Lagotto Romagnolos are a cute, sweet-natured breed of dog from Italy. In this article; we will explore how to breed Lagotto Romagnolos as well as telling you everything you need to know about them.
Including their history, key characteristics, and common health issues. We’ll also be answering some of the most frequently asked questions about raising, owning, and breeding Lagotto Romagnolos.
Background of Lagotto Romagnolo Breeding
Let’s take a look at the history of one of the oldest water retrievers in the world.
Origin
Lagotto Romagnolos originated from the marshlands of Delta del Po, the eastern part of the Romagna sub-region of Italy. They were bred for game hunting & water retrieving and can be traced back as early as the 1400s. In fact, the name “Lagotto Romagnolo” is derived from the Italian words “cane di lago Romagnolo” meaning “lake dog from Romagna”.
Related Breeds
Lagottos are believed to be one of the original water dogs, with their ancestry dating back to Etruscan times between the 8th and 3rd century BC. This means that all of the more modern water breeds like the Golden Retriever and Poodle are direct descendants of Lagotto Romagnolos.
The Modern Lagotto Romagnolos
The breed gained acceptance by the World Canine Organization in 2005 and registered with the American Kennel Club in 2015. They currently rank 99th out of 197 in popularity in the US. This makes them a fairly rare breed, but much loved by Lagotto parents nonetheless!
More recently, Lagotto dogs have been commonly used as truffle hunters due to their retriever instincts. They are also the only breed of dog famous for doing so. Although they no longer work in water, they have retained their love of water and swimming.
Appearance
Lagotto Romagnolos are a small-medium sized breed of dog that is powerfully built. They have a bodily length that is similar to their height and strong muscles. They have cute round heads, floppy triangular ears, and short snouts with distinctive eyebrows and beards. Their legs and backs are straight and they have pointed tails.
Size and Weight
Lagotto Romagnolos reach adult size when they are around 18 months old. The average female Lagotto is around 16 inches tall and weighs 27.5 lbs. Whilst the average male stands at around 18 inches tall and weighs around 31.5 lbs.
Colors
Lagottos can be solidly off-white, solid orange, or solid brown. However, they can also be off-white with orange or brown markings, brown with white markings, or roan colored.
Coat
As a puppy, the fur is flat and soft. At around 2 years old, their adult coats grow out into tight curls like ringlets. Both the undercoat and topcoat are curly. Their fur is short, wooly, low shedding, and hypoallergenic.
Lagotto coats are also completely waterproof, allowing them to be able to swim in the iciest of temperatures. Their fur is also so dense that it protects them from the thorny flora when hunting for truffles!
Personality
The Lagotto Romagnolo personality is generally very loving, affectionate, and loyal towards their families. They’re also gentle with children and other animals as well as friendly towards strangers.
Like most working dogs, they’re very intelligent, active, and playful. They’re never known to be aggressive and love to swim and dig due to their working background.
Training
Lagottos are known to be very trainable due to their high intelligence and eager to please nature. Like all breeds, training and socialization should start as early on into puppyhood as possible. A bond should be formed first to make the dog keen. Due to the breed’s high intelligence, training sessions should be concise and fun to prevent stubbornness.
Behavioral issues that Lagotto owners may need to combat during early training include unwanted barking or digging. These are instinctual behaviors due to the dogs’ working history.
Lifestyle requirements
Lagottos are a fairly low maintenance breed of dog that requires their fur to be brushed & bathed once a month. They should eat 2.5 cups of high-quality food a day.
Like most working dogs, they require lots of mental stimulation to prevent boredom and subsequent behavioral issues. They also need around one hour of physical exercise a day, preferably from a walk or swim!
Common Health Issues for Lagotto Romagnolos
The average lifespan of Lagotto Romagnolos is between 15-17 years. They are generally healthy dogs but all breeds are genetically predisposed to certain conditions. Lagottos are more likely to experience certain joint & neurological conditions. In fact, there are a couple of major conditions that are specific to Lagottos.
All of the following conditions are genetic and the only preventative is to not breed dogs with the conditions.
