Working group · Portugal
Portuguese Water Dog
Also called Portie, PWD, Cao de Agua.
What makes them remarkable
Portuguese fishermen used these dogs to retrieve gear and carry messages between boats.
- Affectionate
- Adventurous
- Athletic
- Obedient
- Spirited
- Size
- Medium
- Weight
- 16 to 27 kg35 to 60 lb
- Lives
- 11 to 13 years
- Energy
- High
- Trains
- Very High
- Barks
- Moderate
Training
Training a Portuguese Water Dog
Working breeds. Calm structure beats force every time. These dogs shut down under pressure and thrive on predictability.
Highly Trainable
Start here
Eager to please and very intelligent. Excel at obedience, agility, and water work.
Needs Mental Stimulation
Smart dogs that get bored easily. Provide training challenges and puzzle toys.
Water Activities
Bred for water work, swimming and retrieving are natural and excellent exercise.
The app turns this into five to fifteen minutes a day.
Add your Portuguese Water Dog and it builds the plan around their age, where they came from and what they already know, one step at a time.
Free to start. iPhone. No card needed.
At home
Living with one
Bred to guard, pull and rescue. Big, strong, and serious about their people and their patch.
Gets on with
- ChildrenHigh
- Other dogsHigh
- StrangersHigh
- CatsHigh
Breed averages. Early socialisation and the individual dog matter more.
- Exercise
- 1-2 hours daily. Swimming is ideal exercise. Active dogs needing significant activity.
- Grooming
- High maintenance. Regular professional grooming. Does not shed but coat grows continuously.
- Drool
- Low
- Coat
- Curly, Wavy, Single coatBlack, White, Brown, Black and White, Brown and White
- In a flat
- Can work, with enough exercise outside it.
Health
Things to ask a breeder or vet about
Hip Dysplasia
Moderate
Joint malformation; less common than in larger breeds
Progressive Retinal Atrophy
Moderate
Degenerative eye disease; genetic testing available
GM1 Storage Disease
Severe
Fatal neurological disease; DNA test available to screen breeding dogs
Where they come from
History
Ancient breed that worked alongside Portuguese fishermen for centuries, herding fish into nets, retrieving gear, and swimming messages between boats. Nearly extinct by the 1930s before being revived by Vasco Bensaude.
- Bo and Sunny · The Obama family's Portuguese Water Dogs during their White House years
Similar breeds
All breeds
Entlebucher Mountain Dog
The smallest of the four Swiss mountain-dog breeds was a cattle herder, not simply a smaller cart dog.
Medium · Working
Alaskan Malamute
A sled dog built for freight: the Malamute was developed to haul heavy loads over long distances.
Large · Working
Bernese Mountain Dog
That powerful build once had a practical job: pulling loaded carts on Swiss farms.
Large · Working
Bouvier des Flandres
This Flanders farm dog once moved cattle, pulled carts and guarded the property.
Large · Working