he Illyrian Sheepdog (in Albanian: Deltari Ilir, Qeni i Sharrit, meaning Illyrian Dog or Dog of Sharr; Macedonian: Шарпланинец; Serbian Cyrillic: Шарпланинац, literal translation: [Dog] of the Šar Mountains or Šar Mountain Dog, also known as Sharplaninac/Sharplaninec or Yugoslav Shepherd Dog-Šarplanina[3][4][5]) is a dog breed of the livestock guardian type originally from the border area between Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania (the Sharr mountains).
The Illyrian Sheepdog is a large, strongly built dog. The body is slightly longer than the height at the withers, and the front legs account for approximately 55% of the height. The head is large but proportional to the body, with dark eyes.
Size
The Illyrian Sheepdog is a robust, well proportioned dog with plenty of bone, of a size that is well above the average and with a thick, long, rather coarse coat that emphasizes the short coupled appearance. According to the FCI breed standard males should weigh between 35 and 45 kilograms (77 and 99 lb) with females slightly smaller at around 30–40 kilograms (66–88 lb).[3] The average height is quoted as 62 centimeters (24 in) for males with females at 58 centimeters (23 in).[3]
