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Bouvier des Flandres
The Bouvier des Flandres is a herding dog breed originating in Flanders. They were originally used for general farm work including cattle droving, sheep herding, and cart pulling, and nowadays as guard dogs and police dogs, as well as being kept as pets. The French name of the breed means, literally, "Herder of Flanders", referring to the Flemish origin of the breed. Other names for the breed are Toucheur de Boeuf (cattle driver), Flanders Cattle Dog and Vuilbaard (dirty beard).
The Bouvier is a powerfully built compact rough coated dog of rugged appearance. It gives the impression of size and strength without clumsiness or heaviness. Perhaps its most notable feature is the impressive head which is accentuated by a heavy beard and mustache. The ears and tail of the Bouvier are traditionally cropped. The weight of males ranges from 100 to 120 pounds or 45 to 55 kilograms, slightly smaller for females. They are powerfully built, with a thick double coat, which can be fawn, black, grey brindle, or "pepper and salt" in color. Bouviers are sometimes considered non-shedding, but in fact do lose hair, like all dogs. Most of the hair that they lose is caught within the double coat which results in matting. They require weekly brushing and combing to maintain the coat. In addition to weekly brushing, the coat should be trimmed approximately every 3-5 weeks if it is to be a show-dog. Trimming requires practice to achieve the proper look.
Bouviers des Flandres are rational, gentle, loyal, and protective in nature. The breed's unique blend of characteristics makes them good family pets, as well as keen guard dogs. Unlike many animals bred for basic aggressive nature and power, the Bouvier des Flandres possesses sophisticated traits, such as complex control, intelligence, and accountability.
Some of the content on this page was originally published on Wikipedia
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Bouvier des Flandres. Image courtesy of Wikipedia.
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