They are able to follow a lead until they are lost and quite often cannot find their way home. With a very determined sense of sight, smell and hearing, Podengos tend to get distracted by the slightest noise. ![]() ![]() Proper canine to human communication is important. The breed can be socialized at an early age and needs organization given by a calm, confident and consistent handler. The Médio is favoured over the Grande and Pequeno but regardless of its size, the Médio is an awesome companion dog and super-efficient seeker. It is intelligent and very lively as well as being courageous and a good watchdog. The Médio may perhaps be the fastest of three Podengos. The Pequeno makes a wonderful pet for an apartment but enjoys company. The Pequeno is still popular in rural parts of Northern Portugal where they are used for small-game hunting rabbits, as well as for ratting, guard work and companionship. The Podengo Grande, from which the Podengo Médio and the Podengo Pequeno came from, is similar to a tan-coloured sighthound and was used for hunting wild boar but as this is scarce now, this variety is much more rare. Skinny legs lead to cat-like feet perfect for running after game. ![]() When calm, the tail is slightly drooped, when in motion or excited, the tail is horizontal. They are compact and sit over a rectangular muzzle which ends in a small brown or black nasal area. With large bat-like ears that sit on a flat-shaped head, their small eyes come in an oblique format in shades of honey to brown. Coat colours are fawn, orange or black and any of these colours can contain white markings and they are low maintenance. The breed comes with two coat varieties: wirehaired and smooth coated and are not necessarily interbred. Large (Grande) – 55 and 70 cm, weighing over 20 kgs.Medium (Médio) -40 to 55 cm in height and weighing between 16-20 kg.Small (Pequeno) – 20 to 30 cm in height and weighing between 4-6 kg.The Portuguese Podengo is a multi-sensory (sight and scent) hound as well as being a very distinctive looking dog. The Portuguese Podengo however owes its popularity to the most humble people who embraced it as a hunting dog. From this date, there are many records relating to them as hunting dogs even being used in royal hunts of this nature. The first written reference to these dogs hunting rabbits is in 1199 during the reign of King D. It also said that the smaller variety escorted Portuguese explorers on their ships, where they were used for ratting purposes. During the Arab invasions, between the eighth and twelfth centuries, the Podengos were crossed with other breeds of dogs probably with the same primitive origins of the Podengo, but both developed differently. ![]() It is thought that the Portuguese Podengo was introduced around 700 BC by Phoenician merchants to the Iberian Peninsular (they are known as Podenco in Spain) when there was an ensured trade throughout the Mediterranean. Among its ancestors is most likely the Pharaoh Hound, an animal that belonged to the Pharaohs of ancient Egypt. The Portuguese Podengo or Portuguese Warren Hound is classified as a primitive breed and is therefore considered one of the oldest known breeds of dogs. Did you know that Portugal boasts several different breeds of its own dogs, one of them being the Portuguese Podengo?
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