ebook k9obedience essential guide to your dog

8/3/2019 eBook K9Obedience Essential Guide to Your Dog

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TheEssentialGuide to

Your Dog Where He Came From, and Why

From the leading source of dog training and dog obedience information online

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ere is no faith,

which has never yet been broken,except that of a truly faithful dog.

Konrad Lorenz
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here is no incongruity in the idea that in the very earliest period of manshabitation of the world he made a friend and companion of some sort of aboriginal representative of our modern dog, and in return for its aid inprotecting him from wilder animals, and in guarding his sheep and goats, hegave it a share of his food, a corner of his dwelling, and grew to trust and carefor it immensely over time.

It is thought that dogs were the first animals to live with people. The remainsof dogs, estimated at 14,000 years old have been found in Germany, 13,500years old in Israel and 10,500 years old in Idaho (USA). In Western Russia inan area known as Bryansk, evidence of dog remains have been found alongsidebones of reindeer, mammoth and artic fox.

All dogs, wild and domestic, belong to the Canid family (Family Canidae).

This family group includes wolves, jackals, dogs and foxes. There are thirty-eight species of wild canids living in habitats ranging from tropical rainforests to

Arctic Tundra. Although they are diverse, they do retain distinctivecharacteristics. Canids live in complex social groups. They hunt co-operatively and share their kills, the higher-ranking members eating first. They bear liveyoung, have similar dental structures and are homoeothermic (able to maintaintheir body temperature at a constant level). The present day domestic dog can

be linked genetically to the Grey Wolf (Canis Lupus). It is not known exactly why or how wolves first started interacting with man. It is true that they wouldhave shared a common characteristic in so far as both hunted and both did soin packs or organised units.

T


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It has been suggested that the dog could also have evolved from Coyotes and Jackals, which can also interbreed and produce fertile offspring. In the 1950sNobel Prize winning behaviourist, Konrad Lorenz put forth the idea that somebreeds derive from Jackals and some from Wolves. Seeing that there was little

evidence and lots of different opinions, most biologists decided that most likely the Wolf was the ancestor of the dog.

In 1997 an international team of scientistsled by Robert Wayne of the University of California, Los Angeles, used the techniquesof molecular biology to compare the genes

of dogs with those of Jackals, Coyotes and Wolves. Blood tissue and hair samples werecollected from 140 dogs of 67 breeds and162 wolves from North America, Europe,

Asia and Arabia. From each sample they extracted DNA from tiny organelles withinthe cells called mitochondria. The

chromosome DNA of an animal cell comesfrom both parents but the mitochondrialDNA comes only from the mother. Ancestry can be more positively identified

when studying mitochondria DNA. Robert Wayne discovered that Wolves andCoyotes differ by 6% in their mitochondria DNA whilst wolves and dogs differby only 1%. A portion of the mitochondria DNA called the control region

was studied because it varies greatly amongst mammals. This led to the analysis

that wolves and dogs control regions in the mitochondria had similar sequences.Coyotes and Jackals were a lot more different. In fact every Coyote and Jackalsequence differed from any dog sequence by at least 20 sites and sometimesmore. His research went on to discover that all dog sequences fell into fourdistinct groups. The longest group representing three quarters of all modern
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dogs resulted from a single Wolf lineage. Other groups showed that wolvesmust have then mated with the domesticated dog. The research concluded thatdogs have been separated from wolves for much longer than their fossil remainssuggest.

The DNA analysis published in 1997suggests a date of about 130,000 years agofor the transformation of Wolves to dogs.

Although all wolves belong to the speciesCanis Lupus, there are many sub species.95% of current dogs come from just three

original foundling females. Matthew Binnsof the Animal Health Trust in England says:

They are the Eves of the dog world.

