Lagotto Romagnolo Bible And The Lagotto Romagnolo: Your Perfect Lagotto Romagnolo Guide Covers Lagotto Romagnolo Puppies, Lagotto Dogs, Lagotto Breeders, Lagotto Grooming, Truffle Dog Training, Health, & More!

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Introduction to The Lagotto Romagnolo

Which dog has a curly coat like a poodle, the loyalty of a retriever, and can sniff out truffles better than a pig? The answer is the Lagotto Romagnolo. If you’ve never heard of them, don’t feel bad—you’re definitely not alone. Also called the Italian Truffle Dog or Romagna Water Dog, the Lagotto is one of the rarest breeds in the world.

Meet the Lagotto Romagnolo, one of the best-kept secrets of the dog world.

Once you learn more about the Lagotto dog, you’ll definitely be glad you did. This impressive puppy has all the qualities of an excellent pet. It has a natural affinity for kids and gets along well with other animals. It’s also very smart and easy to train, making it a popular choice for obedience and rally contests. As an added bonus it rarely sheds, making the Lagotto Romagnolo hypoallergenic.

That curly coat of the Lagotto isn’t just for looks. The Italian Lagotto dog is often put to work. It was originally bred as a water retriever. The tight curls of the Lagotto’s coat make it nearly waterproof, and it can swim in nearly-freezing water. Its agility and hardy constitution make it popular for other work, too. In the 20th century, it became known as a truffle hunter. The Lagotto’s powerful sense of smell and strong digging skills make it the perfect animal to hunt for these valuable mushrooms.

Just one look at a few Lagotto Romagnolo pictures, and you’ll fall in love. The Italian Lagotto, like many dogs from the region, has bright eyes and an endearing expression. You can see from your first look how smart they are—and how much they love the humans in their pack.

As you’ll see in this Lagotto Romagnolo book, it’s not the breed for everyone. They’re very high-energy and thrive in environments where they can get lots of attention throughout the day. They don’t like to be left alone. If you live an active lifestyle and want a dog who’ll happily tag along on all of your adventures, the Lagotto is the perfect dog for you.

This ancient but unheralded breed has a rich history and a lot to offer to modern dog owners around the world. If you’re considering a Lagotto Romagnolo, information in this book will walk you the whole process, from finding a breeder to training your new animal.

Think you might be ready to bring one of these distinctive animals into your home? Read on to find out more about what you can expect from a Lagotto, both as a puppy and throughout its life.

CHAPTER 1

Lagotto Romagnolo Origins: Where Do They Come From?

Italy is not the most common country of origin for a dog breed, but that’s exactly where the Lagotto Romagnolo comes from. This is just one characteristic that makes the Lagotto such a unique breed. From its water-resistant fur and webbed paws to its active, curious mindset, the Lagotto is a dog unlike any other.

The Lagotto hails originally from the Italian countryside.

You might hear the Lagotto referred to by other names, including the Italian water dog, the Roman water dog, the Truffle dog, or even by its Italian name, the Lagotto cane or cane Lagotto. Whatever you call it, the Lagotto Romagnolo is one of the few purebreds you’ll find today that has remained relatively unchanged since it was first described, centuries ago.

What is the history of the Italian water dog?

You might think of the Lagotto Romagnolo as a relatively recent breed. Up until the 2010s, few people outside of Italy had ever heard of the Lagotto. They were only officially recognized by the AKC in 2015 and are still one of the least common purebreds in North America; their numbers in the United States measure only in the hundreds.

Despite this, the Lagotto Romagnolo has a very long history that dates back to antiquity. In fact, it has been around since the days of Julius Caesar and the Roman Empire—and as we said, isn’t much different now, then it was in those ancient days.

Ancient origins and Renaissance depictions

Historians believe the original Lagotto Italian water dog was introduced to Italy around the 6th or 5th century B.C. This is known as the Etruscan period because it’s the time that the ancient civilization known as the Etruscans ruled the Tuscany region of what is now present-day Italy. This culture pre-dates the Roman Empire if that gives you any better context for how long ago we’re talking about.

