Fido facts: Samoyed

The Samoyed is classified as a Utility Dog. A protective, lively and intelligent breed that needs both considerable exercise and grooming, known for commonly carrying the demeanour of being an “escape artist” as they tend to not like being confined, and also being a breed that can get quite vocal and protective of their family and surroundings . This high spirited breed would be a great addition to any family as they take an interest to be included in any day-to-day activity.

Origin

Samoyed’s get their name from a Siberian tribe called the Samoyedes, and are classified as a Spitz breed. The Samoyed originated from the Russian Tundra Region and were known to bear heavy burdens, pulling sleighs and assisting in hunting. The Samoyed originally a Russian & Siberian breed was brought into England in 1889. From there they started to grow in popularity around the world, with the key geographical areas being Australia, Canada and the United States of America.

Appearance

A male Samoyed can range in size from 51-56cm in height. While females are slightly smaller and range from 46-51cm in height. Samoyed’s commonly have a wedge-shaped wide head, medium length muzzle with a pronounced stop. Their facial features (eyes, nose and lips) all border on black in colour. The Samoyed also have a very hard, straight and long length coat, with a short undercoat. Samoyed’s are commonly pure white in colour but there are some off white, cream and biscuit coloured breeds. One to two times a year they will do what is called ‘blowing their coat’ and shed their entire undercoat.

Health & Wellbeing

Samoyed’s are generally very healthy dogs, but can be prone to conditions such as Hip Dysplasia and Deafness. This means it is important to request medical checks on not only the puppy but on its parents as well, before purchasing or for breeding purposes, in order to try and avoid these conditions later in life. It is also advised to get checks on the puppy’s eyes as they are the other known potential problematic weakness in Samoyed’s, as they can be prone to diseases such as Progressive Retinal Atrophy and other eye problems. Being a very active breed, the Samoyed should be exercised for roughly 30-60 minutes a day. It is also important to exert high levels of patience when putting your dog through obedience training as the Samoyed is a particularly hard breed to train as they are very playful and enjoy being in the company of their owner.

Grooming & Hair Care

Samoyed’s need to be brushed daily with the exception being when it is time for them to blow their coat, then it will have to be done multiple times a day in order to maintain their long length coat. Other general tips for grooming your dog is to make sure you trim their nails a couple times a month, and brush their teeth every few days. When it comes to food, Samoyed’s are not overly big eaters, so it will not be too costly when it comes to purchasing food.

Temperament & Personality

The Samoyed has very high energy levels making them very active, and as mentioned earlier they can be quite vocal therefore making them quite a good guard dog. It is important to release their high energy levels every day through exercising, otherwise they can be destructive with digging and running amok around your home. Though it should be mentioned that Samoyed’s need to be trained well, otherwise they are known to pull on the lead when walking them.  It is also important to expose them to other people at a young age, in order to improve their social skills.

Fun Facts

• The Samoyed has very unique feet in the sense that it has fur between its toes and on the pads themselves. This was said to be good when the Samoyed walked through the snow in Siberia, as it prevented snowballs forming between their toes.
• While the Samoyed has similar features to a Siberian Husky, they are known to be slightly heavier in bone and weight.
• Due to the size of a Samoyed, it’s known more for its endurance than its speed.