One can therefore well conceive the possibility of the partnership beginning in

the circumstance of some helpless cubs being brought home by early hunters tobe tended and reared by the women and children. Primitive man would havebeen indifferent to the questionable advantage of harbouring such a dangerousguest. The young cubs would soon have grown to regard themselves and beregarded as members of the family. It would not take long for early man torealise the benefits of the hunting instincts of the maturing animal. Treadingthe primeval forests he would appreciate the keener nose and sharper eyes thanhis own.

The early dog in turn would find better shelter in his association with man anda more regular and reliable food supply. Thus mutual benefit would result insome kind of tacit agreement of partnership, and through the generations the


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w ild Wolf would gradually become gentler, more docile and tractable. Thedreaded enemy of the flock developed into the trusted guardian of the fold.

e evolution of the dog had begun.

Coyote


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The Earth trembled and a great rift appeared, separating the first man and woman from the rest of the animal kingdom. As the chasm grew

wider and deeper the other animals ran for the safety of the forest. Man was left on one side of the chasm and all the animals were on the other. Of all the beasts only Dog was unhappy. Dog paced back and forth restlessly until he finally ran forward and leapt across the gap. He managed to catchthe edge with his paws but couldnt quite pull himself up. Man reacheddown and saved him saying You shall be my companion forever.

Native American folk tale

14,000 years ago the dog had become so important to man that they wereincluded in human burials. One of the oldest archaeological evidence found tosupport this belief is a 12,000 year old Natufian burial site located in what isnow known as Israel. The grave revealed an elderly person holding a puppy intheir left hand. Burial sites have been discovered which were exclusively fordogs. In Ashkelon, Israel, there is one such site which is 2,500 years old.

Wolves followed the nomadic hunter-gathers, scavenging the remains of theircampfires and following them on their hunts probably hoping to fill theirstomachs with any leftovers. Gradually domestication began as prehistoricpeople took advantage of the Wolfs abilities. They started using them onhunting trips to bring down prey. The Wolf would have guarded mans camp,their sensitive noses, their acute hearing and ever-watchful eyes alerting man todanger. Co-habitation with the wolf/dog would have improved mans chancesof survival. Living with them had a profound effect on human psychology,


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hunting skills and territorial and social behaviour. Would humans havedeveloped differently had the wolf not frequented their campsites? A recentstudy suggests that the domestication of dogs mutually led to profound changesin the biological and behavioural evolution of both species.

Dr. Paul Tacon, principal research scientist at the Australian Museum believesthat the early canine-sapien relationship ultimately changed the world. He hasexplored the implications of dog domestication close to the time that modernhunters are believed to have emerged. This included:

e development of big game hunting

e origins of mateship and new forms of bonding e rise of settlements worldwide

He concluded that dogs were a key force which led to the anatomical andbehavioural modern human of 100,000 years ago. The primitive man and theearly dog combination spread from the Middle East, colonising South East Asiaand the Australo Pacific regions. They crossed the Bering Land Bridge and

proceeded rapidly across the North American continent. The Australian Dingoremains today much the same as the primitive Pariah dog.

Evidence also shows that as the dog became more intertwined with man helearned to hunt big game in packs. This is a distinctive wolf behavioural trait.There is no evidence of this amongst the pre-sapiens such as early NeanderthalMan. The primitive human would have watched the dogs behaviour, he would

have seen the dog mark its territory with urine.

Archaeological records show that around this time humans began to mark theirterritories with handprints, grooves in rocks and fingerprints in clay. Engravedand painted pictures were also common around 40,000 years ago.


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In nearly all parts of the world traces of an indigenous dog family are found. Inthe ancient oriental lands, and generally among the early Mongolians, the dogremained savage and neglected for centuries, prowling in packs, gaunt and wolf-like much like the wild dogs of today under the walls of eastern cities. It is not

until we come to examine the records of the higher civilisations of Assyria andEgypt that we discover any distinct varieties of canine form.

