Schapendoes
Sharp, energetic, devoted and quick to learn. From Netherlands.
Herdingmedium breedNetherlandsStandards checked
Standards checked: this profile's facts are checked against the breed standards of the AKC, The Kennel Club and the FCI, as described on our methodology page.
Gallery
Real photos from licensed sources only, each credited to its creator.
Photos show different individual dogs from licensed libraries, not one dog growing up. Stage labels are approximate, the way a careful editor would judge them.
About the Schapendoes
From Netherlands, the Schapendoes is a medium sized herding breed whose traditional work was to move sheep and cattle with eye, bark and body, working all day beside the shepherd or farmer. This is a thinking dog's breed: channel the brain with training and sport or it will herd the children, the cats and the furniture.
History
For the people of the Netherlands, the Schapendoes was the local answer to a practical need: a dog to move sheep and cattle with eye, bark and body, working all day beside the shepherd or farmer. The FCI recognizes the breed, and its standard is the reference used across most of the world. Long, dense double coat with a slight wave, harsh in texture, with a beard, moustache and eyebrows giving a tousled look. The adult stands 16 to 20 in at the shoulder and weighs 26 to 55 lb.
Personality
Sharp, energetic, devoted and quick to learn is the record's Schapendoes, the Dutch does: a shaggy, spring heeled sheepdog of the Netherlands, bred to work heathland flocks with agility and joy, leaping ditches and sheep alike. Schapendoes are clever, cheerful and intensely bonded, with a comedian's timing over a herder's brain. This is a thinking dog's breed, per the overview, and it thinks at a bounce. Puppies are fluffy, bright charmers; adults are keen, funny partners that supervise the household completely. Owners describe a dog made of springs and devotion, in a coat that starts every conversation.
Temperament and traits
Energy (5/5)
Trainability (5/5)
Grooming needs (3/5)
Shedding (3/5)
Barking (4/5)
Good with children: Good with children
With other dogs: Usually good with dogs
With strangers: Reserved with strangers
Apartment life: Not ideal
Coat and care
Coat: Long, dense double coat with a slight wave, harsh in texture, with a beard, moustache and eyebrows giving a tousled look. It sheds little but needs a thorough brush every week.
Colors: The standard accepts a range of colors and patterns, and individual markings vary a lot.
Measure meals rather than free feeding; this breed does best on a routine of consistent meals, training in short sessions and daily exercise matched to its type. Brush weekly and check ears, teeth and nails as part of the routine. Mental work matters as much as miles: ten minutes of training tires a herding dog more honestly than an hour of aimless walking.
Exercise and grooming
Exercise
An hour is a floor and the record's range runs to two: the Schapendoes is the Dutch sheepdog, a tireless, springy herder of the heathlands, famous for leaping and running across the flock, and it needs real exercise and real jobs daily. Brisk walks, free running, herding, agility and training fill the programme, and this notably agile athlete excels at sports. Mental work matters as much as miles, per the care notes. This is a thinking dog's breed, per the overview: channel the brain or it will herd the children, the cats and the furniture. Puppies build up gradually. A worked Schapendoes is a cheerful, devoted companion; an idle one is a shaggy little manager.
Grooming
Brush weekly and check ears, teeth and nails as part of the routine, per the care notes, combing through the long, shaggy double coat so it does not felt under the top layer: sessions in sections, down to the skin, with extra attention behind ears and in the furnishings. Many pet Schapendoes wear a shorter clip that keeps the character and cuts the hours. The beard needs washing, ears need checks under the hair, nails need trims and teeth benefit from brushing. Puppies need grooming habituation from the first weeks: coat care is a weekly partnership for the dog's whole life.
Training and daily life
Training
With a train score at the top of this site's scale, the Schapendoes is an outstanding pupil: quick to learn, eager to work and handler devoted, excelling at herding, agility, flyball and obedience. Reward based structure with variety is the method, and this agile brain needs the variety. The priorities are a quiet cue, recall, a settle, lead manners, jumping enthusiasm channelled to sports, and cooperative care for the coat. Harsh methods damage a sensitive dog's confidence; warmth, clarity and interesting work build the partnership. Owners describe employing a very cheerful, very springy colleague.
Living with a Schapendoes
The Schapendoes suits active, experienced households that want a shaggy Dutch herder with springs: sharp, energetic and devoted in the record's ratings, good with children, usually good with other dogs and reserved with strangers until introduced, it rates apartments as not ideal because exercise, brain and coat all push outward. Expect devotion, bouncing, commentary and a dog that manages the household like a small Dutch farm. Owners describe a hidden gem of the herding group: a dog saved from near extinction after the war, now treasured as a funny, tireless, entirely devoted companion.
