A wonderful family pet and companion dog is the medium-sized herder known as the Barbado da Terceira. The breed is happy, sensitive, docile and willful, intelligent, and simple to train. BDTs require a loving and seasoned owner because they are athletic.
Barbado da Terceira
loyal / intelligent / joyful and fun loving
Average sizes and life
expectancy of the breed.
Height
20 1/2 – 22 inches (males)
19 – 21 inches (females)
Weight
55-60 lbs (males)
46-57 lbs (females)
Life Expectancy
12-14 years
Breed Traits & Characteristics
Shedding Level
How much fur and hair you can expect the breed to leave behind. Breeds with high shedding will need to be brushed more frequently, are more likely to trigger certain types of allergies, and are more likely to require more consistent vacuuming and lint-rolling.
Coat Grooming Frequency
How frequently a breed requires bathing, brushing, trimming, or other kinds of coat maintenance. Consider how much time, patience, and budget you have for this type of care when looking at the grooming effort needed. All breeds require regular nail trimming.
Drooling Level
How drool-prone a breed tends to be. If you're a neat freak, dogs that can leave ropes of slobber on your arm or big wet spots on your clothes may not be the right choice for you.
Coat Type
Corded
Curly
Double
Hairless
Rough
Silky
Smooth
Wavy
Wiry
Canine coats come in many different types, depending on the breed's purpose. Each coat type comes with different grooming needs, allergen potential, and shedding level. You may also just prefer the look or feel of certain coat types over others when choosing a family pet.
Coat Length
Long
Medium
Short
How long the breed's coat is expected to be. Some long-haired breeds can be trimmed short, but this will require additional upkeep to maintain.
Affectionate With Family
How affectionate a breed is likely to be with family members, or other people he knows well. Some breeds can be aloof with everyone but their owner, while other breeds treat everyone they know like their best friend.
Good With Young Children
A breed's level of tolerance and patience with childrens' behavior, and overall family-friendly nature. Dogs should always be supervised around young children, or children of any age who have little exposure to dogs.
GOOD WITH OTHER DOGS
How generally friendly a breed is towards other dogs. Dogs should always be supervised for interactions and introductions with other dogs, but some breeds are innately more likely to get along with other dogs, both at home and in public.
Shedding Level
How much fur and hair you can expect the breed to leave behind. Breeds with high shedding will need to be brushed more frequently, are more likely to trigger certain types of allergies, and are more likely to require more consistent vacuuming and lint-rolling.
Coat Grooming Frequency
How frequently a breed requires bathing, brushing, trimming, or other kinds of coat maintenance. Consider how much time, patience, and budget you have for this type of care when looking at the grooming effort needed. All breeds require regular nail trimming.
Drooling Level
How drool-prone a breed tends to be. If you're a neat freak, dogs that can leave ropes of slobber on your arm or big wet spots on your clothes may not be the right choice for you.
Coat Type
Corded
Curly
Double
Hairless
Rough
Silky
Smooth
Wavy
Wiry
Canine coats come in many different types, depending on the breed's purpose. Each coat type comes with different grooming needs, allergen potential, and shedding level. You may also just prefer the look or feel of certain coat types over others when choosing a family pet.
Coat Length
Long
Medium
Short
How long the breed's coat is expected to be. Some long-haired breeds can be trimmed short, but this will require additional upkeep to maintain.
Openness To Strangers
How welcoming a breed is likely to be towards strangers. Some breeds will be reserved or cautious around all strangers, regardless of the location, while other breeds will be happy to meet a new human whenever one is around!
Playfulness Level
How enthusiastic about play a breed is likely to be, even past the age of puppyhood. Some breeds will continue wanting to play tug-of-war or fetch well into their adult years, while others will be happy to just relax on the couch with you most of the time.
Watchdog/Protective Nature
A breed's tendency to alert you that strangers are around. These breeds are more likely to react to any potential threat, whether it's the mailman or a squirrel outside the window. These breeds are likely to warm to strangers who enter the house and are accepted by their family.