Assyrian sculptures depict two such dogs, a Greyhound and a Mastiff, the latterdescribed inthe tablets as the chained up, mouth opening dog, that is to say it

was used as a watchdog. Several varieties are referred to in the Cuneiforminscriptions preserved in the British Museum, England. The Egyptian

monuments of about 3000 B.C. present many forms of the domestic dog, andthere can be no doubt that among the ancient Egyptians it was just as much acompanion, just as much a favourite in the house, and just as much a help onthe hunt as it is today.

In the city of Cynopolis the dog was held in the highest esteem, next to thesacred Jackal, and on the death of their dog the whole family would shave their

whole bodies and abstain from eating food of any kind, which was in the house when the dog died. Among the distinct breeds kept in Egypt there was amassive wolf-dog bred. This dog was a large, heavily built hound withdrooping ears and a pointed muzzle. At least two distinctly different varieties of Greyhound were kept. These would have been used to hunt gazelle and wouldhave probably been housed outside the main quarters. The last dog was a smallbreed of Terrier or Turnspit with short, crooked legs. This dog was most

definitely regarded as a household pet. Archaeologists have found evidence which shows that this dog lived in with the family and had access to the entirehouse. It accompanied the family outdoors on walks much as the domestic dogdoes today. It had a collar made of leaves or leather, or even precious metals.Some of these collars would have been elaborately made by craftsmen. When
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the dog died it was embalmed. Every town throughout Egypt had a cemetery for canine mummies.

The dog was not greatly appreciated in Palestine however, as both in the Old

and the New Testaments it is commonly spoken of with scorn and contempt asan unclean beast. Even the familiar reference to the Sheepdog in the Book of

Job states But now they that are younger than I have me in derision, whosefathers I would have disdained to set with the dogs of my flock. This suggestscontempt of the dog and it is significant that the only biblical allusion to thedog as a recognised companion of man occurs in the apocryphal Book of Tobit(v.16) So they went forth both, and the young mans dog with them. The

Jews wanted to prevent the dog from being idolised. Even in the New Testament the Apostle warns those to whom he wrote beware of dogs and evil-

workers. Dogs were however employed by Jews to guard sheep or to protectthem from wild beasts.

The pagan Greeks and Romans had a kindlier feeling towards their animalsthan did the Jews. Their hounds, like their horses, were selected with

discrimination and bred with care. They were given names and held in highesteem. Roman and Greek literature contains many references to the courage,obedience, and affectionate loyalty of their dogs. Pythagoras after founding anew sect in Greece taught the Egyptian philosophers that when the body dies,the soul entered that of different animals. At the death of any of his favouritedisciples he would hold a dog to the dying mans mouth in order that hisdeparting spirit would pass into the dog. He believed that there was no other

animal as virtuous as the dog.The Phoenicians were also unquestionable lovers of the dog. They were quick to recognise the points of special breeds and started to breed certaincharacteristics into the lines. In their colony in Carthage, during the reign of Sardanapalus, they already possessed the Assyrian Mastiff which they exported


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to far off Britain. It is k nown that they exported the Water Spaniel to Irelandand to Spain.

The Mohammedans (Muslims) have also always regarded the dog as an unclean

animal. They believed that the dog should never enter any human habitationand should have no owners. Instead the dog should roam the streets and thedistrict protecting all.

The Hindus regarded the dog likewise as unclean, and would purify themselvesif a dog touched them. They believed the dog to be possessed by a wicked andmalignant spirit and should any dog venture near children learning their

lessons, the teacher would send the children away in case the dog had disturbedtheir minds. In every Mohammedan and Hindu country the worst insultbestowed on a European or a Christian is a dog

It is a significant fact when we come to consider the probable origin of the dogand its interaction with man, that there are indications of the dogsdomestication at such early periods by so many peoples in different parts of the

world. Historical artefacts have proved that dogs were subjugated and tamed by primitive man by the Assyrians, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans,and also by the ancient barbaric tribes of the western hemisphere.


