Pepsi the male American Indian Dog at about 3 years old with one brown eye and one blue eye.
AM Indian Dog
uh-MAIR-ih-kuhn IN-dee-uhn dawg
The American Indian Dog is a working, nurturing, all-around type. It is a medium sized and lightly built breed with a natural looking muzzle and longish, pricked ears. Its bushy tail is carried down with a slight curve. The head is in proportion to the body. The muzzle is wedge-shaped and moderately long to provide balance to the longish, pricked ears. The stop is gentle, providing a flowing, balanced curve from the plane to the muzzle to the top of the skull. The skull is slightly domed between the ears. The eyes are medium sized and almond shaped. Eye color includes pale yellow or pale blue with the occasional silver/gray. The eyes have an intelligence that looks into you, not past you. The ears are moderately long and wide set. They tilt slightly forward on the head, and are firmly pricked and large. They are triangular in shape and well furred. The ears are very mobile. The nose is medium sized, black in color, with the liver color accepted on certain coat colors. The lips are thin and black. The teeth are a scissor bite only. Full and sound dentition required. The neck is medium length and strong. A good sized ruff is present, but should not detract from the clean, trim appearance. The back is straight and slightly longer than tall. Loins are strong with a good distance between last rib and hip. Chest is deep, but not broad. Good tuck-up. Forelegs slightly turned out and finely boned. Good musculature with closely set withers and good lay-back of shoulders. The front pastern slopes slightly when viewed from the side. Rear legs are long, very angular (not post legged) and well-muscled. The back slopes slightly into the croup. Hocks are well-defined and parallel. Rear dewclaws are not present in Indian Dogs. The feet are cat-like and webbed; rounded with thick pads. Toes are close and well arched. The tail is medium length and reaches to the hock, carried down with slight curve. It may be held up when showing dominance or straight out when running, but never curled forward past the perpendicular. The coat is medium length and shiny. It has a short, thick, plush undercoat with long guard hairs that stand off from the body. Hair is longer on the chest, ruff, shoulders, back of legs and tail. Color and markings: Black, blue, white, golden red, gray, red and tan, tan, chocolate, cream, fawn and silver. All colors have sable shading with darker tipped guard hairs. All colors blend gently together (sable), with very little spotting or defined lines between colors. The tail has a dark scent marking (spot) ¾ up from tip. Some white on the chest, feet, collar and tip of the tail is accepted.
A thinking breed, these dogs are very instinctual and territorially conscious. This creates an intense bonding, shown in pack loyalty to their family. They are never vicious, but always alert and tend to be cautious with strangers. They are excellent home and family watchdogs, capable of adjusting to any environment. Working versatility is one of the breed’s exceptional qualities. This breed needs a calm, but firm, confident consistent pack leader who displays the proper authority over the dog to avoid any behavior issues. Socialize well.
Height: Males 18 - 20 inches (46 - 52 cm) Females 17 - 19 inches (44 - 49 cm)
Weight: Males 35 - 60 pounds (14 - 25 kg) Females 30 - 45 pounds (11 - 18 kg)
No breed-specific genetic problems; very healthy in the body and mind. Do not allow an AIDog to become overweight.
Prefers plenty of space, but can adjust to any lifestyle with proper socializing, exercise and training.
This breed needs to be taken on a long daily walk.
Average 14 to 18 years.
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These dogs keep themselves clean with minimal doggy odor. Hypoallergenic coat.
Note: There are many folks who claim original native dogs are extinct and have been since before the invention of photography. They claim any dog sold as an Indian Dog is a re-creation. The Dog Breed Info Center® does not know what the case may be. Below is what we were told about the history of the breed from an Indian Dog breeder. If you would like to read more about this subject, type the words "Indian dog warning hoax" without the quotes and read up on the subject. From there you can make your own educated guess.
American Indian Dogs are said to trace back 30,000 years in North and South America. Mainly, the many groups of Plains Indians in the United States developed these dogs by combining all the types they traded from all the Indian Nations around them. Not having any other domestic animals, the dogs were very important to their entire culture. For thousands of years, Native Americans used these dogs for hunting, tracking, guarding and herding. They were also used as pack animals, and would pull the families’ travois as they moved or migrated. They would keep their owners warm at night, and provide wool for weaving and trading. The most important objective in preserving this ancient breed is maintaining and improving the natural balance, primitive instincts and versatile working abilities for which it was originally developed. This truly beautiful, naturally balanced, all-American dog was close to extinction only a few years ago. Now, thanks to all the years of research and selective breeding, hopefully they can regain their proper place in our society to teach man to stay in touch with his natural instincts and the beauty around him.
Working
Thanks to La Flamme Farms for providing Dog Breed Info Center® with this information.
