| Guicho | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Other names |
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| Origin | Spain | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Distribution | Galicia, principallyOurense andPontevedra[1]: 528 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Dog (domestic dog) | |||||||||||||||||||||
TheGuicho orQuisquelo, alsoCan Guicho, is a traditional Spanishbreed of smallwarren hound from theautonomous community ofGalicia in north-western Spain. It is recognised by theMinisterio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación – the Spanish ministry of agriculture – and by theXunta de Galicia, but not by theReal Sociedad Canina de España.[3][4][5]
It is one of four traditional dog breeds of Galicia, the others being theCan de Palleiro, thePerdigueiro Galego and thePodengo Galego.[6]
The Guicho is a traditional breed ofwarren hound from theautonomous community ofGalicia. It was officially recognised by theXunta de Galicia in April 2001;[4] it received national recognition byroyal decree in May the same year.[3] Astud-book was established at the same time; it is maintained by thebreed society, theClub de Raza do Can Guicho ou Quisquelo.[6]
The Guicho is distributed throughout Galicia, but mainly in theprovinces ofOurense andPontevedra.[1]: 528
Until its recognition in 2001 it was close toextinction. Itsconservation status was described in 2009 as "in danger of extinction", but improving.[1]: 528 A dog census in thecomarcas ofO Deza andTabeirós – Terra de Montes in Pontevedra in 2024 found309 of the dogs, or about 2% of all dogs identified by breed in the census.[7] In 2025 the Guicho was listed by theReal Sociedad Canina de España among the breeds in the process of recovery.[5]
The Guicho is small dog: body weights range from6 to 8 kg for bitches and8 to 10 kg for dogs, and heights at thewithers vary from30 to 38 cm for bitches and34 to 42 cm for dogs; bites are generally rather smaller and more slender than dogs.[2][6][3] The coat may be solid-coloured, ranging from sand-coloured to chocolate or liver; or it may be bi-coloured, tri-coloured orsable.[2]
The Guicho is awarren hound and is used principally for hunting rabbit in the mountains of Galicia. It may also be used to hunt fox, or to detect the presence ofwild boar.[1]: 527