What we appoint as "political borders" for dividing countries, are not absolutely the same borders for the animals!!!. Borders of countries can change many times, but the native animals of these lands can be left in their own areas. As we know at the old times, all of modern day Turkey was part of the Persian Empire. Hundreds of years later, when the Ottomans tribes (or the early settlers of the Turkey of today) past from Iran to this country, they took with them hounds and shepherd dogs. That's why we can find resembling dogs of Turkey in west of Iran. These dogs may have their origins in ancient Iran from the area that later become Turkey of today.

Gammal (Kangal):

According to some evidences, Kangal dogs (an active working breed used to guard sheep and livestock) are found throughout Kurdistan and Azarbaijan of Iran.

In the book "Shahsavan" (by Parviz Tanavoli - p. 16) we can find that many Tribes in the mid-15th century migrated from Ottoman Territory and west of Turkey to Iran. Among them Rumlus from Sivas. They forced by Timur to move into Iran and settled in Ardebil. This fact shows one of the original roots of the Turkish breeds in Iran.

Bijan Eliasi, an Iranian Kurd and a researcher of "Gammal dogs" have seen these dogs, personally, from Kermanshah all the way to Rezaieh, just about everywhere in Kurdistan of Iran. Kurdish people beleive that Kangal dog is a native breed from the Kangal town (about 80 km south of Sivas) in northwest Kurdistan in Turkey and this breed of dog has been living among the Kurds for thousands of years. The Kurdish name on the breed is Gammal.

These 3 dogs that seems like Kangal (or Kanjal Owtcharka) dogs are from Azarbaijan of Iran

On the other hand, Turkish recognize the Kangal Dog as a native dogs of Turkey, which is a very specific regional breed of shepherd's dog that is found just in and around the Sivas region of modern Turkey. In this case that these dogs can be find in Iran, they say:

"If we imagine a circle around Sivas with a radius of 100 miles or so, that's the area where we'll find purebred Kangal Dogs. As we get farther from the Sivas-Kangal center, the dogs begin to be less and less pure. Iran is very far east, beyond Lake Van. The dogs will look less and less like Kangal Dogs and more like CAOs and COs as you approach the Iranian/Armenian borders. And just because a dog is the same color as these dogs, it does not mean they are a Kangal Dog".
I found an Interesting e-mail text about Kangal/Gammal dogs in Iran, somewhere in Internet. This letter is by Dariush Zangana on Sunday, June 20, 1999: "As a child born in the Iranian Kurdistan, I grew up with several Gammal/Kangal dogs. In fact the ones I had were big enough for a six-year old (that I were), to ride on their back! The poor lovely devils were always happy to indulge me. Since I moved to the US as a young teenager, I never saw another dog like my old Gammal. I lived 900 miles away from Kangal, on the opposite end of Kurdistan, and still, that was the dog we most commonly had."
It is also interesting that one of the three main types of Caucasian Owtcharka (the Azarbaijan type), is called Kanjal. These dogs are very similar to the Kangal and always have a black mask. Their colour is fawn or red colour. The color of the Kangal Dog is always dun to steel grey with a black mask (Karabash) and always short coat.

Other recognized names: Kangal, Gammal, Karabash

Dispersion: In Kurdistan and Azarbaijan of Iran

Primary report: 1979

Last report: 2004

Present Situation: Unknown

In Kayseri province (southeast of Sivas) in Turkey, there is another breed of shepherd dog (sage choopan) that are pure white, and called Akbash. But they are now becoming very scarce indeed and it is hard to find purebred dogs even in their homeland.

In this attached photo below we can see a very similar white dog (but not so pure) from Bukan town, in northwest of Iran.

Akbash's native area in Turkey is so far from Iran too, but as we said before the roots of Turkish-Iranian dogs have so much in common.

• Iranian name: ?
• Dispersion: In Kurdistan of Iran
• Primary report: --
• Last report: 1996
• Present Situation: Unknow