The Puli is a small-medium
breed
A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slight ...
of Hungarian herding and livestock guarding
dog
The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative ...
known for its long,
corded coat. The tight curls of the coat appear similar to
dreadlocks
Dreadlocks, also known as locs or dreads, are rope-like strands of hair formed by locking or braiding hair.
Origins
Some of the earliest depictions of dreadlocks date back as far as 1600–1500 BCE in the Minoan Civilization, one of Europe ...
. A similar-looking, but much larger breed – also Hungarian – is the
Komondor.
Plural form of Puli is ''Pulik'' in Hungarian.
Description
Appearance
The Puli is a solid-colored dog that is usually black. Other less common coat colors are white, gray, or cream (off-white or ''fakó'' in
Hungarian). A variety of the cream-coated dogs have
black masks. The white Pulis are not albino, nor do they have blue eyes. They commonly have dark pigment, black pads, black noses and black pigment inside the mouth. The white gene is recessive to the pure black gene. The breed standard for females is about 16.5 inches (42 cm) at the withers and 17 inches for males.
Females weigh 23-25 pounds and males slightly more. The coat of some Puli dogs can be different with either thinner or thicker cords which can be flat or round depending on the texture of the coat and the balance of undercoat to outer coat.
The coat is the result of a controlled matting process. Thin, rope-like corded coats are desired and the grooming should control the coat towards the forming of thinner ropes. The Puli's coat needs considerable grooming to keep its cords clean, neat, and attractive. With age, the coat can become quite long, even reaching the ground.
Alternatively, the coat can be trimmed short regularly for easy maintenance although the corded coat is what attracts many people to the breed. Contrary to some beliefs, the coat of a healthy puli will grow out again after trimming. This breed has little to no
shedding.
Temperament
The Puli is an
intelligent and active dog. It needs
obedience training
Dog training is the application of behavior analysis which uses the environmental events of antecedents (trigger for a behavior) and consequences to modify the dog behavior, either for it to assist in specific activities or undertake particular ...
while still young.
[Sheldon L. Gerstenfeld, ''ASPCA Complete Guide to Dogs'' (San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 1999), p. 178] If a Puli gets enough
exercise
Exercise is a body activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness.
It is performed for various reasons, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardiovascular system, hone athletic s ...
, it can live in the city,
[
but they do best when not kept indoor pets in small living spaces. Pulis kept indoors need a lot of exercise to use up their ]energy
In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of h ...
, or they can become either shy or overactive. They need to get the kind of exercise they were created for. Pulis are best kept in a house with a garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...
. Cozy and very friendly especially towards children, they are sensitive and prone to resentment.
Activities
Pulis are intelligent, agile dogs. Despite their bulky appearance and very thick coat, they are very fast, agile, and able to change directions instantly and are obedient enough to train for athletic competition. They are devoted and form close bonds with their owners.
The breed is intelligent and can do well in obedience training if begun early. Traditionally, the Puli dog breed was used as a herding dog and sometimes even as a livestock guarding dog, as well. They make very good guard dogs, since they are very protective of their masters and territory. The Puli is sensitive, fun-loving, courageous, but also, at times, tough and headstrong.
They are loyal to their owners and wary of strangers. They are highly active and keep a playful, puppy-like behavior their entire lives. They need a lot of exercise and free space, preferably outdoors. They can be trained and housebroken, but Pulis are generally not very well suited as city or indoor pets. When restricted to closed spaces for long periods of times, they grow restless and may develop unwanted personality traits, such as becoming hyperactive or, instead, increasingly aloof and lazy.
As a working dog, the Puli is very obedient, focused and determined when assigned a task. Some of them are used as police dogs. As a livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...
guarding dog, they are fiercely protective of their territory and flock, and, despite their relatively small size, will fearlessly try to scare and drive any intruder away; however, they very rarely inflict any real injuries.
As a family dog, they make good security dogs and faithful family guardians. They can be very friendly and playful, even in old age. They regard their family as their flock, and will keep their distance until they are sure a stranger is not a threat. When annoyed, they may attack without warning, so a considerable distance may be advisable for strangers. They can be extremely independent and obstinate, and only accept strong-willed individuals as master.
