It’s not as bad as asking a woman when her baby is due only to learn that she’s not pregnant, but it’s still frustrating when people misidentify your breed. It’s worse when after being corrected, people dig in their heels and insist that you’re wrong. To use the vernacular: Like you wouldn’t know your own dog’s breed?
We tend to be more forgiving when the breeds are uncommon or rare, such as the Leonberger and Estrela Mountain Dog. The public doesn’t see much of either, let alone together to learn their distinctions, and that’s why we’re going to coach you. Mind you, we’re not going to deep dive into differences that you can’t discern without going over the dog. We’re hoping to give you a quickie “cheat sheet” that might help you identify the breed from afar.
The dogs in the photo below are both big dogs. They both have dark masks, bushy tails, and similar coloring. So which is which?
The dog on the left is a Leonberger, the dog at the right is an Estrela Mountain Dog (pronounced es-treh-lah). You’ll have to work with us a bit because the dogs in the image were photographed from different distances and heights.
We start with the most obvious: Leos are taller and heavier. They can grow four inches higher than the Estrela Mountain Dog, and weigh up to 60 pounds more.
The Leonberger’s skull is rectangular shaped, the EMD’s head is rounded. And then there’s the mask. A Leonberger will always have a black mask, while an EMD may have one, but not always.
A Leo’s tail hangs straight down and may have a curve at the end, but an EMD’s tail is scimitar shaped and always has a “hook” at the end.
And finally, color. An Estrela Mountain dog may be Wolf Grey or Brindle, a Leonberger will be lion-yellow, golden to red and red-brown, or sand colored. Bear in mind, too, that there are two varieties of coat in the Estrala: Long and short.
If you’re lucky enough to meet these dogs, remember that the Leonberger originated from Germany and will bark with a German accent. Estrela Mountain Dog are from Portugal, so they’ll bark in Portuguese. Cue to laugh. This is us kidding.
We’re not kidding, however, when we invite owners of these breeds to share with us other differences between these two fabulous breeds.
Photos from Wikicommons
The Leo has ears that hang down flat in front while the Estrela has helicopter ears, and also holds them back alongside the head. The leo has a much larger snout than the Estrela. Similarities are that they both have the distinctive Chevron shaped black patch on the upper part of their tail.
This is so helpful, Carol, thank you!
Excellent, but are they not the same ‘breed’? only DNA can tell, right? I have a Whippet (pet bred, rescue) who is as large as a small greyhound. & can you tell s Shih Tzu from a Lhasa—especially those which are not show quality? How about a Black Russian Terrier from a Giant Schnauzer? I know the differences between Salukis & Afghan Hounds, but honestly, with so many , you can’t tell. & —if they started out as the ‘same’ breed…
Their DNA is different: The Leonberger dog breed is a relatively modern mix of the Newfoundland, longhaired Saint Bernard, and Great Pyrenees. The EMD is one of the oldest breeds in the Iberian Peninsula, coming from a very remote area in Portugal & they have been there for centuries.
It’s the ears, indeed! If you look at an Estrela from. the back, theres no mistaking the breed, with that funny fold in the ears, even if the coloring is very similar to that of the Leonberger.