Common Name: Appenzeller
Other Common Names: Appenzell Cattle Dog, Swiss Mountain Dog, Appenzell Mountain Dog Appensell Cattle Dog, Appenzeller Sennenhund
Group: Herding
Origin or Range: Switzerland
Relative Size: Larger Than Average
Compatibility: Average
There are four Swiss scent hounds and the Appenzeller or the Appenzeller Mountain Dog is one of them. The roots of this breed are in Switzerland and it is a flock guardian and also a herding breed.
These dogs are quite athletic and very energetic. Loyalty and devotion to their owners are also well known. However, the herding tasks are successfully carried out by the Appenzellers thanks to their sharp intelligence and their strong natural group instincts. These traits are also facilitating an easy training process. They use barking and sometimes nipping at the hind feet of the animals that fail to keep up with the rest of the group. The ideal environment for keeping such a dog is, of course, the outdoors, as they need plenty of space and exercise.
The height an adult Appenzeller can reach is of about 60 centimeters, while the maximum weight is usually 25 kilos. These parameters are those of an adult male, but the bitches are only slightly smaller and lighter. The short, smooth, tricolored coats (combinations of black, tan and white) cover the solid and compact bodies.
The history of the Appenzellers starts a very long time ago, in the 1st century BC, along with their first contact with the Swiss Alpine regions, due to the Romans. In the beginning, it is said that they were mixed with other herding Swiss dogs and the Puli. Their main purpose then, herding, is also the main use for these dogs today. It is recommended that people wanting to get such a dog have previous experience with other herding dogs. The Appenzellers can now be found almost all over the world, especially in Europe and the Americas, although they were initially bred only in Switzerland.
The process of maturing is pretty slow for this breed, therefore the training process can be a bit slower as well. In some cases, the training of a puppy can take up to nine months.