Hip Dysplasia
Hip dysplasia is a congenital condition that causes the hip joints to form abnormally during puppyhood. Although, it may not be noticeable until adulthood or even old age. It causes the hips to become loose and wobbly, and eventually leads to arthritis. Early diagnosis can delay the condition from worsening.
The symptoms of hip dysplasia include:
- Limping, bunny hopping, or a wobbly or swaying walk
- Joint stiffness
- Difficulty getting up, lying down, jumping, climbing, and squatting
- Decreased desire to exercise
- Skinny hips
Dogs showing symptoms of hip dysplasia should be examined by a vet as soon as possible. The treatment will depend on the severity of the symptoms. Mild hip dysplasia may require life-long lifestyle changes, non-surgical therapies, and pain medication, whilst more severe dysplasia may require surgery.
Patellar Luxation
A luxating patella is an out of place or dislocated kneecap. It is fairly common among small-medium dogs. The cause can be genetic or traumatic but it can only be corrected with surgery. That said, most dogs live their lives uninterrupted by the condition. Surgery is only needed if the condition is causing the dog pain. Otherwise, it can be managed with physiotherapy and controlled exercise.
The symptoms of a luxating patella include:
- Intermittent limping or skipping
- Walking on three legs
- Lameness
- Stiffness
A vet should always be the one to decide whether the condition is mild or severe with a thorough examination. If a dog’s dislocation is severe and left untreated it can lead to arthritis.
Benign Familial Juvenile Epilepsy
A type of epilepsy known as benign familial juvenile epilepsy (BFJE) is a genetic disease known to affect Lagottos. Dogs affected by BFJE begin having seizures between 1-5 months of age.
The symptoms of BFJE include:
- Seizures characterized by tremors throughout the entire body, uncoordinated movements, and stiffness
- Fits may occur at any time of the day, lasting anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes
- Seizures that occur daily or weekly
- Consciousness during seizures (typically but not always)
Owners should log or record seizures, as vets need this as well as scans and tests to diagnose pets. Treatment for epilepsy includes antiepileptic medication, which should stop all seizures from occurring within 5 months of use.
Cerebellar Abiotrophy
Lagottos are also prone to a neurological disease called Cerebellar Abiotrophy (CA). A genetically inherited condition that causes the neurons in the cerebellum to degenerate at a young age, sometimes from birth.
The Symptoms of CA include:
- Wide stance & abnormal walk or staggering
- Balance problems & falling
- Extreme muscle stiffness that comes & goes
- Head or leg tremors when trying to move
- Involuntary eye movements
- Seizures
- Loss of vision
CA is usually diagnosed based upon the dog’s symptoms and tests that rule out other possible causes. There is, unfortunately, no cure for CA at present, although medications may improve some symptoms. Vets will monitor pets and watch for progression. Owners will need to make their homes safe for dogs prone to having falls. Although, dogs diagnosed with CA can live for months, sometimes even a few years depending on the severity of the condition.
Lagotto Storage Disease
Lagotto Storage Disease (LSD) is a hereditary vacuolar storage disease that is exclusive to Lagotto Romagnolos. It usually becomes noticeable between 4 months and 4 years of age. Furthermore, it is a progressive, neurodegenerative condition and there is no cure or treatment. Furthermore, any dog born of a parent that carries LSD has a 50% chance of getting the disease.
The symptoms of LSD include:
- Loss of coordination
- Gait abnormalities
- Abnormal eye movements
- Restlessness
- Depression and aggression
Vets will monitor the progression of the disease in affected dogs until it is time to put them to sleep.
Breeding Lagotto Romagnolos
Breeders must make sure that both of the dogs that they are breeding are free of any genetic health conditions, of good temperament, and registered with the correct kennel clubs.
First-time breeders must make sure they have the appropriate breeding licenses, are familiar with the signs of pregnancy & labor, and have the necessary supplies for whelping. During the mother’s two-month-long pregnancy, she must attend regular vet check-ups and have her food intake increased until she is eating between 35% and 50% more than normal.