Adaptability Level
How easily a breed handles change. This can include changes in living conditions, noise, weather, daily schedule, and other variations in day-to-day life.
Trainability Level
How easy it will be to train your dog, and how willing your dog will be to learn new things. Some breeds just want to make their owner proud, while others prefer to do what they want, when they want to, wherever they want!
Energy Level
The amount of exercise and mental stimulation a breed needs. High energy breeds are ready to go and eager for their next adventure. They'll spend their time running, jumping, and playing throughout the day. Low energy breeds are like couch potatoes - they're happy to simply lay around and snooze.
Barking Level
How often this breed vocalizes, whether it's with barks or howls. While some breeds will bark at every passer-by or bird in the window, others will only bark in particular situations. Some barkless breeds can still be vocal, using other sounds to express themselves.
Mental Stimulation Needs
How much mental stimulation a breed needs to stay happy and healthy. Purpose-bred dogs can have jobs that require decision-making, problem-solving, concentration, or other qualities, and without the brain exercise they need, they'll create their own projects to keep their minds busy -- and they probably won't be the kind of projects you'd like.
About the Breed
What To Expect When Caring For a Barbado da Terceira
Owning a dog is not just a privilege; it’s a responsibility. They depend on us for, at minimum, food and shelter, and deserve much more. When you take a dog into your life, you need to understand the commitment that dog ownership entails.
Health
There is a tendency for hip dysplasia in the Barbado do Terceira.
Grooming
Bathing the Barbado do Terceira should be done only on an as-needed basis. They will not need to be bathed as frequently if they are well brushed, as bathing strips the dog of important skin oils. As a result, a bath every two months should be enough. Puppy hair should be brushed on a regular basis. Tangles between the toes should be avoided and removed if encountered. Hair that gets excessively long around the eyes should be clipped as well. When the adult coat begins to develop and the puppy hair falls out, stray hairs frequently become entangled in the new coat and form tangles, particularly in the neck. These are tough to get rid of, especially when the genuine coat grows longer. Brush hair all the way down to the skin, working from the legs up. If this is too difficult, they should be shaved to 1-12 inch (7F clipper) length. Hair should be clipped when it becomes too long because Barbados does not shed. Summer trimming is unnecessary since the undercoat keeps the heat at bay. They should be combed at least once a week to keep the hair from becoming matted and to eliminate twigs and burrs. Their nails should be checked and clipped every few weeks. Many have dewclaws on their backs that need to be clipped. Removal is not advised. Ears should be checked and cleaned once a week. Ear powder can be used to eliminate hair from inside the ear.
Exercise
Daily exercise is essential. These canines are so intelligent that they require both mental and physical stimulation. They do not require a fenced-in yard because they want to be near to their home and their people. They are territorial of their home and yard and must be supervised if there are other dogs in the neighborhood. Barbado da Terceiras are happiest when they have a cow to herd, but a ball will suffice in their absence. They will gladly walk, trek, or jog alongside their human. Agility and herding courses, if available, are also excellent substitutes for folks who do not live on a farm.
Owners whose flowers are eaten by deer will be amazed at how quickly the Barbado do Terceira herds them away from their properties. When playing with each other, the Barbado da Terceiras will be ecstatic and vocal. Other breeds may be confused at first by the BTD's intense play, but they rapidly adapt.
Training
The Barbado da Terceira is a confident breed. She needs rigorous, regular, and compassionate training from a young age. Instincts do not simply vanish. Herding instincts are prey instincts that have been tamed via selective breeding and training. Herding dogs frequently bite at their owners' (especially children's) heels in an attempt to herd them. If this overstimulation of innate behaviors is not addressed, it can develop into incorrigible behavior that is increasingly difficult to change. She needs persistent, rigorous, and loving teaching from an early age. Barbado da Terceiras are cattle herders, not guard dogs. They will, however, safeguard their people. Herding breeds exist to protect their flocks from predators, thus their vision and hearing are exceptional. They may vocalize in response to any visual change in their environment or any novel sounds. Due to the beauty, intellect, and cheerful attitude of the Barbado da Terceira, they are becoming more popular family pets on mainland of Portugal, throughout Europe, and in the United States of America; nonetheless, they must be physically and mentally active to be successful pets. They get along well with children but should be supervised.
