The breeding programme to introduce the Saarloos Wolfhound to the world began in 1921. It was undertaken by a Dutch born breeder Leendert Saarloos, whose aim was to produce a German Shepherd type dog which was immune to distemper.
In the early 1920’s one Leendert Saarloos started a breeding programme crossing a male German Shepherd with a female MacKenzie Valley Wolf kept in captivity. He was hoping to produce dogs which were highly resistant to diseases such as distemper. This worked, on the whole as he managed to produce strong, hardy dogs, but they retained many of the physical traits of the wolf and not the German Shepherd. In 1975, the Dutch Kennel Club recognised the Wolfhound as a breed as it became more prolific and used to urban and home life.
Average height to withers: 24-29 inches for males and females.
Average weight: Up to 41kg for both sexes.
If you hold a picture of a wolf in your head, you will not be far from the appearance of this dog. As the name suggests, there are many wolf like physical traits seen in this dog, including the intense eyes and ‘long stare’ developed by most wolf breeds. Athletic, powerful and perfectly balanced, this breed is large and imposing. It has a coarse and dense coat, which is ‘agouti’ (grizzled light and dark hairs) in colour with limited white marking. It may also be a mostly grey or brown colour.
The ears are ‘German Shepherd’ sized and erect, the muzzle rounded and the tail carried low.
This dog is still a pack animal at heart and owners of this dog must be experienced and respect this. Ideally living with others of the same breed, the owner must retain status within the ‘pack’ as alpha, displaying strong, firm leadership at all times. They can tend to be shy and reserved and almost aloof. They are distrustful of strangers and on the whole are not recommended for living with children.
Because of their innate behaviours, the Saarloos Wolfhound is not suited to a sedentary life or one in which large amounts of space or exercise is not available. They must have access to a well fenced, large outside space and need at least two walks per day. If this is not provided, destructive and panic like behaviours can develop. They are also well suited to live outside, and often prefer this to being ‘cooped’ up in a house.
Breeding of this dog is still strictly controlled by the Wolfhound Association so health issues are tightly monitored. This is also done in part to ensure behavioural problems are controlled as much as possible. A generally healthy dog, it lives on average between 10-12 years.
Exercise and establishing and keeping a pack hierarchy will take up a large portion of the owners time. This takes time, patience and plenty of experience. Grooming should be undertaken at least once a week, but bathing kept to a minimum as this can disturb the oils in the coat and on the skin.
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