The Norrbottenspets, also known as the Norrbottenspitz, the Nordic Spitz and the Pohjanpystykorva, is a

breed A breed is a specific group of breedable 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 seve ...

spitz A spitz (; , in reference to the pointed muzzle) is a Dog type, type of domestic dog consisting of between 50 and 70 breeds depending on classification. There is no precise definition of 'spitz' but typically most spitz breeds have pricked ears ...

type dog from

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. A small- to medium-sized breed with typical spitz-like features, the Norrbottenspets has traditionally been kept as a hunting dog in Northern Sweden and is closely related to similar Nordic spitz breeds such as the

Finnish Spitz Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

History

The Norrbottenspets takes its name from the region of

Norrbotten Norrbotten (), sometimes called North Bothnia, is a Swedish province (''landskap'') in northernmost Sweden. It borders south to Västerbotten, west to Swedish Lapland, and east to Finland. Administration The traditional provinces of Swede ...

in the northeast of Sweden, with "spets" being the Swedish spelling of "

"; the breed is also known as the Norrbottenspitz, the Nordic Spitz and the Pohjanpystykorva. The origins of the breed are unknown; it is likely both

arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

and German spitz blood is present in its ancestry. The Norrbottenspets is the Swedish equivalent of the closely related

, the Russian Karelo-Finnish Laika and the Norwegian Buhund; the various breeds only becoming distinct with separate kennel club recognition for dogs found across various national borders. Almost lost in the 20th century, in 1948 the Swedish Kennel Club declared the Norrbottenspets extinct and it was not until the 1960s that sufficient numbers were found for the breed to be declared extant. Never having received the international attention of the Finnish Spitz or the Norwegian Buhund, the Norrbottenspets is rarely seen outside of

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

, although with a revival in interest in national breeds, today the Norrbottenspets is a relatively popular breed in Sweden.

Description

The Norrbottenspets is a small- to medium-sized, compact and robust breed with typical spitz features. Slightly smaller than the Finnish Spitz, the

breed standard In animal husbandry or animal fancy, a breed standard is a description of the characteristics of a hypothetical or ideal example of a breed. The description may include phenotype, physical or morphology (biology), morphological detail, genotype, g ...

states dogs should stand between with bitches being slightly smaller, standing between ; they typically weigh between . The breed has a thick, dense double coat that protects them well during arctic winters; the outer coat is hard, short and straight whilst the undercoat is fine and dense. The breed can be seen in all colours, although white with red, yellow, cream, tan or black markings is most common; the breed standard states they should be white with either yellow or red patches. The breed has a wedge-shaped head with erect ears; their body is strong and it is as long as it is tall, with a deep chest. Their tail is long and carried high, curled over their back, as typical of spitz dogs. The Norrbottenspets is described as a highly intelligent and energetic breed. They have a curious nature and require considerable exercise, becoming destructive without it. Generally even-tempered, the breed is said to have a low tolerance for children bothering them.

Uses

Today the majority of Norrbottenspets are kept as pets, but traditionally the breed has been maintained as a hunting dog and general farm dog. The breed is used to hunt a wide variety of game including gamebirds,

deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...

including

elk The elk (: ''elk'' or ''elks''; ''Cervus canadensis'') or wapiti, is the second largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. ...

, as well as occasionally

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

; there are many stories of Norrbottenspets chasing away bears that have attacked their master. A tireless, determined hunter with a keen nose, many Norrbottenspets have been trained as

search and rescue dog A search-and-rescue (SAR) dog is a dog trained to respond to crime scenes, accidents, missing persons events, as well as Natural disaster, natural or Disaster, man-made disasters. These dogs detect human scent, which is a distinct odor of skin f ...

Health

A Swedish study reviewing over 200,000 dogs registered for a veterinary insurance company in 1995 and 1996 found that the Norbottenspets had the lowest morbidity of all dogs, purebred and mixed.

References

{{Swedish dogs FCI breeds Spitz breeds Dog breeds originating in Sweden