Spanish Water Dog

The Perro de Agua is a traditional dog population of Spain. It was always a minority breed, present in smaller numbers than some other Spanish dogs.^[2]: 571 The population is thought to have remained fairly stable until the 1970s and 1980s, when – as a consequence of changes to methods of both agriculture and fishery – numbers fell sharply, to the point that the dogs were considered to be at risk of extinction.^[2]: 571 Until this time there had been no scientific study of the breed; in the 1980s a study of the dogs in the province of Malaga was carried out, and further work was done by researchers at the Universidad de Córdoba in the 1990s.^[2]: 572

Three sub-populations of the breed were identified, on the basis both of observed differences in physical size and of differences in the distribution of coat colours; the characteristics of the head were found to be similar in all of the dogs.^[2]: 572 The sub-groups were: the Marismeño ('marsh dog') of the Marismas del Guadalquivir, at the mouth of the river of the same name in western Andalucia; the Serrano ('sierra dog') of southern Andalucia; and the smaller Norteño ('northern dog') of Cantabria and Asturias.^[2]: 573

The Perro de Agua Español was recognised by the Real Sociedad Canina de España, the Spanish kennel club, in 1975;^[2]: 571 it was definitively accepted by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale in 1999;^[4] and was recognised in Spanish law by Royal Decree in 2001.^{[2]: 571 [5]: 21173} The Norteño sub-population of Cantabria and Asturias was recognised in Spanish law in 2012 as a separate breed, the Cantabrian Water Dog.^{[2]: 573 [3]}

The Perro de Agua is a medium-sized, athletic, robust dog that is slightly longer than tall. Approximately half are born with natural bobbed (short) tails.^{[citation needed]}

The head is strong and carried with elegance. The skull is flat and the top is parallel with the top of the muzzle. The nose, eye-rims and paw pads are the same colour as the darkest part of the coat or darker. The eyes are set fairly wide apart, and are hazel, chestnut or dark brown in colour, depending on the coat colour. The ears are set at medium height on the skull, and are triangular.^{[citation needed]}

It has a distinctive curly coat which is woolly in texture and may form cords when long.^{[citation needed]}

It may be solid black, beige, brown, or white; bicolour where the second colour is white; or particolour. Tri-coloured dogs are strictly prohibited by the international standards for the breed, as are black-and-tan or brown-and-tan colour combinations.^{[citation needed]}

It is a medium-sized dog. The approximate measurements are:

• Males
  • Height (at the withers): 44–50 cm (17–20 in)
  • Weight: 18–22 kg (40–49 lb)
• Females
  • Height (at the withers): 40–45 cm (16–18 in)
  • Weight: 14–18 kg (31–40 lb)^[6]

The life expectancy is thought to be about 14 years. Recent health testing has uncovered the following issues:

• Hip dysplasia^[7]
• Progressive retinal atrophy (prcd-PRA)
• Hypothyroidism
• Hypoadrenocorticism (also known as Addison's disease)
• Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency
• Allergies
• Cataracts
• Congenital hypothyroidism with goitre (CHG)
• Distichia
• Cherry eye
• Neuroaxonal dystrophy^[8]