Estrela Mountain Dog

Estrela Mountain Dog
A young dog
Female
Other namesCão da Serra da Estrela
OriginPortugal
Traits
Height Males 65–75 cm (26–30 in)
Females 62–71 cm (24–28 in)
Weight Males 45–60 kg (99–132 lb)
Females 35–45 kg (77–99 lb)
Coat either long or short, with thick undercoat
Colour fawn, grey or yellow in any shade, either solid or brindled; wolf-grey with fawn, grey or yellow tones
Kennel club standards
Clube Português de Canicultura standard
Associação Portuguesa do Cão da Serra da Estrela standard
Fédération Cynologique Internationale standard
Dog (domestic dog)

The Estrela Mountain Dog or Cão da Serra da Estrela is a Portuguese breed of large flock guardian dog indigenous to the Serra da Estrela mountain range in central Portugal.[1][2][3][4][5]

History

The breed has been developed in the mountains of Serra da Estrela, in what is now Portugal.[6]: 90 [7] A breed society, the Associação Portuguesa do Cão da Serra da Estrela, was established in Lisbon in December 1986; the statutes of the association were published early the next year in the Diário da República, the official gazette of the Republic.[8][9]: 1969 

Description

Use

In the twenty-first century, some of the dogs have been used to protect flocks from Iberian wolves – which are themselves a protected species.[10]

References

  1. ^ [s.n.] (2021). Catálogo Oficial de Raças Autóctones Portuguesas (in Portuguese). Lisboa: Confederação dos Agricultores de Portugal; Direção-Geral de Alimentação e Veterinária. Archived 19 January 2024.
  2. ^ FCI breeds nomenclature: Cão da Serra da Estrela (173). Thuin, Belgium: Fédération Cynologique Internationale. Accessed February 2026.
  3. ^ FCI-Standard N° 173: Cão da Serra da Estrela (Estrela Mountain Dog). Thuin, Belgium: Fédération Cynologique Internationale. Accessed February 2026.
  4. ^ Cães - Raça Serra da Estrela (in Portuguese). Vale de Santarém: Sociedade Portuguesa de Recursos Genéticos Animais. Archived 11 February 2026.
  5. ^ Cão da Serra da Estrela (in Portuguese). Lisboa: Clube Português de Canicultura. Archived 9 February 2026.
  6. ^ Gino Pugnetti, Elizabeth Meriwether Schuler (1980). Simon & Schuster's Guide to Dogs. New York; London; Toronto; Sydney; Tokyo; Singapore: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9780671255275
  7. ^ Chien de la serra da estrela (in French). Société Centrale Canine. Archived 10 February 2026.
  8. ^ A Associação (in Portuguese). Lisboa: Associação Portuguesa do Cão da Serra da Estrela. Archived 16 November 2025.
  9. ^ Associação Portuguesa do Cão da Serra da Estrela (in Portuguese). Diário da República, III Série: N.°40, 17 February 1987.
  10. ^ Barbara Aldiss (12 February 2012). Portugal brings back rare guard dogs to tackle wolves. BBC News. Archived 24 November 2022.