The Portuguese Water Dog club of Ireland was formed by Portie lovers and is affiliated with The Irish Kennel Club since 2010. Our aim is to preserve and protect this wonderful breed with responsible ownership and breeding.
Membership Form
Please download our Membership Form and Code of Ethics. As a club member you benefit from a range of services designed to keep you informed, make new friends, have fun with your PWD and help benefit the breed we love so much!
As Portuguese water dogs are lively outgoing characters with a coat that needs a great deal of care.
Its attractive, playful appearance often belies its true character, a true working dog, tough and independent at times. The PWD is a strong, robust, medium-sized, agile dog with the stamina and endurance to do a full day's work. The PWD is not successful as a kennel dog. It is a people-oriented dog and requires prolonged daily human interaction for proper personality development and as it has a coat with no undercoat, it does not have the required natural insulation to survive in an unheated kennel in extreme weather.
This is a breed with a small gene pool worldwide, therefore all prospective owners should take note:
(a) Puppies will more than likely be sold with an endorsement and breeding restrictions.
(b) Would be owners should try and educate themselves on health issues and ask breeders to prove they have carried out all the relevant tests needed for healthy, sound Portuguese Water Dogs ie PRA, Hip Scoring for HD etc
Portuguese Water Dogs require an owner that is active and involved or they will soon be running the household and getting into mischief. The robustness and high spirits of this fisherman’s dog should be understood as natural exuberance to be channeled and expressed appropriately.
While the PWD is a wonderful family pet, we want to use the increased interest in the breed as an opportunity to educate people about it,” said Stu Freeman, President of the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America (WWW.PWDCA.ORG). “We encourage those who may consider adding a Portuguese Water Dog to their lives to do the proper research to ensure that this breed fits their lifestyle.”
Please contact info@pwdci.com for more information about the Portuguese Water Dog Club of Ireland or if you have any porties queries that we can help you with.