Lapphunds

Swedish Lapphund
COUNTRY: Sweden
WEIGHT: 44 pounds
HEIGHT: 17V2-19V2 inches
COAT: Long, thick stand-off, with heavy underwool, and fringing on leg backs, belly and tail
COLOR: Black or liver, usually solid but sometimes with symmetrical white marks
OTHER NAMES: Lapplandska Spetz, Swedish Lapp Spitz
GROUP: Northern

Finnish Lapphund
COUNTRY: Finland
HEIGHT: 1&-20V2 inches
COAT: Long, thick, stand-off; heavy underwool, and fringing on leg backs, belly and tail
COLOR: Any color, as long as the color dominates, and any white markings are small and symmetrical
OTHER NAMES: Lapinkoira
GROUP: Northern

These two breeds are almost identical, although the FCI recognizes both, and the Swedish and Finnish Kennel Clubs each recognize their own breed as distinct. The standard for the Finnish variety allows for a slightly larger size, although recent correspondence from Finland states that most dogs are in the smaller range and there is thought of changing the standard.
Part of the confusion lies with the Lapp people. They are an old group native to the Arctic Circle, and the area they populated has always been known as Lapland, although never comprising a separate country. The area called Lapland actually includes parts of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland and even northwest Russia. Thus, any dogs developed by the Lapps were named for them; those brought south into Sweden were called Swedish Lapphunds, and the ones coming into Finland became the Finnish Lapphund. Lapland is not far from the area of the Samoyede people in central Siberia, and the Lapland herding breeds bear much resemblance to the Samoyed dog.

The Lapphunds are natural herders of the ancient Nordic spitz type. Although much of reindeer herding has disappeared over the centuries, the dogs have adapted to work with sheep and cattle. Lapphunds were first brought to Finland from Pello in Lapland in the 1930s. These dogs were later bred with the longhaired Karelian Bear Dog, creating a breed called the CockhilTs Finnish Lapphound. When the Finnish Kennel Club decided to separate the Lapphound and the Lapponian Herder, the Cockhill variety was abolished, and breeders looked to Lapland to restore the original type.
Because of their moderate size and their courageous, affectionate nature, they make fine house pets that are natural alarm dogs. They have the longer coat and look very much like the German Spitz (i.e., Keeshond) as well as the Samoyed. Although the standards allow Irish white markings, self-colored dogs seem to predominate. The heavily plumed tail is carried up on the back.

The Finnish Kennel Club is concerned about preserving this breed, and notes particularly that breeding programs must emphasize the differences between the Lapinkoira and the Lapi-nporokoira. The Lapinporokoira (or Lapponian Herder) is larger, shorter coated, and has a body that is longer than tall. To keep the modern breeds distinct, the emphasis is on breeding Lapphunds that are moderate in size, nearly square-bodied, and long-coated.