Belgian Tervuren

In the United States this dog is known simply as the Belgian Tervuren and is considered as a individual breed in its own right. In some other countries it is viewed as no more than a variety and is lumped together with the Groenendael, the Malinois and the Laekenois as a single breed, called collectively the Belgian Sheepdog, the Belgische Herdershond or the Belgischer Schaferhund. This breed was named after the Belgian town of Tervuren, at the centre of the region where it originated. It has been employed for centuries as a Belgian sheep-herder, but is today more likely to be encountered in the show-ring.

The Belgian Tervuren is a long-haired version of the Belgian Sheepdog with black-tipped, fawn hair and a black face-mask. The man who originally fostered this breed was a Monsieur M. F. Corbeel from the town of Tervuren. He owned the base pair, who were called Tom and Poes.

The first examples of this breed to appear in the United States arrived there in the 1940s, and the first litter to be born on American soil made their debut in 1954.

Like the other three breeds of Belgian Sheepdog, this one is vigilant, brave, agile, alert, trainable and hard-working. In recent years it has been employed as a police dog, a drug-sniffing customs dog, a security dog, and a guide dog for the blind.