Breed Feature – The Lagotto Romagnolo

LAGOTTO ROMAGNOlO

The Lagotto Romagnolo is an ancient breed of water retrieving dogs originating in the lowlands of Comacchio and the marshlands of Ravenna. Over the centuries, the great marshlands were drained and turned into arable land. Subsequently, the breed changed from being a water dog to an excellent dog for searching for truffles in the flat open country and the hills of Romagna.

The Lagotto Romagnolo is probably one of the most ancient breeds of water dog known as well as being an absolutely natural breed. Archaeological excavations in the Etruscan burial ground of Spina (close to the Comacchio region) have found hunting and fishing etchings on clay and terra-cotta pots dating to the fifth and sixth centuries, showing a curly, shaggy-haired dog extremely similar to the present day Lagotto Romagnolo.

When water dogs arrived in Spain with the Moors, they had already been known through the whole Italian peninsula for centuries, but in particular in the wet and marshy areas of Northern Italy. The Barbet reached France after the Arab invasion of Spain and most scholars agree that the Barbet was the ancestor of the Poodle. The ‘Canis Aquaticus’ (Water Dog) was mentioned by Linneus, the great Swedish naturalist of the eighteenth century, as having been ‘widespread for long’ in the Mediterranean area, and especially that of the North. Linneus’ description of the dog corresponds surprisingly with that of the curly haired dog of Romagna.

Eugenio Raimondi in his book ‘Delle Caccie’ - About Hunting (Venice, 1630), when discussing the water dogs that had always been popular in the Venetian lagoons wrote: ‘They do not fear to bring ducks to steep rocky places and being used to their noble duty, they do not fear to wet their backs and bottom, and bring their prey back to their master to please him. They are bristly and curly-haired dogs of the same colour as the reeds’.

Antonia Morri (Faenza 1840) in his ‘Household Technological Manual of Entries, Expressions, Proverbs, Popular Sayings and Idioms of Romagna’ described the ‘Can Lagott’ as a ‘thick-furred truffle or marsh dog’ or as ‘bristly-haired water or truffle dog’. This indicates that even then, the Lagotto Romagnolo was being transformed from a water dog to a truffle-hound.

There is unquestionable evidence that the Lagotto Romagnolo was present in the lagoons of Comacchio and the marshy areas of the lowland plains of Romagna as early as 1600. The inhabitants of the flat marshlands were known as ‘Lagotti’ and they used small dogs with very curly hair. They also went searching for truffles with their inseparable companion, the small Lagotto Romagnolo, who also guarded the boat and house and retrieved ducks. He would dive and swim for hours at a time even in very cold weather when he may have had to break the ice. This ‘amphibian’ behaviour was made possible by its truly waterproof thick coat, with very close curls and abundant undercoat preventing the water from touching the skin; it was sufficient just to shake itself and the dog was perfectly dry.

When the marshes were reclaimed the Lagotto Romagnolo progressively lost its function as a water dog and gradually specialised as a trufflehound. His great ability to search, his keen sense of smell and trainability made him very suitable for the task.

Breeding in the early days was not controlled and had always been done to achieve practical results. Consequently, it tended to be between dogs closely related by blood. But in later years dogs were used that were not related, such as pointers, poodles etc and this was not justified or in the interests of the breed. Therefore, in the late 1970’s, a group of distinguished dog fanciers from Romagna, decided it was time to save the breed. Over twenty years seminars and meetings took place, dogs were examined, measured, tattooed and entered onto a Register with the result that the breed has evolved back again to a well-defined, homogenous type.

GENERAL APPEARANCE

The Lagotto Romagnolo is a small to medium sized dog, well proportioned, powerfully built, of a rustic (hardy) appearance, with a dense, curly

scent of game. The Lagotto Romagnolo is tractable, undemanding, keen, affectionate, very attached to his owner and easy to train. He is a very good companion and also an excellent watch-dog. Its lively intelligence, personality and sensible character make it a pleasant and often irreplaceable companion, not only for those who see dogs as workers but also those who see them as a friend and companion with whom to share everything, in good times and bad, until

coat of woolly texture. The immediate impression is of his hardy, sensible appearance, followed by an impression of athletic strength and nobility in spite of his small size. Nobility (which is not his only distinction) is essential to the breed in order to express the type which is also derived from his shape, colour and bearing. The Lagotto Romagnolo has a body to height ratio of about 85/88; a body almost as high as it is long, which tends to be contained within a square. He has moderate, harmonious and shapely body structure.

