Breed # Portuguese Water Dog The Portuguese Water Dog is a working breed from Portugal, standing males 20–22 in · females 17–20 in at the withers, weighing males 42–60 lb · females 35–50 lb. Recorded lifespan is 10–14 yrs. ![A photograph of the Portuguese Water Dog](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/lg/portuguese-water-dog.webp) Breed group Working Origin Portugal Height males 20–22 in · females 17–20 in Weight males 42–60 lb · females 35–50 lb Lifespan 10–14 yrs Among the 500 breeds here with recorded measurements, the Portuguese Water Dog is taller than 45% of the measured breeds, heavier than 52%, one of 31 in the Working group, one of 10 from Portugal. Compare the Portuguese Water Dog with another breed ## Living with the Portuguese Water Dog Two breed references score every breed they cover from 1 to 5 on the things an owner lives with day to day. These are the Portuguese Water Dog’s, with what a 1 and a 5 mean on each row. Around people and other dogs Affection with family 5 of 5 1 independent · 5 devoted Good with young children 5 of 5 1 not suited · 5 very good Good with other dogs 4 of 5 1 not suited · 5 very good Openness to strangers 4 of 5 1 reserved · 5 everyone is a friend Watchdog / protective nature 4 of 5 1 unbothered · 5 vigilant What they will ask of you Energy 5 of 5 1 couch potato · 5 busy all day Exercise needs 5 of 5 1 a short walk · 5 a job to do Playfulness 5 of 5 1 only when invited · 5 non-stop Barking 3 of 5 1 only to alert · 5 very vocal Around the house Shedding 1 of 5 1 barely · 5 constantly Drooling 2 of 5 1 a dry mouth · 5 keep a towel What they tolerate Tolerates being alone 2 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Tolerates hot weather 3 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Tolerates cold weather 4 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Rated 1 to 5 by the American Kennel Club and DogTime, averaged where both rate the same thing, and read from their breed pages in 2022. Nobody at Woof & Beyond has met this breed — these are the publishers’ judgments, not ours.[Portuguese Water Dog on AKC](https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/portuguese-water-dog/)[Portuguese Water Dog on DogTime](https://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/portuguese-water-dog) ## Breeds that look like the Portuguese Water Dog A neural network trained to tell breeds apart by sight read all 510 photographs in this reference, and these are the 6 it placed closest to the Portuguese Water Dog. - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/black-russian-terrier.webp)Black Russian Terrier](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/black-russian-terrier/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/bouvier-des-flandres.webp)Bouvier des Flandres](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/bouvier-des-flandres/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/barbet.webp)Barbet](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/barbet/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/puli.webp)Puli](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/puli/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/spanish-water-dog.webp)Spanish Water Dog](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/spanish-water-dog/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/cimarron-uruguayo.webp)Cimarrón Uruguayo](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/cimarron-uruguayo/) Side by side Height 0–38 in 1. Portuguese Water Dog20–22 in 2. Black Russian Terrier25–29 in 3. Bouvier des Flandres24–27 in 4. Barbet23–26 in 5. Puli16–17.5 in 6. Spanish Water Dog17–20 in 7. Cimarrón Uruguayo23–24 in Weight 0–220 lb 1. Portuguese Water Dog42–60 lb 2. Black Russian Terrier110–132 lb 3. Bouvier des Flandres77–88 lb 4. Barbet40–59.5 lb 5. Puli25–35 lb 6. Spanish Water Dog40–49 lb 7. Cimarrón Uruguayo94–99 lb Lifespan 0–20 yrs 1. Portuguese Water Dog10–14 yrs 2. Black Russian Terrier10–12 yrs 3. Bouvier des Flandres10–12 yrs 4. Barbet12–14 yrs 5. Puli10–15 yrs 6. Spanish Water Dog12–14 yrs 7. Cimarrón Uruguayo10–14 yrs Nothing here was grouped by hand. The ranking is an opinion about appearance, not about ancestry, which is why it sometimes puts together breeds no kennel club would — and why it is worth looking at the photographs rather than taking the order on trust. See the Portuguese Water Dog on the breed map Read about the Portuguese Water Dog on Wikipedia