Central Asian Shepherd Dog

The Central Asian Shepherd is probably the result of crosses between the Tibetan Mastiff and the Armenian Gampr. It is a natural breed, whose development is essentially the result of natural selection in its region of origin, which extends from the Caspian Sea to Afghanistan via the Urals. The Central Asian Shepherd Dog was used to protect livestock, caravans and the dwelling of its owner. The Central Asian Shepherd Dog is well represented in the Central Asian republics, but is a rare breed in the rest of Europe. Between 1995 and 2012, 113 subjects were registered in the French stud book, at an average rate of approximately 6 registrations per year. "The art of raising the Turkmen alabay" is inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in December 2025.

The Central Asian Shepherd Dog is described in the FCI standard as confident, calm, balanced, courageous and independent. Wary of strangers, the Central Asian Shepherd Dog is undemanding and adapts to different climatic conditions. It is a rather aggressive and biting dog and training should not exacerbate its characteristics for fear of obtaining an animal that is difficult to control, especially males.

The Central Asian Shepherd Dog is a large dog, of coarse and massive construction. The body is strong, muscular and voluminous but the muscles are not visible. Sexual dimorphism is well defined. The length of the body exceeds the height at the withers only slightly. Set high, the tail is sickle-shaped, carried drooping. It reaches the hock if not docked. The limbs have strong bone structure, parallel and straight. The hind limbs are slightly more spread than the front limbs. The gaits are balanced and elastic. The trot is extended, well propelled by the hindquarters. The head is massive and well proportioned to the whole, almost rectangular in shape. The truncated muzzle is rectangular in shape and very voluminous; it diminishes very little toward the nose. The stop is moderately marked. The nose is black in black dogs, lighter in light-coated dogs. Medium-sized, the oval-shaped eyes, well spaced, are brown to hazel in color, preferably dark. Medium-sized, the ears are small, drooping, set low, triangular in shape. The ears are traditionally cut very short in countries where legislation allows it. The coat is abundant, coarse, straight with well-developed undercoat. On the head and anterior surface of the limbs, the coat is shorter. It is often longer than the withers. Two varieties of coat lengths exist: long coat and short coat. 7 to 8 cm long, the long coat forms a mane on the neck, fringes behind the ears, on the posterior surfaces of the limbs and on the tail. 3 to 5 cm long, the short coat is smooth. All coat colors are accepted except blue, brown and the presence of a black coat on a fawn color.