View source for Icelandic Sheepdog

{{Short description|Icelandic breed of dog}}
{{Infobox dog breed
| name           = Icelandic Sheepdog
| image          = Icelandic Sheepdog Alisa von Lehenberg.jpg
| image_alt      = 
| image_caption  = 
| image2         = 
| image_alt2     = 
| image_caption2 = 
| altname        = {{ubl|Icelandic Spitz|Iceland Dog|Íslenskur Fjárhundur|Friaar Dog|Canis islandicus}}
| nickname       = 
| stock          = 
| country        = Iceland
| distribution   = 
| height         = 
| maleheight     = {{right|{{convert|46|cm|in}}{{r|fci2}}}}
| femaleheight   = {{right|{{convert|42|cm|in}}{{r|fci2}}}}
| weight         = {{right|{{convert|9|-|14|kg|abbr=on|round=5}}{{r|dk|p=120}}}}
| maleweight     = 
| femaleweight   = 
| coat           = thick, double
| colour         = tan, black, chocolate-brown or grey, all with white markings{{r|dk2|p=120}}
| litter_size    = 
| kc_name        = 
| kc_std         = 
| fcistd         = http://www.fci.be/Nomenclature/Standards/289g05-en.pdf
| note           = 
}}

The '''Icelandic Sheepdog''' ({{langx|is|Íslenskur fjárhundur}}, {{IPA|is|ˈistlɛnskʏr ˈfjaurˌhʏntʏr̥|pron}}), is an Icelandic [[dog breed|breed]] of dog of [[spitz|Nordic Spitz]] [[Dog type|type]]. It derives from dogs brought to Iceland by [[Viking]] settlers in the ninth century; it is both similar and closely related to the [[Buhund]] of Norway and the [[Vallhund]] and [[Norrbottenspets|Norrbottenpets]] of Sweden, which derive from the same ancestral stock.

It is the only dog breed indigenous to Iceland. Its traditional uses include [[herding dog|herding]] of both sheep and horses.{{r|david|p=122}}

== History ==
[[File:Buffon 1755 tome V, pl XXXI, Le Chien d'Islande.jpg|thumb|Engraving of the ''Chien d'Islande'' from the ''[[Histoire Naturelle]]'' of [[Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon]], Tome V; (1755); engraved by Gaillard after [[Jacques de Sève]]]]
The Icelandic Sheepdog is one of very few breeds of dog for which claims of ancient origin are demonstrably supported by both archaeological and written evidence.{{r|bryan|p=80}} It derives from dogs brought to Iceland by [[Viking]] colonists from 874 onward;{{r|bryan|p=80|isic2}} these are thought to have been from the same ancestral stock which gave rise to the modern [[Buhund]] of Norway and [[Vallhund]] of Sweden.{{r|jan|p=178|taylor|p2=191}}

As a result of commerce with Iceland in the [[Middle Ages]], the dog became fairly well known in other European countries including England and France;{{r|bryan|p=80}} an early description dates to 1492.{{r|jan|p=178}} It is mentioned by [[John Caius]] in his writings on dogs in 1570,{{r|jan|p=178}} and by [[William Shakespeare]] in ''[[Henry V (play)|Henry V]]'', thought to date from about 1599.{{r|bryan|p=80|gmu}} In his ''Account of ''Island'', alias ''Ice-land''; in the Year 1662'', published posthumously, Sir [[Thomas Browne]] wrote: "... they bring another sort over, Headed like a Fox, which they say are bred betwixt Dogs and Foxes; these are desired by the Shepherds of this Country".{{r|bryan|p=80|cavill|p2=106|tom|p3=230}}

The {{lang|fr|italic=no|Chien d'Islande}} or Iceland Dog was both discussed and illustrated in the fifth volume of the ''[[Histoire Naturelle]]'' of [[Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon]], published in 1755.{{r|bryan|p=80|buffon|p2=Pl.XXXI}} In 1788 it was classified by [[Johann Friedrich Gmelin]] as a [[species]], ''Canis islandicus''.{{r|sub|gmelin|p2=66}}

[[Bubonic plague|Plague]] and [[canine distemper]] destroyed over 75% of the breed in the late nineteenth century, leading to a ban on the importation of dogs to Iceland. The purebred Icelandic Sheepdog was again bordering extinction in the late twentieth century.

