Bracco Italiano

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN Great Britain.

MOST SUITED AS Field sports dog and family pet.

SIZE
The shoulder-height is 58 - 67cm (22 1/2 - 28 1/2in) or dogs and 55 - 62cm (21 1/2 - 24 1/2in) for bitches.

COAT
The Bracco Italiano has a coat of short, dense, and shiny hair. Permitted colours are white; white with large or small patches of orange, amber, or chestnut; and white with light orange or chestnut-brown mottling.

CARE REQUIRED
The coat of this dog does not require much attention. During the moult you can remove dead and loose hairs by grooming with a rubber brush. Keep its ear passages clean.

CHARACTER
This is an equable and compliant dog which is intelligent, has a sense of humour, is thoughtful, gentle-natured, calm in the house, affectionate, and sensitive. They do not grow up mentally until they are two and a half to three years old. They are used as all-round field sports dogs for game birds.

TRAINING
They need to be training with a consistent but gentle approach. They are very sensitive to and react strongly to the sound of your voice. Praise them if they do well. When trained in the right way, they pick things up quickly. Too tough an approach has an adverse effect. It will achieve nothing except for the dog to lose its respect for you. Avoid over-taxing them physically during early growth. In particular limit going up and down stairs and steps.

SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR
Bracco Italianos get along well with other dogs and do not usually cause any difficulties with other household animals. They become close friends with children. They will always go into action at the hint of danger.

EXERCISE
It is important for this breed to get sufficient freedom of movement for exercise. The ideal solution is to own a large garden and to be honest they are not dogs to be kept in a flat. They love to swim and retrieve and once they are physically mature (at about 1 1/2 years), they can begin controlled exercise running alongside a cycle. As hunting dogs, they are considered sound workers with an outstanding scenting ability.