5 Phenomenal Dog Breeds Developed in the Soviet Union

5) East European Shepherd

The East European Shepherd is a dog breed developed in the 1940s as a police and army dog. The only dog used in the breeding process was the German Shepherd. One of the main reason of developing the East European Shepherd was to rid of the hip and elbow dysplasia – health issues which are very common in the original German Shepherd. The East European Shepherd is also stronger and larger than the German Shepherd, according to the breed standard, their height can be up to 30 inches which is 76 cm and weight up to 130 lbs which is 60 kgs.

4) Black Russian Terrier

The Black Russian Terrier was developed in a secret location in Moscow by the Red Star Kennel. The goal was to create the perfect working dog and the breeds included in the breeding process were Giant Schnauzers, Rottweilers, Airedale Terriers, Newfoundlands and the Caucasian Shepherds and others. The goal of creating perfect working dog was succesfull, because Black Russian Terrier is a tireless, swift and powerful dog with amazing drive.

3) Sulimov Dog

Sulimov dog is also known as a Shalaika and it is not a pure dog. It is a dog jackal hybrid and they were developed for airlane security. They were mostly used as a sniffer dogs at airports. To improve the trainability of the breed, other breeds were included in the breeding process, for example the fox terrier and different Spitzes.

2) Karelo-Finnish Laika

Okay, this dog was not bred to be a protector or guard, but they are excellent hunting dogs from the Karelia region. In the 1930s in the russia, there was a pure spitz breed developed. But most of the dogs were lost in the second world war. Scientists wanted to revive the breed, so they imported Finnish Spitzes and bred them with the last pure Spitzes they developed in the 1930s. These dogs became the Karelo-Finnish Laika, a protective, but affectionate family dog.

1) Moscow Watchdog

The last breed in this video is the Moscow Watchdog. They are combination of the gentle Saint Bernard and the sharp and alert Caucasian Shepherd. So if you are looking for a protective, large and strong dog, that will be very affectionate and friendly towards his family, this might be your choice. The reason, why this breed was necessary and why they were bred was the need of thousands of guard dogs in the Soviet union after the second world war to reduce the crime. The dog had to be okay with low Russian temperatures and they had to be very protective. They were used to guard almost anything, including the labor camps, railroads, borders and warehouses. Today, they are fairly common in the Russia and other post soviet countries, but it can be hard to find them in other countries.