Pulis can compete in dog agility
Dog agility is a dog sport in which a handler directs a dog through an obstacle course in a race for both time and accuracy. Dogs run off leash with no food or toys as incentives, and the handler can touch neither dog nor obstacles. The handl ...
trials, obedience, Rally obedience, showmanship, flyball, tracking
Tracking may refer to:
Science and technology Computing
* Tracking, in computer graphics, in match moving (insertion of graphics into footage)
* Tracking, composing music with music tracker software
* Eye tracking, measuring the position of ...
, and herding
Herding is the act of bringing individual animals together into a group (herd), maintaining the group, and moving the group from place to place—or any combination of those. Herding can refer either to the process of animals forming herds in ...
events. Herding
Herding is the act of bringing individual animals together into a group (herd), maintaining the group, and moving the group from place to place—or any combination of those. Herding can refer either to the process of animals forming herds in ...
instincts and trainability can be measured at noncompetitive herding tests. Pulis exhibiting basic herding instincts can be trained to compete in herding trials.
Training
Pulis are valued for their energy and determination which is a result of their sheepdog history. Every Puli is a natural shepherd and instinctively knows how to herd a flock of sheep or livestock even if they have been raised as a family dog and have never been trained to do it. It is advisable to start training the Puli early in age, especially in obedience. They are very independent, strong-willed, and difficult to train in adulthood.
History
The Magyars
Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Uralic ...
probably brought the Puli to Hungary in the 9th Century when they invaded westwards from Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part o ...
, and it has been a sheepdog
A sheep dog or sheepdog is generally a dog or breed of dogs historically used in connection with the raising of sheep. These include livestock guardian dogs used to guard sheep and other livestock and herding dogs used to move, manage and ...
on the Hungarian plain since then. It is the ancestor of the Poodle. The breed was first studied by Dr Emil Raitsitz from Hungary's veterinary college in the 1920s.
The Puli would commonly work together with the much larger, white Komondor, a Hungarian breed of (solely) livestock guardian dog. The Komondor is a large, solidly built dog, around 30 inches tall. The Komondor (or several Komondors if there was a large amount of livestock) guarded the sheep or cattle mostly at night, while the Puli herded and guarded them during the day.
When wolves or bears attacked the livestock, the Puli would alert the pack and the Komondors would come and fight the intruders. Pulis can be good at fighting off wolves, because the thick coat protects their skin from being bitten. The Komondors usually rested during daytime but at night walked around the flock, constantly moving, patrolling the area.
Nomadic shepherd
A shepherd or sheepherder is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. ''Shepherd'' derives from Old English ''sceaphierde (''sceap'' 'sheep' + ''hierde'' 'herder'). ''Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations, i ...
s of the Hungarian plains valued their herding dogs, paying as much as a year's salary for a Puli.
Although the coats may look slightly similar, the Puli has never worked in water and the Puli's coat does not grow continuously in the same fashion as a corded Poodle's coat once the cords are formed.
Possibly the Puli's ancestors are ancient Hungarian shepherd dogs. Travelers brought the Puli with them to the Carpathian basin
The Pannonian Basin, or Carpathian Basin, is a large basin situated in south-east Central Europe. The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense, with only th ...
, to help organize the flocks and herd the stallions of the area. Large Komondor or Kuvasz
The Kuvasz is a traditional Hungarian breed of flock guardian dog. Mention of the breed can be found in old Hungarian texts. They have historically been royal guard dogs, or guarded livestock, but have been increasingly found in homes as pets ...
were used for guarding the flock. The Puli was also a suitable guard for flock protection but was primarily used for herding the animals. Around the beginning of the 20th century, a real turning point for the breed came when it was rediscovered but no longer used much as a sheepdog; extensive shepherding was replaced by intensive farming
Intensive agriculture, also known as intensive farming (as opposed to extensive farming), conventional, or industrial agriculture, is a type of agriculture, both of crop plants and of animals, with higher levels of input and output per unit of ag ...
