Serbian Sylvan Dog[/img][img]
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The future of this ancient Molosser is uncertain. The Sumadinac, along with the Gampr, Sarplaninac, Kavkaz Volkodav, Tornjak, Epir Molossus, Tibetan Mastiff and other Eastern-European and Central Asian dogs is one of the founding blocks of the original Moloss stock. Thought by some to be the oldest dog of the region, this breed has been used throughout countless centuries as a capable livestock herder, personal guardian, property watchdog, large game hunter, war-dog and excellent sheep protector. Many view this Serbian breed as the Balkan variety of the Central Asian Shepherd, in whose population it is still very common to find a great number of Sylvan-like strains, both in terms of physical built and colourings. Some sources suggest that the Sylvanian Wolfdog might be descended from the Hyrcanian Mastiff of ancient Persia. This is uncertain, but the Sumadinac bears striking similarity in appearance to the Siah Sag type of the modern Iranian Sage Mazandarani breed, which is seen by many as a direct descendant of the Hyrcanian Tiger Dog. Other researchers link this breed to the near-identical, although milder-tempered Tuvan Shepherd Dog of Siberia and the original Sarmatian Mastiff from Ural, but these theories, although quite reasonable, are yet to be proven, as is the claim that its primary ancestor is the Bakharwal of India. The Bohemian Mastiff from the Czech Republic is also though to be descended from the same stock. Another rare Molosser seen as a regional variety of the Sylvan is the Transylvanian Alps Sheepdog from Romania. Many breed enthusiasts consider the Sylvan to be the progenitor of quite a few European breeds, namely the Hovawart, the Beauceron and the Rottweiler, among others. Although the "Dragon Law" which served as a basic breed Standard has existed for many centuries, the Sylvan was never officially recognized, but a modern version of the Standard has been accepted by the fanciers of the breed, even though there are no intentions whatsoever of showing the Sylvan Dogs as of yet.
Related to and often mistaken for a Sarplaninac (even though there are no black, black-n-tan or tricolour Sarplaninacs allowed), this magnificent dog from the region of Sylvania has been introduced into many breeds, within and outside the Balkan Peninsula. Due to the well established trade routes, it was a popular export dog in the ancient times, as well as the Middle ages, reaching as far as Portugal to the West and Mongolia to the East. Seeing how dog breeding in the past was mainly done for improved working qualities and not for looks, the shepherds, knights, noblemen and soldiers bred the Serbian Sylvan to Sarplaninacs, Tornjaks, Caucasians and other breeds throughout the region, which resulted in the numerous variants of both the Shumadinatz and those breeds we see today. Dogs of this type can be encountered in a vast area, from Tibet and Central Asia, over the Caucasus and Carpathian mountains all the way to the every corner of the Balkans, reaching the Adriatic Sea. Due to this, some believe the Sylvan to be more of a type, rather than a single breed of Molossers, with every regional variety belonging to the same greater Sylvan population, a few of them regarded as local breeds established as such during the nomadic migrations and further developed independently of their parent group through selection of preferred qualities and by allowing matings with other breeds indigenous to the areas in which some of those tribes settled. While the Serbian, Macedonian, Greek and Bulgarian varieties (Sumadinac, Karaman, Drakontas and Karakatchan Dog, respectively) have attained the status of breeds in their communities, the rest of the dogs classifiable under the Sylvan type have become assimilated into the Central Asian, Caucasian and other populations as regional subtypes or simple colour varieties. Out of all of the Sylvan types, the Shumadinatz of Serbia has been bred following well-thought out and strict guidelines the longest, with the basic varieties of the breed believed to had been established over 7000 years ago and actively bred to a written standard since the 13th century.
