Who out there has a Portuguese Water Dog???

Question

I am about to get a dog and i think this is the one...but my dad is allergic to to animal dander...Is it true that portuguese water dogs are hypoallergenic and is it true that they are light shedders??? Or...is it all a lie?

Answer 1

I don't have them but I know of some that do.

The PWD is considered one of the hypo-allergenic breeds and like all dogs, hairs can sometimes fall out so that is light but allergies are not always due to hair!

Individual dog and specific breed allergen testing is the most accurate way to know for sure about your dad's reaction or he just has to spend time at the breeder's home and then check for reactions.

Here for example is one study about dog allergen:
"Increased skin test reactivity was noted using breed-specific antigens as compared to the mixed-dog commercial screening extract. Variation in skin test responsivity related to specific breed antigens was also noted." -source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=7191357&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum

From above, you can see that commercial testing sera used to see what people are generally allergic to can be misleading! Commercial stuff is made with a pooled hodgepodge of material from different breeds. The reality is that each breed may have specific proteins to which a person may or may not react. So one person's "hypoallergenic breed" is very irritating to another person.
The rescues get lots of dogs that are given away because of this.

It is a fact for example that the so called 'labradoodle' is not a hypoallergenic breed. In fact when they are tested for allergens, they range all over the place primarily because of the labrador component of their breeding. See this study from ALLERGY in 2005-
Dog factor differences in Can f 1 allergen production.
UPRES 3287, Hopital Sainte Marguerite, Universite de la Mediterranee, Marseille, France.
BACKGROUND: The clinical importance of dog allergy is well known, but it is unknown if all types of dogs represent the same risk for allergic patients. The purpose of this work was to evaluate among 288 healthy dogs if the levels of Can f 1 on fur vary between breeds (German Shepherd, Pyrenean Shepherd, Poodle, Cocker spaniel, Spaniel, Griffon, Labrador retriever and Yorkshire terrier), gender, hormonal status, hair length, and according to the presence of seborrhea. METHODS: Each dog was shaved in a limited area and Can f 1 concentrations were measured in mug/g fur by ELISA. The results (geometric mean values and 95% confidence intervals) were analyzed using analysis of variance and with nonparametric tests. RESULTS: A wide variability in Can f 1 levels was found between dog breeds, from Labradors [1.99 (0.03-129.91)] to Yorkshires [16.72 (3.67-76.16)] and Poodles [17.04 (2.79-103.94)] but only the Labrador levels were significantly different from each other breed. Males produced more Can f 1 than females, 11.75 (1.27-108.40) vs 8.89 (0.91-86.39). No difference was found according to hair length or hormonal status. The seborrheic status highly (P = 0.0019) influenced the presence of Can f 1 on hair: 16.66 (1.59-173.96) vs 9.40 (1.03-85.70). CONCLUSION: Breeds (Labrador retriever), sex and seborrhea seem to influence the levels of Can f 1 on fur. -source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=15969688&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_docsum

From above, the lab is shown to be the worst possible cross to be used with poodles to make ANY so called hypoallergenic breed. In fact the labradoodle inventors are now using breeds such as the PWD and others to try to save their faces (google: Australian Labradoodle) and it's not working.

So the PWD is going in the right direction. As are the poodles, and even a yorkie is shown to be favorable in the study above.

You'll see LOTS of people posting that 'doodles' and other mixes are more hypoallergenic, and people making $3500 per dog because 'everyone knows they are hypoallergenic' (urban hoax). People do not actually research but talk like trained parrots. :)

I'm glad you're doing your research. PWDs are wonderful dogs in the right homes prepared for their activity level. People will ask, "what kind of dog is that?" So there's lots of opportunity to meet people, and if you're shy, your confidence grows because you get to teach. :)

Answer 2

I don't currently got one but i have had some in the past. No its true. Here is a website that if you have any more questions you can go too.
www.dogbreedinfo.com/portuguesewaterdog
hope i was of some help to you and by the way there are some other breeds that would be more suitable i should think as they are hairless dogs.......you can also find them on the website i have listed... look for american hairless terriers

Answer 3

Check out www.puppydogweb.com click puppies for sale then scroll down to Portuguese Water Dogs you will find breeders you can contact for more information on that breed.