General Color: Red/Golden/Orange/Chestnut with White
Color: Red and White
Current Size: 10 Pounds
Potential Size: 40 Pounds
Current Age: 16 Years 10 Months (best estimate)
Microchipped: Yes
Housetrained: Yes
Owner Experience Needed: None
Reaction to New People: Friendly
Wonder, her momma and her littermates were rescued from a backyard breeder who was going to shoot them! They came to us in sorry shape, emaciated and starving for love. All of them are beautiful Catahoulas and will make wonderful additions to their forever homes. I am fostering Walden and Wonder because they are especially emaciated. Oh, what incredibly sweet dogs these are! They remind me of little deer. Their faces are long and pointed, they have looong thin legs, and they move like a deer. I really think they have Greyhound in them. And gentle? You don't know the meaning of the word until you meet these two! Wonder loves to sit on the couch next to you, with her little tail just a-waggin' with joy! These are truly wonderful puppies deserving of wonderful homes!!!
According to www.dogbreedinfo.com, the Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog is believed to have originated from Nordic Wolfhound being introduced some three to five hundred years before the Spanish arrived - However, no one will really know for sure. The state of Louisiana is cited as the point of origin, particularly the area of Catahoula. In 1979, the breed was designated the state dog of Louisiana. The Catahoula was named after a Parish in Northeastern Louisiana and after the mottled spots on its coat. At one time this breed was used to round up feral pigs and cattle -- livestock that had escaped, and was living in woods and swamps. It involved team effort that is highly coordinated and organized, fast paced, dangerous, and a marvel to watch. The ideal dog team usually numbers three, and they must work together. Otherwise, the one pig can kill all three in a matter of minutes. Each dog has to be aware of what the pig and the other two dogs are doing and react accordingly. Hunters sometimes used the Catahoula to trail and tree raccoons, but this dominant breed is more at home acting the thug with obstinate boars. This dog is used particularly on the difficult task of driving and rounding hogs and unruly cattle. The Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog is independent, protective, and territorial. Loving with their family and all people they know well and reserved with strangers (this would include strange children). They need to make up to a person, not a person make up to them. Of course there are temperaments on both sides of this, but this is for the average dog. They mature right around 2 and it is as if a light goes on and they say to themselves "I am an adult now and I need to act grown up." This breed's reservation with strangers should not be noticed in a pup, but will show as the dog matures. Although affectionate with his master, the Catahoula is not recommended for the casual pet owner who is uninterested in allowing the dog to function in his intended capacity. For the right owner, this is a protective yet dominating canine. Signs of timidly on a leash should not be taken as cowardness, but the intolerance for strangers. This breed needs a dominant owner who shows strong leadership. They have of life expectancy of 12-13 years.