Icelandic Sheepdog

Known as the "dog of the Vikings,” the Icelandic Sheepdog is considered one of the oldest breeds in the world, and is Iceland’s only native dog. AKC recognized in 2010, the dog is an official member of the Herding Group.

In terms of appearance, the Icelandic Sheepdog is downright cute. The predominant colors of this dog breed include various shades of tan, ranging from cream to reddish brown; chocolate brown, grey, and black. White should always accompany the predominant color. In terms of size, the pup weighs in at between 20 and 30 pounds, making it a medium-sized dog that any owner could grow to love.

From a personality standpoint, these dogs are full of energy. The Icelandic Sheepdog is a true working dog, looking to help out their owner in any way possible. In this sense, the Icelandic Sheepdog is very outgoing. This dog finds itself to be the life of any party, gentle and friendly and always needing to be involved with their owners.

From a care standpoint, the Icelandic Sheepdog needs to be groomed a little bit and needs to be exercised to spend its pent up energy.

In terms of training, the Icelandic Sheepdog is smart as a whip, which can work both ways; they can pick up bad habits quickly if they think they are doing the correct thing. If training is correctly done the first time, however, the dog is relatively easy to train if the correct methods are used. Due to their gentle nature, they don't respond well to aggressive training techniques.