Hovawart is a German dog breed. The name of the breed means "an estate guard dog," which is the original use for the breed. The breed originates from the Black Forest region and has first been described in text and paintings in medieval times. In the early 20th century there was a project to create the German working dog, which resulted in the German Shepherd dog. Some people however disagreed with how the ideal German working dog would be like and found some original Hovawart -typed dogs and revived the breed. The breed standard was published and the breed was recognized by the German Kennel Club in 1937. The breed is recognized by the FCI (Fédération Cynologique Internationale, http://www.fci.be/).
Hovawart is a large dog. Dogs are 63-70 cm (24 3/4"-27 1/2") and bitches 58-65 cm (22 3/4"-25 1/2"). The weight is approximately 25-40 kg (55-90 pounds). It comes in blonde, black, or black & tan, the latter being most common.
Hovawart is an outstanding watchdog and somewhat reserved towards strangers. They make excellent family dogs as they are totally devoted to their family. They are a working dog breed, and require a consistent and loving yet strict training and meaningful activity thoughout their lives.
Hovawart does expectionally well in search and rescue, tracking and working dog activities. The lighter females often love agility. In training and especially obedience work the trainer must keep positive reinforcement in mind all the time, as the Hovawart is not as eager to please as many other working dog breeds. Hovawart may easily become reluctant if training is built only on punishments.
Owner of a Hovawart should have previous experience in owning and training a dog. Hovawart is not suitable as a first dog.