Polish Lowland Sheepdog
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| Other names | Polski Owczarek Nizinny (Polish) Valee Sheepdog |
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| Common nicknames | PON Nizinny PLS |
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| Origin | Poland | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Classification / standards | |||
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| FCI | Group 1, Section 1 Sheepdogs #251 | standard | |
| AKC | Herding | standard | |
| ANKC | Group 5 (Working) | standard | |
| CKC | Group 7 - Herding | standard | |
| KC (UK) | Pastoral | standard | |
| NZKC | Working | standard | |
| UKC | Herding Dogs | standard | |
The Polish Lowland Sheepdog (Polish: Polski Owczarek Nizinny, also PON), is a medium-sized, shaggy-coated, sheep dog breed native to Poland.
The PON is a muscular, thick-coated dog. The double coat can be of any color or pattern; white, gray, and brown are most common, with black, gray, or brown markings. It is common for colors to fade as the dogs reach adulthood. The undercoat is soft and dense, while the topcoat is rough and either straight or wavy, but not curly. The hair around the head makes the head appear to be larger than it actually is, and typically covers the eyes.
Males are 45 – 50 cm (18 - 20 inches) in height at the withers, while females are 42 – 47 cm (17 - 19 inches). Males typically weigh between 40 - 50 lb, females, 30 - 40 lb. The body is just off square, it appears rectangular due to the abundance of coat on the chest and rear; the ratio of the height to the body length should be 9:10 (a 45 cm tall dog should have a body 50 cm long). The tail is either very short or docked in the United States. European countries have banned docking for the most part and many PONs now have tails of varying lengths.
Polish Lowland Sheepdogs are stable and self-confident. They have an excellent memory and can be well trained, but may dominate a weak-willed owner. PONs adapt well to various conditions, and are popular as companion dogs for apartment dwellers in their native Poland. PONs require a moderate amount of exercise daily.
The Polish Lowland Sheepdog can compete in dog agility trials, obedience, Rally obedience, showmanship, flyball, tracking, and herding events. Herding instincts and trainability can be measured at noncompetitive herding tests. PONs that exhibit basic herding instincts can be trained to compete in herding trials.
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Wikipedia