The Bouvier des Flandres is a herding dog originating in Flanders. They were originally used for general farm work including cattle droving, sheep herding, and cart pulling, Today Bouviers are used as guard dogs and police dogs, as well as being kept as pets. The French name of the breed means, literally, "Herder of Flanders", referring to the Flemish origin of the breed. Other names for the breed are Toucheur de Boeuf (cattle driver) and Vuilbaard (dirty beard).
The monks at the Ter Duinen monastery, in Flanders, were the Bouvier's first official breeders. The Bouvier was created by breeding imports such as Irish wolfhounds with local farm dogs, until a breed considered to be the predecessor of the modern Bouvier was obtained. This became a working dog able to perform tirelessly, herding and guarding cattle and even pulling cargo carts, thanks to its strength and temperament, and to withstand the local weather conditions due to its double coat .World War I nearly disappeared altogether, due to the devastation in its region of origin. Nic de Sottegen, considered to be of ideal type was one of the main dogs used to revive the breed after WW I and is considered to be the founder of the current Bouvier des Flandres breed in Belgium. A unified Bouvier des Flandres standard was created in 1936 by a joint French-Belgian committee. However, once again the breed's existence was endangered by World War II. Due to these setbacks, progress was slowed, and it was not until 1965 that the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) adopted the current breed standard.
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