 There are 2 versions on how the Leonberger breed came into existence. Some historians credit Heinrich Essig - a dog dealer who lived in Leonberg - with creating the breed by crossing Newfoundlands with St. Bernards and Great Pyreneans. Others believe that these dogs have existed in the mountains of Wurtemberg for quite some time and Essig bred those dogs and gave them the name Leonberger.
One of the few indications for 1846 being the year the first Leonbergers came into existence was found in a letter written to a fellow dog breeder: "My dogs which I have bred since 1846 are a successful cross between the Newfoundland and the original dogs from the St Bernard mountain crossed with the big Pyrenean mountain dogs."
Today's Leonberger is a large family companion dog with an excellent temperament and very good with children. Although still a rare breed, the numbers have increased in North America and Canada since 1985.
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