The Presa Canario is a Spanish breed of large dog of mastiff or catch dog type. It was traditionally used for working livestock. It was formerly known as the Dogo Canario.
History
In 1991 the Presa Canario was included in a list of national symbols of the Canary Islands as a symbol of the island of Gran Canaria.[1]:2610 It was officially recognised by the Spanish national government in 2001.[2]
The breed was provisionally accepted by the Federation Cynologique Internationale in 2001 under the name Dogo Canario;[3] it was fully accepted in 2011.[4] In December 2018, at the request of the Real Sociedad Canina de España, the name was changed to Presa Canario.[5]
Characteristics
The Presa Canario is a large dog with a heavy muscular body.[6] Dogs stand 60–66 cm at the withers and weigh some 50–65 kg; bitches stand about 56–62 cm and weigh approximately 10 kg less.[7]
The head is broad, massive, square, and powerful brachycephalic shape. Proper head and good expression are part of the breed standard, and are manifest in the best breed specimens. The ears are normally cropped, both to create a more formidable expression and to prevent damage while working with cattle. If cropped, the ears stand erect. In countries where ear-cropping is banned, the ears are close fitting to the head; they hang down and should be pendant or "rose" shaped. The upper lip is pendulous, although not excessively. Seen from the front, the upper and lower lips come together to form an inverted V. The flews are slightly divergent. The inside of the lips is a dark colour.[7]
The breed is also characterized by a sloping topline (with the rear being slightly higher than the shoulders). Another characteristic of the breed is the shape of the paws (cat foot) and the catlike movement of the animal. The body is mesomorphic, that is, slightly longer than the dog is tall, contributing to the feline movement.
Temperament
Presas require early socialization and obedience training.[8] In some situations, the Perro de Presa Canario can be aggressive toward other dogs and suspicious of strangers.[9] In the past these dogs were used in dog fighting rings due to their size.
In County Galway, Ireland in 2017, a woman was killed when she entered her son's home and was attacked by three of these dogs, which were being used by the son as guard dogs.[10]
Lifespan
The average lifespan for the Perro de Presa Canario is between 10 and 12 years.[11]
Legal restrictions on ownership
Importation and sale of the breed is prohibited in Australia[12] and New Zealand.[13]
Use
In addition to the traditional role of cattle dog, the Presa Canario has been used for dog fighting.[14][15][16] Until the 1950s it remained a common practice in all of the islands.
| This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Metasyntactic variable, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. |