The Portuguese Water Dog has two types of cost - one longish and wavy with loose curls and the other shorter, thicker and with more compact curls. The breed originates from the 1500's in Portugal where the breed was valued by fishermen for retrieving items from the sea and for carrying messages from boat to boat. In the 1960's there were as few as 50 dogs but it is now much more widespread. The Portuguese Water Dog is also known as the Cao de Agua.