Colorado Mountain Dog is an outcome of Wendy Francisco and her husband’s struggle for a friendly livestock breed. It was done because, generally, the guardian breeds are rude and aggressive towards strangers.
There is a lot that you can learn about this breed. For this reason, this article is going to focus on the breed history, temperament of Colorado mountain dog. Moreover, you will also learn about activity requirements and the different pros and cons of having this dog. Stick to the end to get all the essential details.
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Breed History of Colorado Mountain Dog
Parent Breeds:
Breed information about Colorado Mountain Dog indicates that it is a hybrid of Great Pyrenees and Anatolian Shepherd. Wendy came across this hybrid dog named Caspian in 2005 after so much research. It was a beautiful giant dog, tall and slender with strong bones. Caspian proved to be a perfect guardian. It had a significantly low rate of genetic issues as compared with other livestock guardian dogs.
Caspian’s Behavior:
Caspian had a friendly, somewhat tolerable temperament towards visitors, just what Wendy Francisco was looking for. Hence, Caspian became a preferred choice for farmers and ranchers as their livestock guardians. Then, Caspian was bred with a female dog named Snow, which gave off excellent results. The offspring were healthy, sturdy, and had incredible capabilities of guarding the stock.
Moreover, they exhibited a friendly approach towards the visitors and were welcoming to humans. They are not shy, hostile, or aggressive by any means. Soon the breed was famous among the farmers and ranchers with the name Colorado Mountain Dog breed.
Popularity Of Colorado Dogs:
The breed started flourishing by 2012 as the owner was known as the ethical breeder. By 2012, the number of breeders for Colorado mountain dogs increased. It ultimately led to the first registry of the Colorado Mountain Dog Association in 2015. Since then, the dog has proved himself the best guard for livestock and big farms and a faithful and loving family dog. It was accepted by the American Rare Breeds Association (ABRA) in 2018.
The breed gained importance when the dog Caspian was discovered and identified for its beautiful capabilities. These were of herding and guarding along with a peaceful temperament. Caspian, as mentioned above, was a hybrid of the Pyrenees and Anatolian shepherd.
Still, it is essential to know that the Colorado Mountain Dogs are screened individually by the CMDR. These are screened for the typical traits referred to by Colorado Mountain Dogs. It is because currently, the Colorado Mountain dogs are found to be the hybrids of any of the pairs of the breeds. These breeds include Great Pyrenees, Anatolian Shepherd, Boz, St. Bernard, Kuvasz, Maremma, Akbash. There are some other breeds known for their services as guarding dogs and human rescue dogs.
The Appearance Of Colorado Mountain Dog
The Colorado mountain dogs usually have a height up to 34 inches with a well-proportioned body. They have a 31 inches shoulder and a medium-sized chest, a straight back, and strong legs. Their paws have solid pads, the tail is thick, having longer fur. The head is not massive or jowled, slightly refined. Their eyes are large, expressive, and mostly dark brown contrasting with a black nose.
They have a double coat with a medium length of hair with a wavy texture. However, it is dense. The skin is a mostly white colour, but they may also be available in brown, fawn, faded badger, and tan.
You will see a friendly appearance on their face. These dogs have deep brown colored wide eyes. Overall it is a beautiful looking dog and will serve the purpose.
Maintaining Colorado Mountain Dog
Colorado mountain puppies are too easy to handle. You can easily maintain this dog breed. So let’s have a look at some essential details.
Shedding:
They do very well during the winter as they do not shed much hair. During winters, they need a thorough brushing of hair just once a week. Their teeth must be brushed more than once in a week to avoid tar accumulation in teeth. Their nails must be clipped when needed.
Brushing:
Information about the Colorado Mountain Puppies indicates that this giant and gentle fella is hard to keep in the summer. The dog starts to shed off the winter undercoat in the summer season, which kept him warm during the winter. Hence, in summers, coat brushing is required for the dog to get rid of the shedding hair every day.
Bathing:
They may need an occasional bath so that their coat’s white color stays fresh and clean. While bathing your animal, you must keep in mind that you cannot use human shampoo for your canine friend. It is so because they are harsh and unsuitable for the dog’s skin. They may wash off the oils from the surface of your dog. These oils are essential for the well-being of the skin of your puppy.
