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Pronunciation

The Kuvasz is a fearless, bold flock guardian. In the show ring the head is considered the most beautiful part of the dog. The muzzle is in proportion to the head. The stop is well-defined, not abrupt. The nose is black with large nostrils. The lips are black. The ears are thick, well set back, V-shaped and slightly rounded at the tip. The dark brown eyes are almond-shaped, set well apart. The body is medium boned, slightly longer than it is tall. The tail is carried low, and is not docked reaching at least to the hocks. When the dog is excited the tail is slightly raised. The feet are well padded and the dewclaws on the front legs are not usually removed, but the ones on the back legs are. The neck has a mane that reaches the chest. The hair is shorter on the feet and head, but on the body and legs it is wavy and can be as much as 4-6 inches (10-15 cm.) long. The medium-length, double coat comes in white and ivory. The skin is heavily pigmented. The coat can be anywhere from wavy to straight. The undercoat is thick.

Temperament

Kuvasz are intelligent and can be good family dogs if they have owners who know how to display a natural, firm authority over them, are socialized, trained thoroughly, and raised with children from the start, but they are not recommended for most families. They were bred to be livestock guardians and therefore are very territorial with strong protective instincts. It is an outstanding herder and defender of the flock against wolves. They make an excellent guard dog and are easy to housebreak, but they are large in size and with their protective instincts extra owner responsibility is required. This breed will fiercely defend his people and territory. The Kuvasz is devoted to his family, forming a strong bond, however if they do not see the humans as being stronger minded than themselves they will be stand-offish even with them.

If the dog is going to live with children, it is best, if possible, to select a Kuvasz pup and have the dog raised with the children. The children need to be taught how to be pack leaders. While the Kuvasz bonds well with children in the family, other children need to be monitored. You do not want the Kuvasz to believe he needs to protect your child from another should the children get into a scuffle. It is recommend to not leave them unsupervised.

As in all canine animals, the dominancy level varies from dog to dog, even in the same litter. However this breed is in general more dominant than most because of their inbred in flock guard abilities. This means they will be prone to being reserved with strangers and extra care needs to be given in extensively socializing them, most effectively when they are still puppies. Puppies should be handled a lot by strangers. Owners should never let the puppies jump on or chew on humans. They should be taught to heel on a lead right from the start and learn to enter and exit all door and gateways after the humans.

While puppies will easily accept new humans and animals, as the dog grows this will change. Adolescent dogs will test authority often. This is why it is very important to establish leadership right from the start so you are able to communicate with the young dog that they are not to fight with new animals that enter onto the property and are to accept unknown humans. You cannot train out the guarding instinct in this breed, they will guard your home if they feel a valid threat, however you can teach them to respect your authority.

They are bold, brave and fearless. They were bred to work independently, which means they are not easy to obedience train. Training should never be harsh, rather needs to be calm but firm, by a confident experienced, dominant person. The handler needs to have an air of natural authority to them. This dog needs to be controlled with the mind, not the hand. The dog will be looking for a leader and owners need to be stronger minded than the dog. They will be willful with meek or passive owners. All members of the family need to be taught how to handle the dog right from puppyhood. Owners need to teach the dog to accept welcomed guests and to look to the owner for leadership, rather than the dog expecting the owners to look to him for leadership. The biggest key to training a Kuvasz is to understand the nature of the breed as an independent guardian. It is very important NOT to use harsh training methods, but rather calm, firm methods.

Kuvasz who are going to work as flock guards need special training. An expert should be called in to assist if you are not familiar with the process. Puppies who are about 6 weeks old should not live inside the home with the humans, but rather with the flock they will be called upon to guard, so they can form a bond. When they are raise to work as the flock guardian they were bred to be they will be very reserved with strangers and territorial. A police dog trainer would be exactly the wrong kind of trainer to use. A police dog type of temperament is not what the Kuvasz is. They make terrible police dogs because they are too independent. They judge, not you, what force is necessary in any situation, based on what they believe. That comes out of instinct, and then what they are "taught." They are really remarkable judges of how forceful to be in a situation. You need to "teach" Kuvasz, you don't "train" them. This does not mean physically forceful; you must  understand that "impression" is what creates dominance. The same Kuvasz who will drive off a wolf, bear, etc., without hesitation, will stand by in the field, helping a ewe with a lambs delivery and making sure the lamb can find its mother. The key to successful introduction into livestock guarding seems to be an experienced older dog to guide the puppy. If not, then the owner will have his work cut out for him during the first six months to a year. You will need a lot of patience and some guidance from other people with experience. Once bonded to the livestock, the Kuvasz is going to make sure that nothing, ever, can harm them. That is their nature. It is the details along the way to that balance (the growing up process) that is stressful for the owner.

Height, Weight

Health Problems

Living Conditions

Life Expectancy

Grooming

Origin

The Kuvasz originated in Tibet, but developed into the breed it is today in Hungary. Some authors claim that the Kuvasz has been known since the age of the Huns. Others describe it as a sheepdog that accompanied the Turkish refugees and their flocks fleeing the Mongols into Hungary in 1200. Its name in Turkish means "protector." The dog was owned by royalty in the fifteenth century in the court of King Matyas I, who lived from 1458-1490. The King claimed to only trust his Kuvasz dogs and not people. The Kuvasz were often given as royal gifts. At the death of the King, the Kuvasz returned to being a flock guardian throughout the medieval period. They were also used to hunt big game such as wild boar and bear. As Hungarian herdsmen traveled with their cattle and dogs, Kuvasz contributed to the development to the Maremma Sheepdog, Great Pyrenees, Polish Tatra Sheepdog and the Anatolian Shepherd, which are all flock guards. By the end of World War ll the breed was almost extinct. A handful of breeders worked to bring the breed back to safe numbers.

Group

Recognition

CKC = Continental Kennel Club
FCI = Fédération Cynologique Internationale
AKC = American Kennel Club
UKC = United Kennel Club
CKC = Canadian Kennel Club
NKC = National Kennel Club
KCA = Kuvasz Club of America
AKA = American Kuvasz Association
ANKC = Australian National Kennel Club
APRI = American Pet Registry Inc.
ACR = American Canine Registry
DRA = Dog Registry of America, Inc.

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