Schipperke

Sheepdogs & cattledogs

Small

Median 14.2 y

FCI group 1 · Sheepdogs and Cattledogs (except Swiss Cattledogs) · Derived from the adult weight midpoint (6 kg)

Median survival across 104 UK dogs (VetCompass, McMillan 2024) · half live 11–16 y

A Schipperke is a small breed of dog that is believed to have originated in the 1600s in Flanders. In their home country of Belgium they are considered a small shepherd. DNA research has shown that Schipperkes have a close relationship to the Spitz family of dog breeds.

Confident

Alert

Curious

Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA) · reference ranges from the Kintail breed dataset

Adult weight

Reference

Male

3–9 kg

Female

3–9 kg

2.5

7.5

The breed standard (FCI 83)

Weight for age

Stock data

Male

Female

Expected range

Expected range from the breed's own adult weight, kilograms. Growth reference: Salt et al. 2017, WALTHAM (under 6.5 kg band).

Heat cycles · females

Stock data

First heat

8–12 mo

typical

Interval

180 d

typical

Bleeding

~9 d

typical

Proestrus 9d

Estrus 9d

Diestrus 52d

Anestrus 110d

General figures for dogs, not for this breed — individual cycles vary widely.

Questions people ask

Adult males usually weigh 3–9 kg and females 3–9 kg. Most are close to their full size by around 19 months, though the last little bit of filling out takes longer. Growth reference: Salt et al. 2017, WALTHAM (under 6.5 kg band).

No Schipperke cycle figures are published here yet, so this is general guidance rather than a breed number: most females have a first season somewhere between six and fifteen months, and cycles then settle to roughly every 180 days. Smaller breeds tend to start earlier and larger ones later.

The median is 14.2 y. Median survival across 104 UK dogs (VetCompass, McMillan 2024) · half live 11–16 y. How the later years go comes down to weight, teeth, exercise and regular check-ups far more than to the breed.