Birthing
Lagottos can have one litter a year. Thankfully, dystocia (difficult birth) is not common amongst the breed. But it is still possible, so be aware of the signs of dystocia, which include; strong contractions for more than 30 minutes with no delivery, weak straining for more than 2 hours with no delivery, more than four hours between puppies, excessive discharge, and blood with no delivery.
Litter Size
The average size of a Lagotto litter is 4-6 puppies. The exact number will depend on both of the parents’ ages, health, and diet.
Puppies should live on their mother’s milk for the first month of their lives. Then, they should transition to milk replacer & high-quality kibble up to five times a day; decreasing to just kibble at around 7-8 weeks of age.
Cost
The average cost of a Lagotto Romagnolo puppy is between $1800 and $2500. They’re so expensive because they’re such a rare breed of dog in the US. The exact price may depend on the commonness of their coat color and the popularity of the breeder.
Rarity is a wonderful selling point for breeders. But as always, make sure to communicate the costs & care involved with owning a Lagotto Romagnolo to prospective owners.
Owning a Lagotto Romagnolo will cost new owners approximately $2674 during the first year alone. Following that, the average cost of owning an adult Lagotto is approximately $1400 per year according to Pets4Homes. This includes pet insurance, vet bills, food, toys, grooming supplies, and accessories such as collars and bowls.
Lagotto Romagnolo Breeding: FAQ
Lagotto Romagnolos make brilliant family dogs because they are loving, affectionate, and playful. They are extremely loyal towards their families and very gentle with children. They’re also friendly towards other animals and strangers and are rarely known to be aggressive.
Lagottos are very trainable because of their high intelligence and eagerness to please the ones they love. But as with all breeds, training and socialization should start as early as possible. Due to the breed’s high intelligence, training sessions should be concise and fun to prevent stubbornness.
Lagotto Romagnolos are classed as hypoallergenic dogs. Whilst no breed is completely hypoallergenic, they come very close because they are extremely low shedding. They’re the perfect dogs for families with children that are allergic to dog fur.
Lagottos are a fairly low maintenance breed of dog, certainly in terms of grooming. Moreover, their fur only requires brushing and bathing around once a month. However, like most working dogs, they do require a lot of mental stimulation and social interaction to be happy.
Lagottos need at least an hour of physical exercise every day, preferably involving some swimming as that is the thing that makes them the happiest and exercises their deepest natural instincts.
Lagottos are believed to be one of the first breeds of water dogs. This means that all of the more modern water retriever breeds like Golden Retrievers and Poodles are the direct descendants of Lagotto Romagnolos. They’re also the world’s only truffle-hunting breed of dog!
In terms of distinguishing features, Lagottos have waterproof, hypoallergenic coats made up of tight, curly ringlets and very expressive eyebrows.
Lagotto Romagnolos are generally healthy dogs but all breeds are genetically more susceptible to getting certain conditions. Lagottos are more likely to experience certain joint & neurological conditions such as hip dysplasia, luxating patellas, Benign Familial Juvenile Epilepsy, Cerebellar Abiotrophy, and Lagotto Storage Disease. All of these conditions are genetic and the only way to prevent them is to not breed affected dogs.
Lagotto Storage Disease (LSD) is a genetic neurodegenerative condition that exclusively affects Lagotto Romagnolo dogs. It is a progressive condition that only gets worse. Symptoms include loss of coordination, gait abnormalities, abnormal eye movements, restlessness, depression, and aggression. Unfortunately LSD cannot be cured or treated, only monitored until it is time to put affected dogs to sleep.
The average cost of a Lagotto puppy is currently around $1800 – $2500. They’re so expensive because they’re such a rare breed of dog in the US. Their exact price could depend on the commonness of their coat color and the popularity of the breeder.
According to Pets4Homes, owning a Lagotto Romagnolo costs approximately $1400 per year including pet insurance, veterinary bills, food, toys, grooming supplies, and accessories such as collars, leads, and bowls.
Lagotto Romagnolos are lovely dogs with an interesting history. Are you interested in owning or breeding a Lagotto Romagnolo? Let us know what you love about them in the comment section down below!