General Features:
Kangal is known to be one of the most well-known, livestock guardian dogs in Turkey. A Kangal can chase a wolf for miles in order to repel attack and neutralize it, which is a distinguishing characteristic of Kangals, known worldwide and make them to be prefered for livestock protection. Kangals are vigilant, always alert and they possess high levels of intelligence, courage and power to secure the herd of livestock against predators. Kangals mainly come from the sub-province Kangal, located in the city of Sivas, Turkey; mainly found in the plateaus, some are also located in the northern part of Central Anatolia to Marmara region. In addition, Kangals are adopted as family dogs in many countries around the world due to their kind, tolerant attitudes towards children and their territorial nature. Kangals are intuitive and are suitable for working all day in the fields. They are not to be kept on a chain or work under command of humans since they’re free spirited dogs.
Physical Characteristics:
Eyes are slanted and have distintive eye-sockets. Eye color ranges from amber (honey-coloured) to black. Tip of the nose is black. Face is looked square shaped when viewed from front and it gets thinner towards tip of the nose. The stop on the face is slightly apparent. The spiral tail is common. The coat is attached to body firmly and has bilayer structure. The hair length changes depending the seasons. The hair color varies from light cream to dark steel-gray; besides, brindle, red and black color tones could be seen as well. The cheeks dangle down till the upper lip covers the lower lip. Kangals usually have kohl eyes and arc-shaped line on eye brows that give them a vivid and royal look. The posture of neck and skyline intersects with 45 degree angle.
Size:
Shoulder length for adult males are between 78-80 cm and weight are 55-65 kg. Shoulder length of 85 cm and weight of 75 kg are also seen. As for adult females, the shoulder length are between 65-75 cm and weight are 50 -60 kg. The shoulder length of 80 cm and weight of 65 kg are also seen for females.