What a Schapendoes costs
Food cost
About $28 per month for a typical 40 lb adult eating roughly 2.6 cups a day of a standard quality food ($1.60 per lb). Full breakdown in our food expense calculator.
Activity and exercise
Plan 60 to 120 minutes a day of walks, play and training. Under exercised dogs of most breeds invent their own projects, and they rarely pick good ones.
Insurance cost
Typical US range $34 to $61 per month for accident and illness cover. Estimate only, based on market ranges for this breed's risk profile; see the insurance estimator and the insurance guide.
On the monthly figures above, a typical adult year runs to about $333 for food and $408 to $732 for insurance, before routine vet care, grooming and gear. Year one costs more: vaccinations, spay or neuter surgery, a crate, bedding and training all land at once.
Growth: puppy to senior
How weight typically builds with age for a medium breed, and when full size arrives.
| Stage | Age | Typical weight |
|---|---|---|
| Puppy | 8 weeks | about 4 to 8 lb |
| Puppy | 4 months | about 8 to 18 lb |
| Young | 6 months | about 14 to 29 lb |
| Young | 9 months | about 19 to 41 lb |
| Adult | 12 months | about 23 to 48 lb |
| Adult | 18 months | about 26 to 55 lb |
| Adult | Full grown | 26 to 55 lb (standard range) |
| Senior | From about 8 years | Healthy weight stays in the adult range; watch for slow gain or loss |
Growth pattern follows the size class growth curves published by the Waltham Petcare Science Institute, applied to the adult weight range in the breed standard. Individual puppies vary; steady growth matters more than hitting any single number, and your vet's growth checks come first.
Life stages
Puppies need socialisation, grooming habituation for a lifetime coat, protected joints while growing and training foundations laid early. Adolescents are busy, bouncy and clever, and structured sport carries the household through. Adults enjoy a long, vigorous prime: keep the coat worked through, weight lean and the jobs coming. The record's span runs eleven to fourteen years, so senior status arrives around nine to ten: twice yearly checks with hip and eye awareness, joint friendly exercise and continued light duties. Old Schapendoes stay devoted, funny and supervisory, bouncing at a kinder tempo.
Health
Hip screening and eye checks are the core of responsible breeding in herding breeds, and several herding lines also DNA test for drug sensitivity (MDR1) and hereditary eye conditions. Ask the breeder what their lines are tested for.
Conditions to know about
- Hip dysplasia: Hip screening is core to responsible breeding in herding breeds, per the record. Ask for scores in writing, and keep this springy athlete lean and well muscled.
- Eye conditions: Eye checks complete the core panel named in the record. Ask for current certificates for both parents.
- MDR1 drug sensitivity (DNA test): Several herding lines also DNA test for drug sensitivity (MDR1) and hereditary eye conditions, per the record. Ask the breeder what their lines are tested for, and make sure any MDR1 status reaches your vet's file.
Facts follow the Schapendoes breed standard (AKC, The Kennel Club and FCI standards agree on the essentials for this breed). Health notes summarize the conditions breed clubs and veterinary bodies most often flag for this breed. They are general information for choosing and caring, not a diagnosis or a substitute for your vet.
Gear for Schapendoes owners
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Schapendoes questions
How long do Schapendoess live?
A typical lifespan is 11 to 14 years. Weight control, dental care and screening for the breed's known conditions give a dog the best chance of reaching the top of that range.
How much does it cost to keep a Schapendoes?
Food for a typical adult runs about $28 a month at a standard quality tier, and accident and illness insurance usually falls between $34 and $61 a month in the US. Try the full cost calculator for a complete year one and yearly picture.
Are Schapendoess good with children?
Good with children. As with every breed, supervise dogs and children together and teach children to respect the dog's space.
How much exercise does a Schapendoes need?
Plan on 60 to 120 minutes a day, split between walks, play and training games. Puppies and seniors need gentler, shorter sessions.
How do you pronounce Schapendoes?
Skah-pen-doos, roughly: Dutch for sheep dog, in the dialect of its home region. Owners abroad mostly say it with confidence and let the dog correct nobody.
Schapendoes or Bearded Collie, what is the difference?
Shaggy herding cousins: the Schapendoes is the smaller, lighter, springier Dutch dog. The Beardie is the bigger Scottish original. Both need coat care, work and company in serious quantities.
Are Schapendoes good family dogs?
Yes, for active families: sharp, devoted and cheerful, good with children. The exercise, brain work and coat care are all real, and the dog is genuinely happiest employed.
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