Serra da Estrela Mountain Dog Kennel - Portugal

Dog kennel:

The kennel of Fonte Santa, was created to conserve the Serra da Estrela Dog, in the variety of short hair that is in serious danger of extinction. The long-haired variety, being more attractive, became popular, existing magnificent examples scattered all over the world.

The shorthaired Estrela Dog is almost endangered, with the primary objective of this association beeing the recovery of this variety.


Trout nursery:

The trout farm is located near the thermal spring of Fonte Santa. It was created to keep the indigenous species of trout "fario" that can be found in the Serra da Estrela. In addition to the trout "fario" there is also the Rainbow Trout, a species introduced by man and which is intended mainly for sale, although it is also used for restocking the ponds of the Serra da Estrela.

In this nursery we can also find a type of trout that quickly becomes a tourist attraction. It is the Albino trout having a color of pure white scales, having only a small visible evidence of a red stripe on the flanks. These are of the Rainbow species and have a genetic problem that prevents them from producing pigmentation. This type of trout is very rare to survive in the wild, because due to the impossibility of camouflage is an easy target for predators.