Portuguese podengo is a primitive hunting dog originating from Portugal. The podengo is the national breed of Portugal and it is still used there for its original purpose - hunting. In Finland, podengos do not hunt but are more than suitable companions for active people. They are allowed to use their original insticts e.g. in lure-coursing competitions and practice. Also the trail is most probably a very suitable hobby for a podengo.
Podengos come in six different packages.. There are two types of coat (smooth and wired) as well as three sizes (small, medium and large). All these varieties are considered as own breeds and are judged in shows separatedly. However, in lure-coursing, podengos are only divided by the size.
The most common variety in Finland, at the moment is the small smooth podengo. Until now, there have been 352 of them registered. According to the Finnish Kennel Union, there are in Finland at the moment approximately 170 small wired and 29 medium wired podengos.
In summer 2007, the first three medium smooth podengos were imported from Portugal to Finland.