Their magnificent appearance and sense of loyalty have make them an appealing dog around the world. Smart, congenial, and an ideal size. The Keeshond has possibly the most mispronounced name. The proper pronunciation is "cazehawnd"  while the Americanized pronounciation "Keeshond" is acceptable. The plural is Keeshonden, the "en" ending signifies plural in Dutch.  Most Kees fanciers will cringe if you mistakenly pronounce the name with the last syllable as "hound".  The Keeshond was approved by the AKC on July 12, 1949. The Keeshond Club of America was organized int 1935.

They were kown as Wolfspitz(German)_during the 1700's  in Holland, became the symbol of the Patriot Party.  The Patriots failed and many Keeshonden were destroyed to desolve any connection with the failed rebel party.  The breed was revived in the late 1800's wilth the name "Dutch Barge Dog".  The name was officially changed to Keeshond in England in 1926.  The first American litter was bred in 1929 by Carl Hinderer of Baltimore, MD.    The keeshond was never intended to hunt, kill animals or attack criminals accounts for its gentleness and devotion.  Keeshonden were used as watchdogs, good -luck companions and vermin controllers on riverboats, farms and barges.  The Keeshond is a breed descended from the arctic strains which produced  the Samoyed, spitz and Norweign Elk Hound. 

Please do not shave your Kee-zees, it  puts them at risk from the elements, the coat keeps them warm in the winter and cool in the summer.  It is a medium-sized dog with a plush  two-layer coat of silver and black and creme fur and a curled tail. The purpose of the undercoat is to provide a foundation for the outercoat.  Therefore, care should be taken and not be pulled to an excessive degree.  If the undercoat is thinned too much the outercoat will be unable to stand out properly from the body. Some experts recommend that a comb be used rarely on the keeshond and only in shedding season.  The idea is to lift the hair, untangle it and allow it to fluff  out as fully as possible. The Keeshond is a very clean and relatively odor free dog.   They blow tyheir undercoats 2 times per year, very little throughout the year  When they blow their coats they loose typically several grocery bags full.The hair does not mat nor does it attract insects.  Emotion is shown by shaking of the head and making snort-like sounds. The female is 17" and 30 to 40 lbs, the male is 18" and 35 to 45 lbs. 

You should begin serious obedience training before your puppy reaches 7 or 8 months old. These dogs are good with other animals including cats and birds. It is rare to find one that isn't friendly to another animal.  The Keeshond lives between 12 to 15 years which is not nearly long enough once you fall in love with one of them.  Most Keeshond owners feel that they are the perfect dog and will always have a Kees in their life.

Special medical Problems are:

Hip Dysplasia(deformation in the hip joint), Sublluxation of the Patella(slipping of the keecap on the rear legs), Von Willebrand's Disease(hemophilia), Hypothyroidism(allergic skin diseases), Epilepsy(neurological seizure disorder), Hypoparathyroidism(disease of the parathyroid glands, in older dogs), Woolly coat syndrome.

Solid colors are considered to be "very serious faults" according  to AKC standard are not "pet quality" and   some think they should be fixed.  NEO is mostly black, with some white, creme and silver but I love him anyway.