. The Puli's role was reduced in the life of the flock. Although their traditional duty was kept, they started to fulfill jobs that were convenient in the circumstances of their owner: they became house dogs. After World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, the breed became a less popular pet; even now, the breed has not been able to regain the popularity it previously enjoyed.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...
imported four purebred Pulis in 1935 to Beltsville, Maryland
Beltsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in northern Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The community was named for Truman Belt, a local landowner. The 2020 census counted 20,133 residents. Beltsville includes the unincorporate ...
as part of an experiment when trying to help American agriculturists concerned with the problem of herding dogs which sometimes killed the animals to which they had been entrusted to control. The Pulis were bred among themselves and crossed with the German Shepherd
The German Shepherd or Alsatian is a German breed of working dog of medium to large size. The breed was developed by Max von Stephanitz using various traditional German herding dogs from 1899.
It was originally bred as a herding dog, for h ...
, the Chow Chow
The Chow Chow is a spitz-type of dog breed originally from northern China. The Chow Chow is a sturdily built dog, square in profile, with a broad skull and small, triangular, erect ears with rounded tips. The breed is known for a very dense ...
and perhaps with two Turkish sheepdogs which were quartered there at the time. On the tests given by researchers there, Pulis scored, on the average, between 75 and 85, where other herding breeds, scored in the range of 12 to 14. Because tests were inconclusive, they were never published. When WWII broke out, the Pulis were auctioned off to professional breeders, and, it is thought that, it is from these four dogs and their progeny that history of the Puli in the United States began.
Notable Pulis
In 1978, a Puli called Cinko Duda Csebi won the world exposition organized by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale
The Fédération cynologique internationale (FCI) ( English: International Canine Federation) is the largest international federation of national kennel clubs. It is based in Thuin, Belgium.
History
The FCI was founded in 1911 under the auspice ...
. The Mexican-born dog was owned by breeder Roberto Hernández Ávalos.
The dog known as " The Auditor" is assumed to be a Puli. It lived in the contaminated Berkeley Pit copper mine in Butte, Montana
Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to th ...
. Notable for being one of the few things that could live and thrive in such a place, in time it became a sort of mascot for the town. After The Auditor died, several memorials were erected celebrating its existence.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Elliot Zuckerberg (; born ) is an American business magnate, internet entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He is known for co-founding the social media website Facebook and its parent company Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook, Inc.), of ...
has a white Puli named Beast.
In the 1960s, writer Harlan Ellison
Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of '' Psycho'', ...
adopted a Puli named Ahbhu and wrote about him in the 1975 Hugo-winning novelette " The Deathbird" (part of the 1975 collection ''Deathbird Stories
''Deathbird Stories: A Pantheon of Modern Gods'' is a 1975 collection of short stories by American author Harlan Ellison, written over a period of ten years; the stories address the theme of modern-day "deities" that have replaced the older, more ...
''). In addition, Ahbhu appeared in the 1969 short story " A Boy And His Dog" as a predecessor to the main character's telepathic dog Blood.
American novelist T.C. Boyle used to own several Pulis and still has one. One of them, named "Kutya" (Hungarian for "dog"), is commemorated in his novel ''The Harder They Come''.
Puli pictures
File:Monumental Puli.jpg, Black Puli
File:Puli in Riga 1.JPG, Puli at a dog show
Image:Fehér_puli_kiskutyak.jpg, White Puli puppies
File:Puli, clipped.jpg, Some owners choose to clip Puli coats to help keep the dog cool in hot weather
See also
* Hungarian dog breeds
This is a list of recognized Hungarian dog breeds.
Hunting dogs
* Vizsla
* Hungarian Wirehaired Vizsla
* Hungarian Hound-Transylvanian Scenthound
* Hungarian Greyhound
Guard and shepherd dogs
*Kuvasz
*Komondor
* Puli
* Pumi
* Mudi
See also ...
* Dogs portal
* List of dog breeds
This list of dog breeds includes both extant and extinct dog breeds, varieties, landraces, and dog types. A research article on dog genomics published in Science/AAAS defines modern dog breeds as "a recent invention defined by conformation t ...
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Dog breeds originating in Hungary
Herding dogs
Hungarian words and phrases
FCI breeds
Rare dog breeds