Water dog

Water dogs are a type of gun dog and count among their number some of the oldest dog breeds. As the name implies, water dogs were bred to flush and retrieve game from water. Strong swimming desire is distinctive within the various breeds.

The ancestors of modern water dogs originated in the Mediterranean and other parts of Europe over 2000 years ago.

Water dogs have curly, sometimes corded coats which are somewhat waterproof. Most water dog breeds are highly intelligent and easy to train with a strong desire to be in company with people.

The following breeds are considered water dogs (listed in alphabetical order):

• American Water Spaniel
• Barbet
• Chesapeake Bay Retriever
• Curly Coated Retriever
• Epagneul Pont-Audemer
• Irish Water Spaniel
• Labrador Retriever
• Lagotto Romagnolo (a.k.a Italian Water Dog)
• Poodle
• Portuguese Water Dog
• Spanish Water Dog
• Puli
• Wetterhoun

This article is licenced under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Water dog".