Portuguese breeds

hi i don´t have none of those breeds, i feel that even here portuguese breeds aren´t talked about has much has other breeds. i´m portuguese so i have experience with some of those breeds, i´ve talked to some cops that use Filas de S.Miguel in their job and they all tell me that they are pretty intense and agressive, and that it´s very dificult for them to accept diferent handlers. has my personal experience with them what i know about filas is that they are very inteligent, learn quickly, very atached to owner and great guardians. they are pretty agile and dispite the smaller size compared to other guardian breeds they make up with spirit :) if i would need a personal guardian the Fila would be on my top list. about the Serra da Estrela it has the typical temperament of a sheperd dog a bit more sociable, more watchfull during the night, better with other dogs and animals. don´t have much experience about the other breeds. about the portuguese breeds not being too divulgued abroad is because here we have the kind of mentality, were all that is from other countries is better than what we got, so our breeds are not so apreciated, because everybody want a rottweiler or a german sheperd, i guess all starts there.... hope i helped a ltle bit ;)

I feel they are all good guards in their own right. I have heard good things about them. Personally, I feel that their lack of popularity is due to their plain, functional and "unimpressive" types. Personally, I prefer an uncomplicated, plain dog but most people prefer some sort of unique, impressive quality whatever it may be. I hope these breeds stay as they are. I was surprised to read about the police use of the Sao Miguel; very cool. They are not really a push button breed. I have seen one compete in DS. Very civil, not too "forgiving."

[quote1292025426=Vasquinho] Thanks for the input igmuska. Could you elaborate what you mean with "they are not a push button breent" and "very civil, not too forgiving". My english is good, but not that good ;). [/quote1292025426] i guess with "they are not a push button breed" she wants to say that they are not the typical breed that reacts on command as easy as a GSD for example. so i guess she is referring to the "on off switch". not too "forgiving" could mean they have a memory like an elephant, or in other words say remember everything and could bear grudges. (i could also be wrong and she could mean something else) ;)

i found a couple movies in youtube about filas, [youtube=]TL0d1VJ24V0[/youtube] [youtube=]CS6ZxM2V4bI[/youtube] [youtube=]MitG1ZXyTlU[/youtube] about castro laboreiro in his habitat: [youtube=]5-n0aVRoq90[/youtube] and the biggest portuguese breed is the, cão de gado transmontano: [youtube=]6VumjGEzbuE[/youtube]

[quote1292032397=Vasquinho] -Rafeiro do alentejo [/quote1292032397] doesn´t the Rafeiro do Alentejo aka Alentjo Mastiff have a breed profile on MolosserDogs (?) or maybe i was too blind to see it, i will have a look again. [quote1292031970=rui] and the biggest portuguese breed is the, cão de gado transmontano: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VumjGEzbuE [/quote1292031970] very interesting and versatile breed. i have seen a documentary about them. i think it was around the time when they were recogniced by the FCI.

[quote1292173087=Vasquinho] Thanks for the input igmuska. Could you elaborate what you mean with "they are not a push button breed" and "very civil, not too forgiving". My english is good, but not that good ;). [/quote1292173087] As said, The push button comment is about the ability to do what you command under pressure. The German Shepherd is a good general example of a dog that does what is told (like "outing" or releasing its bite on the "bad guy"). The Caucasian Ovcharka is an example of a dog that believes it knows what is best, and often does not listen right away if at all. Some say this means they are harder to control. A civil dog is defined by how serious to takes its job. This has levels, and is difficult to explain. This is a dog that takes its job seriously and will not tolerate foolish behavior or mistakes from strangers. For instance, a drunk person may be "harmless" but a very civil dog might not tolerate the person's odd behavior, wild mannerisms, and loud, blurting voice. This is not about control, but about the willingness to bite. You can have a very controllable dog that is civil, but this dog will react quicker and more serious than a less civil dog. The modern use of the term is pertaining to "civil work" or agitation and bite work without equipment or with hidden equipment. A civil dog is usually quite defensive. This kind of dog is also less tolerant of a "bad guy's" presence once he has made his intentions known. Though good handling and obedience can make this possible. A less forgiving dog has nothing to do with memory, just tolerance of odd behavior or mishandling. This is what the dog deems acceptable behavior from strangers and what it will tolerate. A forgiving dog with a high threshold will take a lot of "pushing" to bite from a potential threat or bad handling. Less forgiving dogs need more work, better handling, and heavy socialization to deal with foolish behavior from strangers. A less forgiving dog does not do well with a novice handler. Sometimes a mistake on the handler's part such as an unfair or too hard a correction can result in a redirected bite. This is also magnified in breeds known for handler/human rank issues. Let me know if you have any more questions.

Yes. There are different types. Mostly it is related to overall interaction with humans, but can be more or less when talking about stranger versus family/owner interactions. As far as I know Estrelas will test you, but will understand and respect a strong leader. Sao de Miguels are a bit more testing from what I understand. I know a person who expressed caution about handler redirection. Most of these breeds are a bit rank. It is part of being a good guard. I thought one of our Presa owners here had one on those breeds as well. I could be wrong though...

Igmuska, excuse the simpleness of the question, but how "raw" is the Azorean Cattle Dog? It shows a lot of continental bulldog traits, but some herder traits as well. I know that's just physiological. To me, it suggests a dog that has a lot of drives intact because it has to be really versatile. On the continent, there are dogs to hunt, dogs to guard, dogs to drive cattle. Not that there isn't overlap, but the Cattledog will be doing all those jobs. I think sometimes dogs like GSD's and Rotts are popular because they can be. It's easy to breed a lot of a dog when it fits a specialized type/temperament