A national [[kennel club]], the {{lang|is|italic=no|Hundarræktarfélag Íslands}} or Icelandic Kennel Club, was formed in  1969; at its first [[dog show]], at [[Hveragerði]] in 1973, twenty-three of the sixty dogs shown were of this breed.{{r|hrfi}} In 1979 a [[breed society]] was established, the {{lang|is|italic=no|Deild Íslenska Fjárhundsins}} or Icelandic Sheepdog Breed Club.{{r|hrfi}} In 1994 the [[Alþingi]] (national parliament) determined that the Icelandic Sheepdog was part of the [[cultural heritage]] of the country, and should be protected as a national breed.{{r|isic}} In 1996 an international breed association, the Icelandic Sheepdog International Cooperation, was formed; it has ten European member kennel clubs (including that of Iceland), plus the [[American Kennel Club]].{{r|isic}}

The breed was definitively accepted by the [[Fédération Cynologique Internationale]] in 1972,{{r|fci}} and was recognised by the American Kennel Club in 2010.{{r|akc}}

In 2015, registrations in the Nordic countries were: 137 in Iceland; 100 in Denmark; 44 in Finland; 35 in Norway; and 76 in Sweden.{{r|nku}} In 2022 the total number registered world-wide was approximately {{val|5000}}.{{r|isic2}}

== Characteristics ==
[[Image:Icelandicsheepdogpaws.jpg|thumb|Double [[dewclaw]]s on the hind legs]]

It is a muscular and hardy dog, and moves with ease over the rough terrain of rural Iceland. Weights are commonly in the range {{val|9|–|14|u=kg}}, with heights at the [[withers]] of about {{val|45|u=cm}} for dogs and a few centimetres less for bitches.{{r|dk|p=120|dk2|p2=120}} The coat is thick and provides good protection from the weather; there are two distinct types: short-haired and long-haired.{{r|dk|p=120|fci2}} It may be light, tan or fawn, ranging from milky-white, cream-colour to a reddish brown; or black, chocolate-brown or grey. White and light markings, often extensive, occur with all colours; light, tan and grey animals may have a black mask.{{r|dk2|p=120|fci}} Dogs may be expected to live for some twelve to fifteen years.{{r|dk2|p=120}}

== References ==
<references>
<ref name=akc>[https://web.archive.org/web/20100723112903/http://www.akc.org/news/index.cfm?article_id=4147 AKC Welcomes the Cane Corso, Icelandic Sheepdog and Leonberger]. American Kennel Club. Archived 23 July 2010.</ref>

<ref name=bryan>Bryan D. Cummins (2013). [https://books.google.it/books?id=0esAAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT80&hl=en ''Our Debt to the Dog: How the Domestic Dog Helped Shape Human Societies'']. Durham, North Carolina: Carolina Academic Press. {{isbn|9781611635560}}.</ref>

<ref name=buffon>Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (1755). [https://archive.org/details/dli.granth.107075/page/n368/mode/1up ''Histoire Naturelle; Générale et Particulière, avec la description du Cabinet du Roi; Tome cinqième''] (in French). Paris: De l'Imprimerie Royale.</ref>

<ref name=cavill>David Cavill (1978). [https://archive.org/details/allaboutspitzbre0000cavi/page/106/mode/1up ''All about the Spitz Breeds'']. London: Pelham Books. {{isbn|9780720711134}}.</ref>

<ref name=david>David Hancock (2014). [https://archive.org/details/dogsofshepherdsr0000hanc/page/123/mode/1up ''Dogs of the Shepherds: a Review of the Pastoral Breeds'']. Ramsbury, Marlborough, Wiltshire: The Crowood Press Ltd. {{isbn|9781847978080}}.</ref>

<ref name=dk>Kim Dennis-Bryan (2020 [2012])). ''The Complete Dog Breed Book'', second edition. London: Dorling Kindersley. {{isbn|9780241412732}}.</ref>

<ref name=dk2>[Bruce Fogle] (2013). ''The Dog Encyclopedia''. London; New York: Dorling Kindersley. {{isbn|9781465408440}}.</ref>

