It was bred in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries for sheep-herding work in the Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region of the southern part of Chilean Patagonia.

[1] It has a long rough coat and is well adapted to the harsh climate of the area.

[2] The Patagonian Sheepdog was bred in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries for sheep-herding work in the Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region of the southern part of Chilean Patagonia.

It derives from European working dogs brought to Chile by settlers from Europe;[1] among its ancestors may be the Old Welsh Grey Sheepdog, which could have been brought by Welsh settlers to the Chubut Valley in Argentinian Patagonia.

[3] It is dog of medium stature, with a long thick coat which provides protection from the harsh weather of the Patagonian steppes and mountains.