They are also good with other dogs but should be observed if they are around an unknown dog. Because dominant Barbado da Terceiras may fight other dogs, early socialization with a variety of dogs is essential. The Barbado do Terceira is intended for people who have some or a lot of experience with dogs. It is preferable to employ positive reinforcement. If this does not enough, they may need to take time out to regain their composure. The Barbado da Terceira is a sensitive dog that is eager to please, and harsh punishment may have the opposite effect intended. If the Barbado da Terceira is treated cruelly, it may become worried or fearful, which can lead to long-term behavioral difficulties such as aggression.
New owners who are considering sending their puppies to overnight training centers should be aware of the long-term repercussions of such training. While the training may address problematic habits in the short term, there is no guarantee that the puppy will not be traumatized, resulting in even more undesirable behaviors in the long term. This is true even for training institutes that offer the greatest advice and pledge to employ only positive reinforcement. Puppies are not one-size-fits-all, and your trainer, despite claims of expertise with all canines, will not be familiar with the demands of your Barbado da Terceira puppy. The new puppy must bond with his or her owners; sending him or her away can cause depression and feelings of abandonment, and will most likely disrupt already created bonds. There is no substitute for rigorous, consistent, yet loving training by their human, which begins the moment a new puppy is brought home.
Nutrition
Puppies must be fed puppy food until they reach the age of twelve months. Rustic breeds demand premium food, but not hyper premium. For balanced growth, they can be given chondroitin, glucosamine, and calcium supplements. They should be fed three times a day until they are four months old, then twice a day after that. Because Barbado da Terceiras are not prone to obesity, free feeding is acceptable.
History
In the 1500s, settlers imported the medium-sized Barbado da Terceira (BDT) to the Portuguese island of Terceira, one of the Azore archipelagos, to herd wild cattle and guard livestock. The Azores are a group of autonomous islands located in the mid-Atlantic.
There are various theories about the breed’s origins, but the most plausible is that it descended from medium-sized long-haired herding and/or cow dogs seen throughout Europe. Given the history of colonization of the Azores islands by the Portuguese, Spanish, French, Belgians, Flemish, English, Dutch, and others, the breed may have descended from a similar group of canines that gave rise to the comparable, but morphologically distinct, Azorean Cattle Dog. at.
A protocol of action for the recognition of the “Barbado da Terceira” was signed in April 2004 by the CPC, the Direcço Regional do Desenvolvimento Agrário (Regional Direction of Agricultural Development), and the University of the Azores under the direction of Carla Molinari, president of the Clube Português de Canicultura (CPS), the official Portuguese Kennel Club. In 2005, the CPC General Assembly members were presented with the first preliminary standard of the Barbado da Terceira.
Only at the end of the twentieth century was the breed introduced to the Portuguese mainland. The CPC, the Associaço Açoreana dos Criadores dos Cés Barbados da Ilha Terceira (The Azorean Association of Barbados Dog Breeders of Terceira Island), and the Clube Português do Barbado da Terceira (CPBT) are all working to increase the popularity of the Barbado as a pet, herder, and show dog in Portugal and abroad.
The first two BDTs were brought to Maryland, USA, in 2018 from Terceira Island and the Portuguese mainland. The BDT is officially recognized by the following organizations:
- Clube Português de Canicultura (Portugal)
- Société Royale Saint-Hubert (Belgium)
- Société Centrale Canine (France)
Raad van Beheer op Kynologisch Gebied in Nederland (Dutch)