<!---ref name=esplin>Walter Esplin Mason ([1915]). [https://archive.org/details/dogsofallnations00masorich ''Dogs of All Nations''] (catalogue for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, San Francisco). [s.l.]: [s.n.].</ref--->

<ref name=fci>[https://www.fci.be/en/nomenclature/ICELANDIC-SHEEPDOG-289.html FCI breeds nomenclature: Íslenskur Fjárhundur (289)]. Fédération Cynologique Internationale. Accessed November 2022.</ref>

<ref name=fci2>[http://www.fci.be/Nomenclature/Standards/289g05-en.pdf FCI-Standard N° 289: Íslenskur Fjárhundur (Icelandic Sheepdog)]. Fédération Cynologique Internationale. Accessed November 2022.</ref>

<ref name=gmelin>Johann Friedrich Gmelin (1788). [https://archive.org/details/mobot31753000801537/page/66/mode/1up ''Caroli a Linné: systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis'', editio decima tertia, tomus I. Lipsiae: [Beer)].</ref>

<ref name=gmu>William Shakespeare (about 1599). [https://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/play_view.php?WorkID=henry5&Act=2&Scene=1&Scope=scene ''History of Henry V''], Act II, Scene 1. ''Open Source Shakespeare''. Fairfax, Virginia: George Mason University. Accessed November 2022. [[Ancient Pistol|Pistol]]: "Pish for thee, Iceland dog! thou prick-ear'd cur of Iceland!"</ref>

<ref name=hrfi>[https://www.hrfi.is/history.html A Summary of the Icelandic Kennel Club's History]. Reykjavik: Hundarræktarfélag Íslands. Accessed November 2022.</ref>

<ref name=isic>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220917093156/https://www.icelanddog.org/# The story and work of ISIC]. Icelandic Sheepdog International Cooperation. Archived 17 September 2022.</ref>

<ref name=isic2>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220516212045/https://www.icelanddog.org/?page_id=11 History of the Icelandic Sheepdog]. Icelandic Sheepdog International Cooperation. Archived 16 May 2022.</ref>

<ref name=jan>Janet V. Dohner (2016). [https://books.google.it/books?id=WK14EAAAQBAJ&pg=PT440&hl=en ''Farm Dogs: A Comprehensive Breed Guide to 93 Guardians, Herders, Terriers, and Other Canine Working Partners'']. North Adams, Massachusetts: Storey Publishing. {{isbn|9781612125923}}.</ref>

<ref name=nku>[https://www.skk.se/en/NKU-home/nordic-dog-breeds/iceland/icelandic-sheepdog/ Icelandic Sheepdog]. Nordic Kennel Union. Accessed November 2022.</ref>

<ref name=sub>[http://www.animalbase.uni-goettingen.de/zooweb/servlet/AnimalBase/home/speciestaxon?id=31240 Species taxon summary, ID = 31240: ''islandicus'' Gmelin, 1788 described in ''Canis'']. ''AnimalBase''. Göttingen: SUB Göttingen. Accessed July 2023.</ref>

<ref name=taylor>Jeanne Joy Hartnagle-Taylor, Ty Taylor (2010). [https://books.google.it/books?id=ecSaDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA191&hl=en ''Stockdog Savvy'']. Crawford, Colorado: Alpine Publications. {{isbn|9781577791065}}.</ref>

<ref name=tom>Thomas Browne (1722). [https://archive.org/details/b30536169/page/n230/mode/1up ''Posthumous Works; Of the Learned Sir Thomas Browne, Kt., M.D., Late of Norwich: Printed from his Original Manuscripts'']. London: Printed for W. Mears, at the Lamb without Temple Bar, and J. Hooke, at the Flower-de-Luce against St. Dunstan's Church in Fleetstreet.</ref>
</references>

{{commonscat}}

{{Icelandic breeds}}
{{Pastoral dogs}}
{{Spitz}}

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[[Category:Dog breeds originating in Iceland]]
[[Category:FCI breeds]]
[[Category:Herding dogs]]
[[Category:Rare dog breeds]]
[[Category:Spitz breeds]]