The Caucasian Shepherd and Central Asian Shepherd, also known as Alabai, are two strong livestock guardian breeds with similar appearance and temperament. Today will tell you what are the similarities and differences between the Caucasian and Central Asian Ovcharka.

Both breeds were developed for the same purpose, to be independent, hard working, alert, very brave and decisive livestock guardian dogs.

The Central Asian Ovcharka originated in the area between the Ural, Caspian Sea, Asia Minor, and the Northwest border of China where it naturally developed by adapting to its purpose and to local environement. The breed has very long history, which is thousands of years long and basically, over it developed into the dog we know today by surviving of the fittest.

On the other hand, the Caucasian Ovcharka was developed by deliberate breeding of Soviet cynologist in 1920s from strong livestock guardian dogs found all over the Caucasus mountains, such as Georgian Shepherd.

Over the time, both breeds found another utilization, next to the livestock protection. Both were used for guarding property as well. The Central Asian Shepherd was also very often used for dog fights and the Caucasian Shepherd was used by soviet military and police, for example for patroling borders.

Both breeds have very similar temperament and they are excellent for guarding purposes. They are both extremely strong, brave, territorial, naturally agressive when its needed, but also absolutely loyal to its family. Both breeds have well balanced temperament and they are extremely independent. They have to be. Both breeds are active guards and they will use their power and force to protect the livestock, people or territory.
But there are some differences in their temperament as well. The Caucasian Ovcharka is more lively, more active and explosive, while the Central Asian Shepherd is slightly calmer breed.

Both breeds must be alert with strangers. But they should accept the stranger when they see they are your friends. Both breeds can be good loyal family companions as well. They are typically quite gentle with kids and they truly love their whole family. But they might not be overly affectionate just like some other breeds.
The Caucasian Ovcharka tends to be little bit more affectionate and lets say emotional, some might say charming, than the calmer Central Asian Ovcharka.

Because of their history as military dogs, the Caucasian Ovcharka is also better fit for property guards and as territory protectors, but to be honest, both breeds will be amazing for this purpose.

The Central Asian Ovcharka tends to be more dog agressive, which is most likely due to their history as dog fighting dogs. For a long time these dogs were used in large numbers for this cruel dog sport. The Caucasian Ovcharka might also be dog agressive, but to far lesser extent that Central Asian Ovcharka.

And what about the appearance differences between two dogs? Well, on the first sight, it is the coat. The Caucasian Ovcharka has ancestry in cold and harsh Caucasus mountains, which is why they have longer and denser doublecoat. The Central Asian Ovcharka also has a doublecoat, but it is much shorter.

Both breeds are very very large. The breed standards of both dogs states minimum size requirements for both breeds and they are 64 cm and 45 kg for the Caucasian Ovcharka, which is 100 lbs and 25 inch and minimum size requirements for Central Asian Shepherd are 65 cm and 40 kg, which is 26 inch and 88 lbs. But both breeds can be much much larger than that and it is not uncommon for them to weigh over 100 kgs, which is 220 lbs.

So they have similar size, but in general, the Caucasian Ovcharka is the stockier breed, while the Central Asian has slightly more athletic appearance and it is leggier than Caucasian Shepherd.

Both breeds have similar lifespan around 10 or 11 years, which is pretty normal for dogs of this size and they are both very resilient dogs. They can suffer from some joint and bone problems, which is very typical for all the giant dogs.

It is also important to mention, that the two breeds are more and more similar together, which is due to migration of the native dogs between the adjacent geographic areas. It is very common for these two breeds to mix together.

 The Labradoodle is a mix of Labrador Retriever and Poodle, while the Goldendoodle is a mix of Golden Retriever and Poodle. And while Poodles are very low shedding dogs, both Labrador and Golden Retriever sheds quite a lot. Especially the Labradors shedding is extreme.
​
Idealy the mix should inherit the Poodles almost non shedding coat, but is it always true? Well, of course it is not. The Labradoodle can inherit the Labradors coat and Goldendoodle can inherit the Golden Retrievers coat, which means, that they will shed quite heavily.

To understand the chances of a Labradoodle or Goldendoodle shedding ammount, it is important to know a little bit about the genetics of crossbreeds. I will try to make it as simple as possible, but if you will be interested in this topic in more details, there will be link to my video about this topic in description.

You might already heard about the crossbreeds generations. The first generation is called F1 and it is a cross of pure Poodle and pure Labrador, which will create the F1 Labradoodle. The offsprings have equal chances of inheriting Poodles or Labradors coat, but most commonly, the shedding will be slightly higher than Poodles and slightly lower than Labradors shedding. The F1 generation has typically the highest chance to shed a lot.

Since the low shedding coat is desirable trait, the crossbreeds with higher shedding coats are not used very often for further breeding, which is why further generations such as F2 or even F3 typically do not shed very much.

There is also F1b generation, which is a cross of F1 Labradoodle and pure Poodle, which gives the dog 75% of the Poodle genes and 25% of Labradors genes and it is more likely that the pup will have the Poodle like low shedding coat.

