainly develop obsessive behavior in manifestations of destructiveness, hyperactivity, increased excitability, excessive barking, nervousness, mental mania and aggression.
These pets love and want to work. They need significant stimulation of their keen minds. This is provided by sports of obedience, agility, frisbee and other types.
Raising a Picardian Shepherd
Berger Picards is a very intelligent animal that has the ability to quickly assimilate almost all types of training of any breed. This species is very well versed in complex, destructive attacker behavior, and has also excelled in contests such as obedience and agility.
However, Picardian Sheepdogs are significantly more difficult to train than many herding breeds. While these dogs are not an exceptionally difficult breed, they are definitely strong-willed. When one of these dogs is reluctant to do something, the species can be incredibly stubborn. It's probably fair to say that while most herding dogs live to please their owners. They are ready to make their wishes come true in almost any case.
Berger Picards can also be challenging to learn because they are extremely sensitive to voice commands and harsh teaching methods. Pets do not tolerate screaming and violence at all. These dogs are best at adopting teaching methods that involve praise in the form of tactile caress and something tasty. Trainers who feel the dog by showing fairness while maintaining a consistent leadership position will have incredible success in training the breed.
Cost of the Picardian Shepherd Dog
The physical requirements and abilities of Berger Picards are perfect for some active families. This breed always wants to accompany its pets on any adventure, no matter how extreme, and can participate in almost any activity from hiking in the mountains to swimming in the ocean.
Although the Picardian Sheepdogs are more bred in the rural areas of the country, they adapt surprisingly well to urban environments if given enough exercise. This species tends to be very quiet and calm indoors if provided with sufficient physical activity.
The price for a puppy is from $ 2000 to $ 2500.