For bathing your dog, you must use the shampoos specially prepared for dogs’ sensitive skin. They correctly take care of the skin’s essential oils so that the common infection can be avoided.
Checking Ears:
You should never forget to check your pup ears for any infections. You may have to deal with mats under their ears, especially during spring. There are significant changes for Colorado mountain puppies to inhabit parasites and ticks in the summer season. Therefore, a little bit of extra care is needed in the summer season so that the dog’s life would be easy.
To brush the coat of a Colorado Mountain dog, you may use Pin Brush, Deshedder, and a Slicker brush.
Temperament Of Colorado Mountain Dog
Usually, the livestock guarding dogs are aggressive, stubborn, and do not mix with the flock. Unlike these Colorado mountain dogs, they exhibit a stable and pleasant temperament. This is the unique thing about Colorado Mountain Dog because it had been bred primarily for having this loving and friendly nature. They welcome new visitors warmly, and they socialize easily. Colorado mountain dogs are loyal and devoted guardians as well as best companions such as family dogs
These dogs have affectionate behavior towards children, and they are patient. Also, they are very loyal and devoted and will accept visitors at your doorstep. They are very serious and alert when it comes to their job.
Activity Requirements
When it comes to energy levels, the Colorado mountain dog breed is not that much hyperactive breed. However, they can still be classified as energetic ones. As livestock guardians, they get enough chance to wander, Run, and jump in the property’s whereabouts. They instinctively do so to perform their job with responsibility. In other cases, if the dog is kept as a family dog, they would need the right amount of exercise daily.
Exercise:
There must be a yard at the house to provide him enough space to run, use, and wander about. You may like to play some games with your puppy because they get attached to their owners so much. Their activity requirements are just medium. They may need up to 80 min of physical exercise daily. A walk of 20 miles per week is suitable for this breed.
They exhibit patience towards children, which is another significant trait to consider adopting this dog. They make charming companions.
Unique Traits of Colorado Mountain Dogs
The breed is well suited for guarding flocks and animals. They mark their territory and defend the borders against predators. For example, foxes, mountain lions, coons, and various other wild animals try to meddle with the farm works. If there are small predators like foxes and coons threatening your stock, only one dog will be enough to perform the job.
However, in an area of big predators such as lions, you may need to have at least two of the Colorado Mountain dogs. Despite being a fierce guard against coyotes and lions, the Colorado Mountain breed is well-mannered. They do not bark unnecessarily. They bark just as a warning to the coyotes and mountain lions, and it does not initiate a fight with the predator.
Independent Nature:
This trait of being independent is fruitful and sometimes irritating for the owner of the dog. They are meant to guard the flocks, and they know their job very well. These dogs usually do not take or require many commands. They use their instincts and take action accordingly. However, when it comes to training, they are not an easy task and do not listen much. They grow to be mature at a slower pace than most of the other breeds.
Hard Workers:
Colorado mountain puppies are hard workers by nature. To guard the livestock, they exhibit a deep sense of responsibility. Hence, to make sure they have done their job very well, they can work tirelessly until the obligation is fulfilled justly. They wander about a lot and make up for the gap of physical activity on their own if their exercise requirement is not fulfilled. However, if they are not working dogs, proper physical exercise is essential for maintaining a good healthy lifestyle.
Conclusion
The Colorado mountain dog is a beautiful gigantic, friendly, and well-mannered canine with exceptional abilities to guard animal livestock. Unlike other livestock guarding breed dogs, Colorado mountain dog has a warm, patient, loving, affectionate, and loyal attitude. They qualify to be the right choice as family dogs as well.
They love to socialize and welcome new people warmly, unlike other livestock guarding dogs. It made it easier for the farmers and ranchers to ensure security and have visitors on the farm. If you plan to adopt a Colorado mountain dog, you must take a detailed note of both breeding partners. You can do this by contacting the Colorado mountain dogs association.
Images Via: Colorado Mountain Dog Registry
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