The example would be the same with Golden Retriever and Goldendoodle. The breeder should always tell you, what generation is your furute Doodle. So just remember, the F1 generation has the highest chance of shedding heavily, while other generations typically sheds a little.

The genetics are not always black and white and any doodle can be born with the coat that will sheds a lot, so it is always a little bit of lottery when buying a crossbreed. But on average, both Labradoodles and Goldendoodles are shedding rather low ammount of hair.

You can always just look at the coat type and you will get the idea of the ammount of shedding. Good identification sign for goldendoodles are their facial hair and face in general. If the dog has a lot of furnishings such as mustache, goatee and visible eyebrows, they will most likely have the Poodles low shedding coat. On the other hand, if they lack this furnishing and they have open face like Golden Retriever, than they have much higher chance of shedding. In general, the more curly the coat is, the less it sheds. If it is wavy, than it might sheds more.

Labradoodles come in three coat types. We can name them as wooly, shaggy and straight. The wooly, or curly coat is the least shedding. Straight coat is similar to Labradors and it sheds quite a lot. The shaggy coat is somewhere in the middle.

So to answer the questions from the beginning of the video. How much does these Doodle crosses shed? As you already know it depends on the coat type and it is vastly influenced by the generation of the cross. On average, both Labradoodles and Goldendoodles are low shedding dogs, but they still shed a little bit of fur. But again, it is always a loterry with any crossbreed and you never know what you will get.

And can they be at least better for allergy sufferers? Well, of course they can. Since they typically shed only a little, it is always better for people with allergies. But it is important to say that there is literally no dog breed or cross that is 100% hypoallergenic. All of them produce some dander, but also urine or saliva, which all trigger the allergy. It is always adviced to spend some time with the dog and see if they will trigger the allergies or not. There is no other way how you can make sure of it.

When we compare the Labradoodle and Goldendoodle and their shedding level, than it all comes down to its parents shedding level. And since the Labrador Retriever sheds considerably more than the Golden Retriever, even the Labradoodle has higher chance to sheds more than the Goldendoodle.

If you are unlucky and you bought a Doodle that sheds a little bit more than you would like to, there are some ways how to minimize it. The most obvious way how to do it is brushing. Brushing will not only keep the coat tangle and mat free, it will also remove any dirt and most importantly loose and dead hair. If you want to minimize the shedding as much as possible, you will have to brush their coats on daily basis.

Another way is to cut the hair. A regular haircut makes grooming more manageable which results in less shedding and less hair. It is always recommended to use the services of professional groomer who will tell you what haircuts are the best for your dog.

Bathing will also remove all the dead hair and minimize the shedding. But be careful with it. It is not recomended to bath your dog too often as it will remove all the natural coat oils as well. I would not bath the dog more than once a month and i personally do not bath the dog if it is not absolutely necessary.

One of the shedding trigger is stress. If the dog is not happy and for whatever reason is in stress they will most likely shed a little bit more than usual. This can be caused by not enough exercise, by leaving the dog alone for long time regularly, by not enough mental exercise, by moving to new place or by changing the dogs owner. The happier the dog is, the less it sheds. But to be honest, this will affect the shedding only a little.

Bad nutrition is another trigger. Make sure your dog has balanced diet. You should feed the dog with dogs food only and not human food. And do not overfeed the dog.

And the last trigger are health problems. It can be allergies, parasites such as fleas, bacterial or fungal infections, kidney and liver diseases, thyroid and many many other health problems. Many ilnesses trigger the shedding. So if your dog starts to shed a lot seemingly from a nowhere, you should discuss it with your veterinarian.

The tips to reduce the shedding are not only valid for Labradoodles and Goldendoodles but for all dogs in general.

So now you know that there is no such thing as absolutely hypoallergenic dog and that some Labradoodles and Goldendoodles can shed quite a lot. But it not a common thing for these crosses as majority of them are rather low shedding crosses.  

The German Spitz and Pomeranian are two different dogs that can be often times confused for one another. And even though it is true that they have similar temperament and personality, grooming needs and exercise needs, upon closer inspection, you can find some very important differences between these two dog breeds. 

It is true, that both breeds are closely related together as they both belongs to the Spitz category and they both have their ancestry in Germany. So you can actually say, that the Pomeranian is a German Spitz, since it is a spitz breed from Germany. And indeed, even the FCI breed standard says, that the Pomeranian is a German Toy Spitz, but the breed standard is slightly different. And to understand the differences between the two breeds, lets talk briefly about their history. After that i will mention appearance, size, color, temperament, grooming, exercise and every other aspect.

The first documented mentions of German Spitzes are from 1500s Germany, where they were used as herders and watchdogs on farms, alarming the owners when strangers approached, which is why, even today, these dogs are quite alert.

It is believed that the breed evolved from ancient Nordic spitz-type herding dogs and that they share similar ancestry with other Spitzes, like Samoyed or Finnish and Swedish Lapphund.

These dogs were not extremely popular in the past and they were mostly living on farms with poorer people. That changed in 1800s when royalty in Germany and England fell in love in these dogs. Proper documentation is lacking, but over the time, different sizes of German Spitz were developed. And one of them is the Pomeranian.

