Overview
The Cane di Oropa takes its name from the sanctuary of Oropa above Biella in north-west Italy, where shepherds have used this medium-sized, shaggy herding dog for generations to drive cattle and sheep between valley and high pasture. It is recognised only within Italy and formal information on it is thin. The look is of a lighter, rougher Bergamasco or a hill collie, often grey, merle or black, with a medium coat and a quick, attentive manner.
What you can rely on is the type. Alpine herding dogs are fast, stamina-rich and bonded to their handler, and they want to move things. Expect a dog that watches you constantly, reads your intentions before you have finished forming them and gets restless with nothing to do.
Exercise and walking needs
Allow an hour and forty minutes a day, with as much mental content as you can build in. A straight walk is only half the job for a dog bred to think on a mountainside.
Hill walks, woodland and rough ground suit the type. A few minutes of direction changes, fetch or a scent search every so often keep the mind occupied.
On the walk
- Eyes on you: A herding dog reads its handler constantly. Use that: calm body language and clear direction get more from this dog than repeated commands.
- Gathering: Running dogs and children trigger the instinct to circle and bunch them. Call the dog in early, before the pattern starts, and give it a job.
- Terrain: Bred for steep, rocky pasture, it is sure-footed and quick. Hills and rough ground suit it better than flat tarmac.
- Lead: Rarely a strong puller. A light harness and a standard lead are enough; save the long line for open ground where recall is still being proven.
Tips for professional walkers
- Stay on lead around sheep and cattle; the urge to work them is exactly what the breed was selected for.
- Change routes often. A dog this quick to learn is also quick to get bored.
- Comb through the coat for burrs and ticks after hill and woodland walks.
- Match it with active, easy-going dogs; nervous dogs resent being rounded up.
What to ask the owner
- Where did the dog come from, and has it worked livestock?
- Does it try to herd children, cyclists or other dogs, and how does the owner interrupt it?
- Which commands does it know, and does it work to a whistle or hand signals?