About the Breed

The breed standard describes the Finnish Lapphund as calm but keen, highly intelligent and always willing to learn. It should be a friendly, easy going dog, bold and inquisitive, but unobtrusive in its nature, curious about its surroundings but should always be in harmony with its environment. Lappies are generally a submissive breed, loyal to their family and eager to please and receive praise for their actions. Some personalities, particularly bitches or young dogs, may be a little bit distant or shy with strangers at first, but they should never be overly timid. A Lappie should never be sharp or snappish, and should never show any aggression to people, under any circumstances.

Lappies are one of the best spitz breeds to train, although most require a reward based approach (at least at first). Lappies as a breed tend to be a bit more relaxed and have a softer temperament, but also have a certain spitz independence and stubbornness. As with any dogs, it is important for the owner to establish consistent and fair rules and boundaries. Lappies that are not socialised correctly can also become reactive (especially with other dogs) and owners need to be aware that Lappies are naturally a vocal breed, so do have a tendency to bark (especially in order to alert their owners to something that is happening). This can create issues with neighbours and while training can assist, it should be considered as part of their unique nature.

Their independence, combined with a natural friendliness, also means that, it is important to install a sense of working as a team with your Lappie (although even a well trained dog may be slightly ‘deaf ’ at times!), particularly with recall.Lappies are a working breed, and while they don’t have the same drive as a border collie or kelpie, they do need regular exercise and mental stimulation. As such, they are excellent competitors in agility and obedience, and can take part in herding. As long as they have regular exercise, they are quite happy to be couch potatoes in their ‘down’ time.

It should also be noted that, as a breed, they are very people focused. A Lappie is happiest when it is with its pack, and should never be treated as an ‘outside only’ dog. In fact, it is their affectionate nature that has made them so popular in their homeland, particularly with families. While no child should ever be left unsupervised with any dog, their temperament and moderate size makes them an excellent canine companion for homes with children.

Cat like Tendencies

Lappies have what can be said to be ‘cat like’ traits; they are quite fastidious in cleaning and have a very feline sense of balance (making them naturals for agility work!). They are able to walk along narrow edges and are able to jump from a standing start, although are not fence climbers like other spitz breeds. Lappies are often observed to lie down in a cat like manner - stretching out and lowering their front legs first, and then lowering their back with the rear legs either tucked underneath or (usually when young) stretched out behind them.

Their cleanliness, coupled with the tendency of dirt to fall out of their coats naturally, means that Lappies should not have a ‘doggy’ odour to them.

Grooming

The big, luscious coat on a Lappie is one of the most physically striking features; on males in particular the coat can resemble an impressive mane! Many people are initially turned away by the thought of maintaining such an impressive coat, but the reality is that the Lappie’s coat is very easy to maintain. It is important to remember that Lappies were (and still are) a working breed, and so a coat that requires extensive maintenance would not be practical – they have been bred to be low maintenance grooming wise.

Lappies have a typical spitz double coat, which consists of a weather resistant harsh outer coat and a soft insulating undercoat. Adults will shed either once or twice a year; outside of this time you will see very little hair. In addition, their coats are quite resistant to dirt and mud (once dry, it will usually fall out) and doesn’t normally matt or tangle. In fact, all a pet Lappie needs is a good brush once a week for about 20 minutes once a week (while a show dog may require more regular maintenance), and their coat should never be cut or trimmed (other than their nails). Owners should not bath their Lappie too often either, as this will dry out the coat and strip it of its natural oils.

Colour Me a Canine Rainbow

Lappies come in all colours of the canine rainbow! All colours are acceptable in the breed standard, as long as there is a basic main colour that dominates, with colours other than the main colour occurring on the head, neck, chest, underside of the body, legs and tail. This means that solid colours are permitted within the breed standard as well as the more common bicolours (which currently is the most common colour seen in Australia).

Colours include cream, black, red, tan, brown, black and tan or brown and tan, with or without white, as well as sables (eg wolf/game sable and blue sable).

Many Lappies have the distinctive ‘four eyes’ - which appear as contrasting colour patches just above the eyes.

Less common in Australia is the “spectacle” marking, which appear as circles of lighter hair around the eyes.

One of the most interesting aspects of Lappie colouring is just how much it can change over time as they develop from a puppy to an adult. Some Lappies will darken as they get older, others will lighten. Face markings often become far more distinct, in some, tan points will fade to cream, in others sable colour may appear.Trying to predict what colours you will get in a litter is a bit like reading tea leaves; you may have an idea in theory, but in practice, you can never be sure of what you are going to get! In fact, in a litter there may be all one colour or combination of colours depending on lines and the lottery of genetics. Regardless, almost all Lappie colours are striking, and thus if you are planning to have your own it is best to decide what temperament and personality you would like first, and colour second.

Health

As a breed, Lappies are a healthy breed with relatively few health concerns, with an average life span of approximately 12 to 14 years, (although dogs of 16 - 17 are not uncommon in Finland). Their vigour is most likely related to both their wild ancestry and centuries of life as a working breed. That said, there are a few conditions known in the breed, some of which can be genetically tested for (such as PRA-CD, an inherited eye condition resulting in blindness)and others must be clinically assessed (such as cataracts). Most breeders will hip and elbow score and undertake regular eye examinations their breeding dogs.

It should be noted that these conditions are not unique to Finnish Lapphunds but can occur in a number of other breeds, and in cross breeds. All registered, ethical Lapphund breeders in Australia screen for these conditions, and will only breed from Lappies that pass the necessary health checks and are free (as much as we can possibly determine) from genetic problems