Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog — size comparison

The Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog is powerful and athletic, with short hair, hanging ears and a slightly elongated body. Merle individuals, sometimes with very light eyes, are best known, but other colours and patterns occur. Not every Catahoula has leopard-like spots. Its muscular build favours agility and endurance without excessive bulk.

It developed in the American South as a versatile working dog. In Louisiana it gathered and controlled free-ranging cattle and pigs and tracked game. Accounts of its precise ancestral contributions remain uncertain. Its local importance is well documented: it became Louisiana's official state dog in 1979.

A Catahoula can be intensely focused and determined at work, yet much more relaxed and playful at home. Attached to familiar people, it often watches strangers from a distance. Independent and attentive to its territory, it readily takes initiative. Its energy can focus on a particular goal, which it may pursue persistently.

Measurement sources

• Wzorzec, idealna wysokość i masa — UKC
• Orientacyjna masa — tabela AKC
• AKC — długość życia, pielęgnacja i historia