When the Lagotto’s ancestors were first brought to Italy, they were primarily used as hunting dogs. They were especially valuable in hunting and retrieving waterfowl in the marshy lands of Ravenna and the surrounding areas. The tight curl of the Lagotto’s coat resists water and cold, making them the perfect animals for retrieving dead ducks and geese from a lake or river. The name Lagotto reflects this original purpose of the animal. The word lago in Italian translates to lake, making the Lagotto literally the little lake dog.

By the start of the Renaissance, the Lagotto Romagnolo was a ubiquitous presence throughout the Tuscan region. You can see Italian water dogs represented in artwork from the period, most notably the frescoes of the Bridal Suite in the Palazzo Ducale in Mantua, which shows a water dog at the feet of the Marquis Ludovic III Gonzaga. This and other depictions throughout the Renaissance period show a dog that looks nearly identical to modern iterations of the breed.

Transformation into the Italian truffle hunting dog

The Lagotto Romagnolo was still primarily used as a waterfowl hunter and retriever throughout the 18th century. It was in the 19th century that people started to drain the marshlands in northern Italy where the dog often hunted. With the marshes gone, there was less need for a waterfowl retriever—but the Italian water dog wasn’t ready to be sidelined quite yet. Instead, the breed began its transformation into the Italian Truffle dog.

If you’ve ever asked, What animal is used to find truffles in the ground? you probably expected the answer to be a pig—not a dog. But the same things that made Lagotti such skilled duck hunters and retrievers, also made them perfect truffle hunting dog breeds. By the end of the 19th century, the Lagotto Romagnolo was no longer best-known as a water dog, having instead gained a reputation as the truffle hunter.

Lagotti are not the only dogs used for truffle hunting in Italy, but they are generally regarded as the best truffle hunting dog breed in the world. Today, they are the only purebred dog officially recognized worldwide as a truffle hunter. From the 1920s onward, truffle hunting is the most common working role for Lagotti.

A truffle dog gets the scent before starting his search.

Lagotto Romagnolo dog breed: From near-extinction to salvation – the inside story

Despite its impressive truffle-seeking skills, the Lagotto Romagnolo wasn’t considered desirable as a purebred through most of its history. Instead, it was often cross-bred with other breeds to increase their disease resistance, or to give them the friendly demeanor and hunting skills that the Lagotto was so known for. As a result, by the mid-20th century, the Lagotto Romagnolo dog breed was in danger of extinction, with only a few dozen purebred individuals remaining.

In the mid-1970s, a group of Italian Lagotto dog lovers got together to save their beloved breed. They set up a breeding program to increase the Lagotto’s numbers and safeguard the breed’s genetic integrity, which had been compromised by inbreeding, and other unsavory breeding practices.

It took about twenty years to bring the Lagotto back from the brink, but by the mid-1990s the Lagotto Romagnolo was again thriving in its home country. The first modern-day Lagotto club, the Club Italiano Lagotto, was founded in Imola, Italy in 1988. Over thirty years later, it has over 300 members around the world and is one of the primary organizers of truffle hunting tests and trials for the modern Lagotto Italian water dog.

The Lagotto Romagnolo was virtually unknown outside of Italy in the 1970s, but since the 1980s its numbers have exploded. Between 1980 and 2010 the number of Lagotti in France and the UK grew tenfold and doubled in the United States and Canada. As of 2018, there were around 500 Lagotti registered with the AKC in the United States, so while it remains a rarer breed, interest in it is certainly growing.

What is the modern Lagotto Romagnolo bred for?

While you’ll occasionally still see the Lagotto Romagnolo used for duck hunting, there’s one main purpose of the modern Lagotto Romagnolo: finding truffles. In Italy, where this work is most common, you’ll often find the hunting instinct has been suppressed in Lagotti, to prevent them from being distracted by game while they’re searching for truffles.

Even so, the Lagotto retains a lot of the characteristics that made it such a great water retriever. Its thick, water-resistant coat lets it dive and swim effortlessly in even icy water, while its webbed toes make it a powerful swimmer. Lagotti are naturally drawn to water and enjoy swimming. Combined with their sharp sense of smell, this has also made them skilled search-and-rescue retrievers, able to search for lost hikers and hunters, in even rough