The Leonberger: A Complete and Comprehensive Owners Guide to: Buying, Owning, Health, Grooming, Training, Obedience, Understanding and

The breed is also commonly known as the 'Gentle Giant, ' the 'Gentle Lion, ' and as simply the 'Leo.' The Leonberger's name is derived from the city of Leonberg which is in the Baden-Wurttemberg region of Germany. The Leonberger is believed to have come into existence in the mid-1850s when a Landseer Newfoundland was mixed with a Saint Bernard, and later a Pyrenean Mountain Dog. Traditionally the Leonberger has a long white coat, which was considered very fashionable at the time. The modern Leonberger has a much darker coat and will usually have a black mask covering most of its face and muzzle. The breed's numbers suffered dramatically during World War I and World War II as most of the Leonberger breeders were killed, fled Germany or enrolled in the military. During the World Wars, the Leonberger was mainly used to pull carts full of ammunition to and from the front line. Traditionally the Leonberger breed was