Puli

Clever, the Puli (poulik in plural), would jump, it is said, on the back of stray sheep to urge them to return to the fold. Despite its appearance with its thick coat, the Puli is very fast, agile and capable of changing direction instantaneously. It is an intelligent dog. It is devoted to its master. Traditionally they are used to guard livestock and herds. They are very protective toward their master and their environment. The Puli can be as amusing, sensitive, determined and self-assured. Lively and mischievous but never servile toward its master, the Puli remains an excellent guardian, it barks and warns of noises and passages. In Hungary, these dogs are used by the police. The main colors of the Puli are black, then white, gray and maszkos fakó ("dull with mask"). In 2011, under the government of Viktor Orbán, a dog tax was adopted in Hungary from which the Puli is exempt on the grounds of being "of Hungarian breed", in the sense of Greater Hungary. The popularity of this dog breed skyrocketed in late 2015 when Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of Facebook, posted several photos of the Puli he had just acquired. This white-haired Puli named Beast has a Facebook account followed by over 2 million people in 2016. A similar but much larger dog, also of Hungarian origin, is the Komondor.