We do not know much about the Pomeranian breed before they got into England. During this time, Pomeranian were much bigger than they are today and they were almost identical to the German Spitz and it was not until the late 1800s when Queen Victoria fall in love with the Pomeranian breed. And this is the time when Pomeranians and German Spitzes took different paths.

Queen Victoria fall in love in small Pomeranians and started her own breeding program and it was this breeding program that evolved Pomeranians into the small and lively companion dogs we know today.

So yes, Pomeranian is most likely a descendant of the German Spitz and these two dogs are closely related together. But for relatively long time the two dogs have different breeding programs and they evolved into slightly different dogs.

Definitely the most important difference in these two dogs is their size, so lets start with that. The Pomeranian height is typically between 18-24 cm, which is 7-10 inch and weight between 3-7 lbs, which is 1,5 – 3 kg.

The German Spitz is considerably larger breed, so when these two dogs would be standing next to each other, it would be very easy to recognize them apart. There are actually three size types of the German Spitz. The German Miniature Spitz, German Medium Spitz and German Giant Spitz. You can see the sizes of all three types on the screen right know. Most commonly when we talk about the German Spitz and what most people think German Spitz is, is the Medium type, also known as Mittel.

But the size is not the only difference in the appearance of these two dogs. Other two notable differences are their head shape and tail type. The German Spitz head is wedge-shaped and flat on top with triangle-shaped ears that sit high on top of their heads and the head has much longer muzzle in comparsion to Pomeranian. The head of German Spitz is much more fox like.

On the other hand, the Pomeranian has much shorter muzzle. Pomeranian also has much smaller ears than the German Spitz, but both dogs have erect ears.

The tail is also slightly different. The Pomeranians tail is set very high and it sits flat against the back, while the German Spitz has more traditional spitz like tail which is curled over the back and it is typically carried to one side or curls into a ring shape. The Pomeranians tail is also slightly more fluffy.

Speaking of fluffy tail, lets mention the coat and color, because the coat is also not identical. Both dogs have dense doublecoat, which is a must for any spitz breed. But the coat of German Spitz consists of soft and cotton-like undercoat with a straighter and more coarse outer coat.

On the other hand, Pomeranians coat is a short and dense undercoat with a fine long-haired outer coat. And the difference in the length and, lets say fluffiness, is visible on the first sight. The Pomeranian has longer and extremely fluffy coat, which many people consider cute and the German Spitz have more practical and more traditional Spitz like coat, which is still dense and pretty long, but not as much as the Pomeranians coat.

Pomeranians also come in more colors. The standard for Pomeranian recognizes 18 different colors and the standard of German Spitz recognizes only 8 different colors.

And if we talk about coat, lets talk about the grooming and maintenance as well. In this case, it is very similar as both dogs have very dense coats and regular brushing several times a week is needed to keep the coat tangle and mat free. Pomeranians are often times also trimmed by professionals. German Spitzes are never trimmed, or extremely rarely. The Pomeranian has more fluffy and dense coat, so they need little bit more grooming, but overall the grooming needs are similar.

Both dogs also shed some deal of fur all year long and in most climates they blow out their coats twice a year in spring and fall during the shedding seasons. During this time, it is recommended to brush the coat on daily basis.

You should also regularly check and clean their teeth, as both breeds are prone to dental issues. Ear cleaning and nail clipping if needed is also beneficial for both dogs.

When we look at the temperament of the German Spitz and the Pomeranian, we will find a lot of similarities and not much differences. Both dogs are very social animals who bonds very closely to its owners and family and who wants to be around them all day long. These dogs are naturally friendly, affectionate and loving. Both dogs are also quite inquisitive and curious, playful and outgoing. I can guarantee you, that you will never be bored with neither of those two dog breeds.

Both breeds are also great playful and loving companions for kids, but do not forget, that especially the Pomeranian is a small and delicate breed, so the child should know how to behave around dogs properly.

They can also live with other dogs in the family and even other smaller household pets are typically not problematic. These dogs do not have extremely high prey drive and especially if they are socialized with other animals from the puppyhood, they will create a great friendship with them.

Both dogs also have the same watchdog ancestry, which is why they like to bark and they will most likely alert you when they will hear or see something suspicious around the house.

So as you can see, the temperament and personality is very similar, but what about the exercise needs and energy level?

These dogs are no coach potatoes. They are both lively and quite energetic, some people say, that they are pocket rockets. The German Spitz definitely requires more exercise than the Pomeranian. The Pomeranian is known to have bursts of energy when they will run like crazy around the home. Other than that, they will be happy with few daily walks and some playtime.

The German Spitz on the other hand will be always ready for a long hike or walk and they are always ready for any outdoor adventure. They can also go for a jog and they are much better fit for active people who want companion for their outdoor activities.
​
Health is another category where these two breeds are similar as they both are known as usually very healthy dogs with long lifespan. The health issues of these two breeds include patellar luxation, different eye problems, collapsed trachea and epilepsy. The lifespan is somewhere between 12-16 years. The Pomeranian has usually slightly longer lifespan than German Spitz, but the difference is not big.