Patti

The nomadic Tamil tribes of India have used this dog for many years as a flock guard to protect their sheep from the attacks of foxes and other wild animals. The Patti has the black-and-tan markings of the German Shepherd, but the shape and looks more like a Doberman Pinscher. The Tamil shepherds find this breed to be especially intelligent and hardy, but in recent times it has become increasingly rare, due to uncontrolled crosses with other dogs. However there are still said to be some pure-breed specimens in existence from which a modern pedigree dog could be established with a carefully planned breeding program. source Dogs by Desmond Morris