Samoyed dog is generally available in white color only and just by taking a look at it one can easily recognize this breed. In the earlier days this breed is used to pull sledges insnow covered areas. Europeans still use this dog in the exploration of polar areas. Samoyed name came after the people from Siberia.
History and Health :
- History :
As per animal lovers, this breed descended from Nenets herding laika which is used for multipurpose by Siberians. Recent studies showed that this breed is more than 3000 years old and one of the 14 distinctive dog breeds that lived at that time.
- Health :
Because of lack of genetic diversity (founder effect), this breed is facing several problems. Commonly seen problem that is confined to this breed is Samoyed Hereditary Glomerulopathywhich is occurring because of reduction in genetic diversity. Other important diseases include Diabetes, PRA, Dysplasia, Pulmonary stenosis etc. Breeders must take extreme care in bringing up this pet dog; otherwise the life span will decrease considerably.
Temperament & Personality :
- Personality :
It is very gentle and easy going. Unlike other dogs, which are friendly with the breeder’sfamily only, this dog becomes friendly also very quickly with anyone. It is not that much suitable as watch dog although it barks when strangers or intruders come to your home.
- Activity Requirements :
The activity requirements can be considered as medium as daily walking and occasional jogging is enough for this breed. You can even skip this activity for one or two days if you are busy in some other work.
- Trainability :
It is not that much quick in learning and the training must start in the early stages only otherwise it can become stubborn.
- Behavioral Traits :
It can become very destructive if it is left alone for a stretch of more than twelve hours. It needs constant companion and will be very obedient in the presence of human beings. This breed likes hunting and one must be careful if other small pets present in your home. If properly trained from the early stages, they can even live happily with small birds and cats also.
Appearance & Grooming :
- Appearance :
White fur, smiling face, dark black eyes are significant factors for its beautiful appearance and these are significant factors in gettingportrait status for this dog. Eyes are generally almondshaped whereas ears are thick, erect and triangular in shape. The tail of this breed is distinct when compared to others andits tail curly when it is alert and it will fall if the dog is relaxed.
- Size and Weight :
Just like all other breeds, males are slightly heavier thought there is no much difference. On average males reach a height of 53-60cms when compared to females whose height range is 48-53cm.Males weight between 45-65 pounds usually and females weight range is 35-50pounds in general.
- Coat & Color :
The double coat of this breed perfectly made so that it can sustain in cold climates also. The under coat is short and dense whereas the upper coat is long and straight (not curvy).The silver lining gives extra shine for this upper coat and the dog generally sheds its lower coat once or twice in a year.This breed is not suitable if you are sensitive to allergies as it sheds some hair all through the year and most of the times these hairsfloats in air, sticks to clothes and causes respiratory problems.
- Grooming :
Grooming requirement is extensive and one needs to comb it daily so that the shed hair won’tfall all over the house. It can stay white without taking bath also but cleanliness is important as dogs which are dirty are more prone to diseases like plague and wax.
- Body Type :
The body shape looks compact but it is muscular. Legs are strong, muscular whereas feet are flat and unlike other breeds feet are also covered with hair.
Samoyed Characteristics :
- Extremely friendly in nature. So not suitable for guarding.
- Can be an excellent play toy for kids.
- Not suitable for families who are sensitive toallergies.
- Can maintain a good relation with other pets also if properly trained.
- More prone to skin allergies when compared to other breeds.
- Notsuitable for hot climates as it has thick fur but works excellently in arctic conditions.
- Suitable to live in apartments also but constant monitoring is needed.
- One needs to start training from very early age as they learn slowly.
Tasty Tidbits :
It is hard to find Samoyed dog which is aggressive but the unprovoked attacking nature is a big minus for this breed.
Care :
When compared to other dogs, some extra care is necessary. To control the problems like excessive barking you need to train yourdog to be confident and firm. This breed lacks leadership qualities and one need to improve some qualities so that it can lead a happy life.
Images, Pics, Photos and Pictures of Samoyed :
Feeding :
Just like all the medium sized dogs, this also requires 2-2.25 cups of quality food daily and the non-vegetarianitems like chicken, meat, beef are most favourite food items. Instead of serving the whole meal once, divide the meal to two to three servings which is good from health point of view also.
Information and Facts of Samoyed:
- The full name of this breed is Samoyed.
- It is even known as Bjelkier, SamoiedskayaSobaka and NenetskayaLaika.
- North West Russia and Siberia are the native places for this dog breed.
- It is of medium size but looks small when compared to other dogs in this category.
- This is a working type of dog breed as per AKC standards.
- On average, this dog’slife span is in between 12 to14 years.
- It is social, friendly, alert, lively and playful but stubborn in some cases.
- The height of the male dog is 54-60cms.
- Femaledogs which are slightly shorter have numbers in the range of 50-56cms.
- Female dogsweigh between 17-25 kg and the numbers increases to 20-32.5kg in case of male dogs.
- Most preferable color in this breed is white. You can even opt forwhite and biscuit and cream colored dogs.
- One can get a Samoyed puppy in USA after paying $700 and it is better not to pay more than $1500.
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