The Komondor Dog - Nature's Adorable Living Mop

The Komondor – Nature’s Adorable Living Mop

By Spooky on November 11th, 2013 Category: Animals

The Komondor is undoubtedly one of the oldest and most unique-looking dog breeds in the world. It was mentioned for the first time in the Code of Hammurabi (a set of laws created by the Babylonian king Hammurabi around 1750 BC). However, the Komondor is nowadays considered Hungary’s traditional dog.

The first thing you’ll notice about these dogs is their resemblance to giant mops: indeed, their 2000-cord coat alone weighs around 15 pounds (30 kilos) and they are approximately three feet tall (a bit over 90 centimeters). The Komondor’s cords develop during its first two years of life and their length increases with time, as the coat grows. Thankfully, the dog doesn’t need brushing, but you do have to separate the cords, which may take a while, as they tend to get tangled. If the dog’s natural look is maintained, which means letting its corded coat grow long, you’ll be able to notice its distinctive rectangular shape. These adorable leaving mops were used as livestock guard dogs, and with their corded coat acting as camouflage they were especially useful for guarding sheep. The Komondor breed is believed to have been so efficient at its task that it nearly wiped out all Hungary’s wolf population.

As adorable as it may seem, having a Komondor for a pet isn’t as easy as it may seem: first of all, it needs a lot of space for daily exercise, so living in the countryside may suit it best. Second, although this breed hasn’t been used for guarding purposes for quite some time now, and is actually preferred as a pet by most families, keep in mind that it still has strong protective instincts, thus it may not be so friendly to strangers. Lastly and most importantly, the Komondorok (Hungarian plural for Komondor) are very independent, self-willed dogs, so you may have to professionally train them from an early age. The one thing you don’t have to worry about is excessive shedding. Contrary to what most people think, shedding is minimal with this breed once its thick cords are fully formed.