Spinone Italiano / Spinone, Italian Spinone, Italian Griffon, Italian Wire-haired Pointer, Italian Coarsehaired Pointer

Breed history:

 It is a breed, whose origins are not too clear. It seems that it came from the Italian region of Piedmont, and from there it arrived in France and would become the ancestor of the French griffon dogs.

Description:

 It is big sized dog, strong, robust. The skull is a bit cambered, the snout pretty long and a little rounded. The eyes are big, brown-yellowish. The ears are triangular, long and floppy. The tail is cut at 20 cm and held horizontally or down. The fur has medium length, is rough, thick, wiry, smooth or a little wavy. The hair is longer on eyebrows, snout where it makes moustaches and beard. The colours can be: completely white, white with orange patches, white with brown or brown-reddish patches, mixed with white and black - with or without big fawn patches.

Personality:

 It is a gentle, friendly, affectionate and quiet dog but sometimes it can be stubborn. It is devoted to its master, playful and jolly with the children, but reserved and noisy with the strangers. It gets along well with dogs from its breed and other animals from the household.

Grooming:

 The fur should be casual brushed with a rough brush. The excess hair between the pads of the legs will be removed.

Living conditions:

 It is a dog with a pretty high level of activity. It is recommended to active persons, who can make free time to handle with the dog, to take it out at long walks, to swim, to run beside a bicycle or free in the woods or open field. If it feels the prey smell it can go away from its master. It needs training and socialization.

Training:

 It is a submissive dog and wants to make pleasure to the master, even if it is stubborn sometimes. With a firm, consistent, varied training without being harsh or cruel the minimum, but satisfactory results can be obtained.

Usefulness:

 It is a good hunting dog and an excellent fetching dog. It is also a cheerful companion.