Rare to find in its original form even in the Sumadija (Sylvania) region of Serbia, the Sylvan Watchdog is unfortunately on its way to extinction. Its blood, however, continues to flow through the veins of almost every Molosser of today. Fanciers of this breed are very protective of their dogs and rarely share any information with outsiders, some of them even deny having any knowledge about the Sumadijski Ovcar, oftentimes presenting their dogs as mongrels in order to be left alone. Most Sylvan enthusiasts blame the WW2 for the demise of their breed, in particular the introduction of its descendant, the German Shepherd Dog to the Balkans by the Nazi troops and its subsequent popularity with the Yugoslav Army. Both random and planned crossings with the GSD and Sarplaninac breeds have decimated the Sumadinac population and there are very few, if any at all, pure Sylvans left in existence. It is worth mentioning that among many names the breed had in the past, the Sylvan's primary name for centuries was "Zmaj" (Dragon), but the breed was most widely known locally as the "Vucjak" before the 2nd World War, which today just happens to be a very common misnomer used for all German Shepherd Dogs in Yugoslavia. Another traditional name is "Garov", but it is nowadays applied to all black and dark-coloured dogs in the Balkans, regardless of breed. It has been suggested that these name issues also played an important role in the Sylvanian Wolfdog's demise.
The Sylvan of Serbia is a reserved and independent dog, usually developing a strong bond with a single person and its property, while being wary of strangers. It is extremely aggressive towards strange dogs, although it tolerates familiar dogs that don't question its dominance. Unlike most LGD breeds, the Shumadinatz is governed not only by its strong defense instincts, but also by a very intense prey drive and kill drive, due to a greater working standard and expectations placed on these dogs, which are much more than just livestock and property guardians. The Sylvan is also a tireless herder and drover of cattle, a serious personal protector, a tenacious small and large game hunter, an unforgiving combatant and killer of predators like wolves and bears, a fierce wardog, as well as an all-around farm dog and companion. An interesting characteristic of the breed is that the females are more active and driven workers than the male dogs, which generally stay close to the flock or property while their bitches are the first ones to confront the predators. Only if the female fails to chase the intruder away or the attackers get too close to the herd does the male dog engage in a conflict. The Sylvan breed is also known for having very small litters, usually only 2 or 3 pups per season, as well as the females coming into heat once a year.
Deep-chested, muscular and athletic, the Sylvan is slightly leaner than a Sarplaninac and has a longer muzzle and narrower head. This breed is capable of great speeds and has fantastic jumping and climbing skills. The most prized dogs are the massive longhaired mountain-type Sylvan Wolfdogs, which are presently extremely rare to find. Short-haired type is still fairly common, although not as valued among certain purists. The superb Varkana, Black George and the Black Bear have traditionally been the most valued and respected bloodlines in the Sumadinac breed, but they're very rarely encountered in their pure form today. Of special note is the multitude of old "family" lines of the breed, referred to as such due to the practice of many rural Serbian estates breeding their own specialized strains, most of which have been developed by combining the traditionally prized bloodlines, as well as by employing certain outcrosses which helped shape these individual "family" Sylvans and distinguish them from other lines in the breed. There is also a wire-haired bearded variant, but these rugged cattledogs are falsely considered unpure by some authorities, even though this type has been around since ancient times. Another sub-variety of the Sylvan is the lean hound type, known as the Sumadijski Gonic, but most enthusiasts believe that this rare hunting dog should be seen as a separate breed.
The hard, thick coat is either uniform black or black-n-tan, but white markings of varying sizes are acceptable on the chest and feet, regardless of coat colour. White markings on the muzzle are permitted, but not favoured. The undercoat is thick and can be either black, grey, brindle, red or reddish-brown. Among the black-n-tan and tricolour dogs, the most valued specimens are the ones with strong tan markings above the eyes, which are said to give the dog super-natural powers to protect the village from evil spirits. Another distinction between the black-n-tan varieties of the Sylvan has traditionally been made based on the amount of tan markings on the dog's head, with the "Otvoren" and "Zatvoren" names literally meaning "open" and "closed", the first one being used for examples with more tan and the latter for the dogs with more black on the face. There are two additional colourings still sometimes encountered in the breed, these being the red-coated "Crljen" type and the brindled "Sarov" variety, but they're not valued by most fanciers, even though they're just as pure and just as ancient as the black-based Sylvans. The ears are equally appreciated in any "drop" type and can be either cropped or left natural. The tail is also accepted in any shape and can be unaltered or docked in either the very short fashion as associated with modern Rottweilers or slightly longer as commonly encountered on most Central Asian Ovtcharkas. As is the case with other old mountain Molossers, Sylvan males are usually much larger than their female counterparts. The ideal height is said to be 35 inches, but most specimens today average 30 inches or less at the withers, with some "family" strains being even smaller.
