Breeding Kangal Dogs in America

Breeders associated with the KDCA have bred Kangal Dogs in the USA for more than ten years. This has given us ample time to determine that the Kangal Dog breeds true to type and to the United Kennel Club (UKC) Breed Standard for the breed.
Pictured left with their owner, Judy Nelson, is a brace of Kangal Dogs bred in the United States. Pictured below is "Kurt," a young Kangal Dog owned by Karen and Ken Wolf. These Kangal Dogs illustrate the typical color and markings of the purebred Kangal Dogs found in Turkey.
Purebred Kangal Dog stock does not produce white dogs, pinto or skewbald dogs, brindle dogs, or dogs of indeterminate colors. The head colors are free of white markings and conform to the classic black face called "karabash" in the Turkish language. They are short coated. They look like the dogs pictured on these web pages. The process used to prove the foregoing is called progeny testing.
Progeny testing is basically a process of validating field observations and the genetic characteristics of any given breed stud book by evaluating successive generations of these dogs to determine if they breed true to type; i.e., that a standard morphology, temperament, and color are consistently reproduced over time and combine to become the phenotype for the breed. Progeny testing may also be used to modify or even redefine a preconceived phenotype.

What we have discovered is simple: the Kangal Dog of Turkey breeds "true to type." Our standard for type, and basis upon which the breed standard was established, are the average morphologies of the dogs from the Sivas-Kangal Region which we and the Turks have observed over the years. The remarkable homogeneity among the sheepdogs in the Sivas-Kangal Region may be explained by the fact that the Turkish people have been breeding to this Breed Standard for many yearseither deliberately or influenced by other exterior factors, such as geomorphology and locationbefore any foreigners; i.e., non-Turks, became interested in the Kangal Dog.
Kangal Dogs are dispersed all over the United States and are valued guardians of livestock as well as companions in the American home. We have sufficient numbers and diverse bloodlines to continue breeding Kangal Dogs in the United States without further imports from Turkey. We do, of course, desire to continue to import purebred Kangal Dogs from Turkey. We value and appreciate the help of Turkish government officials who facilitate this process.