- Fawn, fawn with dark overlay, fawn brindle and grey which generally remains dark.
- Permissible: Without any large white patches (a slight white mark on the forechest and the end of the feet)
About the Picardy Sheepdog
Origin: FrancePicardy Sheepdog
- FCI status
- Recognised by FCI
- FCI group
- Sheepdogs and Cattledogs (except Swiss Cattledogs)
- Origin
- France
- Also called
- Pastor de Picardia
- Known hereditary risks
- Not researched yet
About
What the breed standard says
- Bred for
- Shepherd and guard dog
- Behaviour and temperament
“The Picardy Sheepdog is even tempered. It is neither aggressive, shy nor nervous. It should be both obedient and fearless. These qualities enable it to easily accomplish its work which consists of driving and protecting flocks of sheep. It is also a very good guard for the home and an excellent family dog who enjoys close contact with children”
Quoted from FCI standard n°176. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Characteristics
- Size
- —
- Exercise needs
- —
- Easy to train
- —
- Amount of shedding
- 4 of 5
- Grooming needs
- 4 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- Not researched yet
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the Picardy Sheepdog
What you get with the Picardy Sheepdog
- Purpose stated in the standard: “Shepherd and guard dog”
- The standard describes the breed as: “The Picardy Sheepdog is even tempered”
What you are taking on
- High grooming needs — the standard’s own description is “Harsh, semi-long. It should feel crisp when touched.”
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.
Characteristics
FCI standard · Picardy Sheepdog
Coat and colour
As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording, tagged permissible.
Coat
Harsh, semi-long.
It should feel crisp when touched.
Should measure from 5 to 6 cms over the entire body including the tail.
Fine, dense undercoat
Colour
- Preferred
- Permissible
- Undesirable
- Disqualifying
Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FCI’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.
Shortened from FCI standard n°176 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
What the standard penalises
What a judge marks the Picardy Sheepdog down for, and what puts one out of the ring, in the registry’s own words. This describes the breed standard — it is not a checklist for the animal in front of you, and a pet with a disqualifying fault is an unshowable dog rather than an unhealthy one.
Severe faults
Marked heavily against a specimen in the ring.
- Absence of 2 teeth except for PM4 in the lower jaw (PM1 are not taken into consideration).
- Reverse bite without loss of contact of the incisors.
- Eyes very light in colour.
- Tail curled over the back or excessively short.
- Coat which has tendency to curl. Coat too flat; length less than 4 cm or more than 7 cm. Limp or woolly coat.
- Very irregular conformity of limbs; especially, faulty hindquarters, excessively turned-out feet, cow-hocked. DISQUALIRYNG FAULTS:
- Lack of type.
- Overshot or undershot with loss of contact of incisors.
- Absence of 2 PM4 or more than 2 teeth other than PM4 (The PM1 are not taken into consideration).
- Wall eye or light eye tending to yellow.
- Ears not naturally erect.
- Tail: rudimentary or absent.
- Colour: black, white, harlequin or pied; white spreading too much over the forechest, completely white feet, white elsewhere than stated above.
- Height not within the limits of the standard (including tolerance). Heights of 67cms for a male and 62cms for a female can only be tolerated for subjects of exceptional quality
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the Picardy Sheepdog in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
What to ask for in a Picardy Sheepdog
No breed-specific health panel has been written up for the Picardy Sheepdog on this platform yet. That is a gap in our records, not a clean bill of health — ask the breeder which hereditary conditions their lines are tested for, and ask to see the results for both parents, dated and from a named laboratory.
Gallery
No photographs yet
This is where Picardy Sheepdog owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.
A photograph in a pet profile stays private to its owner. We will not put one here unless they ask us to.
Puppies
No puppies listed right now
No Picardy Sheepdog breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.