Serbian Defense Dog
The Serbian Defense Dog is a re-creation of the old Serbian Mastiff of the Middle Ages, which became extinct during the early 20th century. Initially disregarded as yet another "cocktail" breed, the SDD is today deservedly a well-known and respected guardian in its native Yugoslavia. It was developed by Nenad Gavrilovic, a Bosnian herbalist and medicine man in the early 1980's, but the final standard was written in 1991. Using his domesticated pack of Serbian wolves, working Bosnian Tornjaks, German Rottweilers, Neapolitan Mastiffs, American Staffordshire Terriers and game-bred Pit Bull Terriers, Gavrilovic created a breed of immense physical strength, fantastic guarding instincts and impressive fighting abilities. Even though it wasn't created with the intention of being a gladiator, the Serbian Defense Dog has achieved legendary status in the dog-fighting circles for being an undefeatable canine warrior. Initial stock was indeed tested in a traditional method of matching potential stud dogs against a number of breeds, but once the bravest and strongest examples were selected for further breeding, no further competitions were held. However, the notoriety of early SOPs as excellent fighters made the breed popular with the criminal element in the Balkans, in whose grip the breed received not only some additional blood of other breeds, but also somewhat of a bad name. Routinely defeating even the most tenacious Pit-Bulls and other fighting breeds, it is believed by many to be unfair matching the Srpski Odbrambeni Pas against any dogs other than members of its own breed, but some fanciers consider this ability to actually be a detractor from other qualities the breed possesses, because the Serbian Defense Dog is a versatile Molosser, capable of handling a great number of duties with ease, as well as being a wonderful urban companion for reponsible owners.
The Srpski Odbrambeni Pas, or SOP for short, possessess remarkable intelligence, as well as a noble, intuitive and strong-willed personality. This brave goliath makes a superb property guardian and a capable service dog, even though it's characterized by some of its fanciers as a one-person breed. A devoted family dog, the SOP needs experienced owners, who never employ overly firm and violent handling. The Serbian Defense Dog responds very well to obedience training and makes a truly remarkable personal protection dog, but early socialization around humans and dogs is necessary to make sure that the SOP doesn't grow up to be an extremely aggressive and overly territorial dog. However, a number of people still use these proud dogs for fighting duties and there are some unpure bloodlines of questionable quality and uncharacteristic temperaments to be found, which aren't endorsed by the breed's creator, making the standardization process difficult.
This is an athletic Molosser, sure-footed, strongly boned and wide-chested. The neck is very muscular and the head is elegantly broad, with powerful jaws and a moderately defined stop. A well-bred SDD is a squarely built mastiff, with a straight back and broad shoulders. The tail is always docked and the ears are left in their natural state. Regardless of coat colour, this should be a darkly pigmented dog, with a black nose, eye-rims and lips. The coat comes in two lengths, the "bully-style" short coat and the medium-short flat coat with a thick undercoat, making the Serbian Defense Dog suited for life in every climate. The preferred colours are solid fawn, yellow, wheaten and red, with or without a black mask, although grey, black, brindled, black-and-tan and even blue-coated dogs are still fairly common, some with white markings. Average height is around 27 inches, but taller, as well as smaller dogs exist.
The text is just an information about the breed. We have no proof yet that the dog is undefeated in the dog world and we have no video-proof how good the dog is. I neither can say it is right nor wrong what is said about the breed
but the breed profile seems definitely a bit hyped
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i have seen lots of videos but never seen a SDD (SOP)
