Their work is unique. They used as retrievers, podnosyaschie of fish nets and wash overboard gear and rigging. The popularity of the Portuguese water dogs was so high that sailors, retired, sold them all interested in the areas where there was virtually no dogs. At night they were guarding the boat and net and have shown themselves quite serious watchdogs "Anyway, the functions performed by the Portuguese water dogs are similar to those tasks that faced the dog, St. John's: pulling nets and boats from the water, diving for fish had escaped, pulling out anything that fell into the water, including the drowning people. Yes, and by temperament, and something which features exterior between these two rocks observed similarities. 2) Ancestor Dog St.
John's dogs were the Indians of North America. However, this theory seems unlikely because, according to archaeological studies, these dogs were shpitseobraznogo type with small ears, a curved back tail, wedge-shaped head and a sharp snout. 3) Ancestral Dog St. John's Newfoundland to the island brought the Vikings. There is a theory that the formation of rocks in Newfoundland was part dog of the ancient Scandinavians, who arrived there for a thousand years before our era, and the dogs Basques, who lived on the Peninsula Labrador from 1500's through the 1700-ies.
However, this version seems most investigators as unlikely. Perhaps that all these theories are right, each in its own way. The fact that in the xvi century major maritime powers engaged in development of the New World.