American Eskimo Dog

The American Eskimo Dog is a white companion spitz from the American Midwest, and its name is a piece of history rather than a description.

History

It descends from the German Spitz brought to the United States by German immigrants, and was known as exactly that until anti-German feeling during the First World War prompted the rename — nothing about the breed is Inuit or Arctic. It became a circus dog in the 1920s, and the trick-performing white spitz of American travelling shows is where much of its early public reputation came from.

Temperament

The breed is known for being bright, alert and highly trainable, devoted to its family, wary of strangers and inclined to bark about them.

Care and training

It needs regular exercise and real mental work, and it learns quickly enough to get bored quickly. The barking needs shaping early. The thick white double coat sheds heavily and needs regular brushing.

Health

Known tendencies include progressive retinal atrophy, patellar luxation and hip dysplasia. These are patterns for the breed rather than a forecast for one dog; the measured facts are in the panel.