CHARACTERISTICS

This small ‘king of the woods’ is, and should remain, a typical working dog. He is endowed with great endurance and agile, graceful movement, and the people who are not truffle searchers can also appreciate this breed for its attractive appearance and excellent temperament and companionship.

TEMPERAMENT

A natural gift for searching and its very good nose has made the breed very efficient in truffle searching. The former hunting instinct has been eliminated, hence his work is not distracted by the death us do part.

COAT

Of woolly texture, somewhat rough in surface, forming tightly curled, ring-shaped curls with the undercoat shining through. Curls must be evenly distributed all over the body, except on the head, where the curls are less tight, forming wellfurnished eyebrows, whiskers and beard. Even the cheeks are covered with dense hair. The top coat and especially the undercoat are waterproof. If not clipped, the hair tends to become felted; therefore a complete clipping must be performed at least once a year. Felted topcoat and undercoat must be removed periodically.

COLOUR

Off-white solid colour, white with brown or orange patches, brown roan, brown solid colour (in different shades), or orange solid colour. A brown to dark brown mask is acceptable. Every shade of brown is permitted while black is not allowed.

SIZE Height at withers: Dogs from 43 to 48 cm Ideal height — 46 cm Bitches from 41 to 46 cm Ideal Height — 43 cm

Weight: Dogs about 13 to 16 kg Bitches about 11 to 14 kg

Reproduced from the Extended ANKC Breed Standards • Transcervical insemination with fresh, chilled and frozen semen. • Semen collection and freezing. • In-house progesterone testing - results in 20 minutes. • Dog and bitch fertility assessment and much more.

Dr Scott Norman BVSc PhD DACT

Registered specialist - veterinary reproduction Dr Jennifer Larsen BVBiol BVSc Ph (07) 3204 4332

1474 Anzac Ave Kallangur 4503

What We Should See When A Lagotto Romagnolo Moves

From day to day and show to show we see more and more representatives of our beloved breed. There are a lot of questions and a lot of thoughts about how a Lagotto should look. The Lagotto Romagnolo is a working dog, and his purpose is to work for a long time in difficult terrain and for long periods, and his structure should follow his purpose. First impressions sometimes can bluff us. Seeing a stacked dog in show ring for this rustically coated dog is not enough. The real picture can be seen when we make these dogs move. What we see, or what we should see, is an ‘energetic trot with reach and drive… lively and balanced.’

As we all know, the ability to recognise correct and incorrect movement is an essential element of dog knowledge. Correct movement depends on the basis principles of good structure, which is determined by the dog’s purpose. Generally speaking, every dog should move forward with the least amount of effort. Effortless movement is good movement. The gait of the Lagotto is characterised by the loose and cheerful trot that reflects the deep, deep joy in performing his function. This is what we need to see also on the show ground, and image how this dog flows in nature. This is not a hunting dog, and he doesn’t need to run after animals; he doesn’t need to run anywhere – the speed is not his purpose, rather instead a diligent search for truffles. Movement in the ring is often quicker than the eye can follow, and evaluation is sometimes hard, but we all have to look for the carriage of the head, neck, back and spinal column. Watching them on the move, they do appear as a slight curve moving forward, with no waste of motion.

Correct neck is fundamental to the function that this region plays in the cephalic-cervical balance (neck with the head) moving the center of gravity forward. The Lagotto’s neck is strong and muscular, well set off from the nape, slightly arched, with the length little less than the total length of the head. Looking at the Lagotto’s forequarters, we can expect a high and long forearm, which contributes to making the dorsal line straight, and a well inclined shoulder, allowing for wide and powerful steps. Usually we can say that hindquarters are the engine of the dog, the source of the power and locomotion, and the Lagotto should have powerful, upright and well-proportioned hindquarters. We will end with the tail of the Lagotto, which provides the counterbalance necessary to perform difficult manoeuvres such as climbing, jumping or walking along narrow structures. When the Lagotto moves, the tail can be brought in line with the spine or even higher. When excited, it can be more or less raised on its back, but never curved like the tail of an Italian Volpino dog (or American Akita), or straight up like that of a terrier. For a working dog like a Lagotto who must have character and temperament, tail between the legs is a serious fault. In the end, all this mechanism of movement of the Lagotto we could describe as very freeflowing stride and should not bob up and down. There should be no apparent disturbance of the topline, and the complete picture should be that of a dog flowing over the ground, with all the parts of the anatomy in complete harmony like all in nature is.

Reprinted with the kind permission of Sabina Zdunic

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