The legend says that one day Allah met the Central Asian and told him: "You will be the friend of man until the end of your days, both in happiness and in sorrow, and you will have to guard his home and his animals". Still nowadays in Turkmenistan at the birth of puppies the shepherds look for the one with a stain on its head and they say: "Allah sent it to us". The history of this breed is very ancient, probably dating back to the 4th Century b.C.. In the ancient city of Altin-Depe (end of the 3rd Century b.C.) they found terracotta sculptures of dogs with docked ears and tail. The surface of silver cups dating back to that time, found in the North of Afghanistan, portray figures of such dogs as well.
	The most valuable version about the origins of the Central Asians is of course the one considering them to be descendants of the mythic Tibetan Molosser, father to all the molossers, but, like they use to say in Turkmenistan, "Only Allah knows the truth about the origins of the Central Asian Shepherd Dog". It's a sure thing that this breed maintained through the centuries its original characteristics. That's due to the fact that this is one of the very few dog breeds that hasn't been manipulated by man yet for human aims strictly connected to its original function. The boundless plains of Central Asia, in a territory that today geographically includes the states of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kirgizistan, up to the severe mountains of Pamir, as far as the frontiers to Afghanistan and China: these are the lands of origin of the Central Asian Shepherd Dog.
The Turkmenian standard describes the Central Asian as a massive headed breed, but at the same time with gentle lines of the skull, docked ears, round eyes, big and strong teeth with scissor or tong bite. The thorax is wide and deep, the back is stout and the limbs, which are to be parallel, must give the impression of a strong and self-confident animal. The average height is 70-75 cm in males and 65-70 cm in females.
	The tail is set high, docked. The temperament of the Central Asian is calm and well balanced. It is very distrustful of strangers, above all in the absence of its owner. It is very affectionate towards its owner and towards all the members of its family. The great temperament equilibrium of this dog allows it always to take the right decisions, in any kind of situation. Also when on the leash the Central Asian behaves calmly, it willingly accepts to encounter other dogs and the nearness of other dogs, towards which it is never aggressive. Nevertheless, if provoked, it is capable of instantaneous and particularly violent reactions. The bio-structural and temperament features of the Central Asian allow to employ it in a great variety of aims.
In 1990 in Turkmenistan this breed was declared "National Patrimony". In their places of origin these dogs have two main functions: they are used as shepherd dogs and they guard both flocks and their owners' goods. The function of defender is especially advanced in a habitat where wolves, bears and, last but not least, leopards are still mortal animals of prey. That's why puppies have their ears and tails docked at a few days of age by the shepherd using a knife on a stone, while the mother stops their leakage of blood licking the small wounds after the operation. The fighting school starts very soon. Puppies always try to bite the forelegs of their challengers when they play, so they prepare themselves to fight against the wolves in the future.
	With the purpose to maintain their dogs in good shape Turkmenian shepherds organize dog-fighting meetings. In those wild places dog-fighting constitutes a real test for selecting breed reproducers. It is superfluous to say that shepherd dogs need great courage to face wolves and bears, structurally and temperamentally weak dogs will never be able to fight against wolves. The Central Asian is spread in a huge territory and its structural differences, depending on the regions, are quite noticeable. So Turkmenian dogs are lighter than their brothers living on the mountains of Kirgizistan. It is necessary to be lighter to walk on the sand. On the Celestial Mountains, motherland of those people that the Soviets themselves were never able to rule, wolves are bigger, so shepherd dogs are bigger than their brothers coming from the desert. The Central Asian is a dog of great rusticity and it is more long-lived than many other molossers.
Probably just because of the great balance of its temperament, which brings it to accept also strangers when in the presence of its owner, this breed is more indicated for all the people who don't want a dog always aggressive towards people and/or animals. Employed for centuries in hard tasks, in often prohibitive climatic conditions, the Central Asian Shepherd Dog developed such a high level of resistance and strength that can find a very few competitors in the entire canine world, therefore becoming for those populations "The breed of the real Knights from the East".

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