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Wild Dog said, O my Enemy and wife of my Enemy. What is this

that smells so good in the Wild Woods? Then the Woman picked up a roasted mutton bone and threw it to the Wild Dog and said Wild Thing out of the Wild Woods, taste and try. Wild Dog gnawed the bone. It wasmore delicious than anything he had ever tasted and he said, Oh Enemy and Wife of my Enemy give me another. The Woman said, Wild Thing of the Wild Woods, help my Man to hunt through the day and guard thisCave at night, and I will give you as many roast bones as you need.

Rudyard Kipling

The diversity of the dog lies more with artificial sources rather than MotherNature.

Charles Darwin suggested that the reason that there is such a variety amongstdogs was that they have evolved from other canids such as Jackals, Coyotes andFoxes. Genetic studies carried out by evolutionary biologist, Dr Robert Wayneof the University of California, have proved this not to be so. The 400 or morebreeds of dog have originated from the Grey Wolf. The question arises as to

just how so many different breeds of dogs came about.

The selection began when the wolf became a common part of early manscampsites. Fierce, aggressive wolves would have been driven away leaving themore timid ones to scavenge around mans dwellings. These would have bred,producing yet more wolves of a less aggressive nature. As man travelled acrosscontinents so the wolf travelled with him. As generations of these tamer wolvespassed so the dog started to form. These dogs would have adapted to the


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environments in which they lived. Ones that dwelled in cold climates werelarge dogs with dense coats that could better survive to reproduce. Likewise indeserts and warmer countries the dogs were slight of body with less hair. Mansrequirements of the dog also played a part in the evolution. If the dog was

required to hunt it was lean in the body and had long limbs. Dogs that existedon mans left-overs no longer needed to bring down large prey so they developed with smaller skulls and teeth than their ancestor, the wolf. The brainalso became smaller as the dogs diet changed.

Another theory has recently been put forward by Ray and Lorna Coppinger intheir book Dogs; A startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behaviour,and Evolution. The Coppingers convincingly propose that dogs were notdomesticated as a direct result of artificial human intervention with wolves.

Instead that the dog evolved naturally as a by-product of human settlement. Asearly humans formed permanent camps, waste food and rubbish accumulated.This created a scavenger niche. As wolves are too timid by nature to adaptreadily to the advantages of such a niche, forces of natural selection began to

Grey Wolves


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produce a tamer variety of wolf which was brave enough to move in so that itcould scavenge.

These tamer wolves had a reduced flight distance from humans. They began to

get closer and interact more and more with humans. They no longer needednatures tools for successful hunting as they were feeding around human camps.These scavenger varieties of wolf developed with smaller heads, teeth, brain andoverall body size. The temperamentally bolder yet less physically formidablenature of the dog is what separates it from the wolf. Wolves are pack-huntingpredators; dogs became scavengers at human encampments. These camp orvillage dogs suggest the Coppingers theory carries a lot of logical sense.

The authors agree that these village dogs may have become more valuable tohumans as they accompanied man on the hunt though the Coppingers belief that these dogs were more beneficial to primitive man as pest controllers,rather than for food acquisition. Man would have used the dog more for itsbarking, which would serve as an early warning system when danger threatened.To conclude, the Coppingers image of an early dog is a canine with a low prey

drive, minimal aggressive behaviour, eating waste and killing pests. To add tothis the dog would bark if something scared them, inadvertently scaring thesource of the noise away. This does not go along with other scientific notionsof a wolf being tamed and bred from as an ancestor to the modern dog.

The first archaeological evidence of dogs, which were morphologically distinctfrom wolves, comes from roughly 12,000 years ago in the Middle East. Dr

Robert Waynes genetic data concludes that the split from wolves to dogsoccurred 135,000 years ago but these creatures were a far cry from the dog weknow today. They would have been wolf-like in appearance and with semi-wildtemperaments.


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Ray Coppinger, a biologist and author at the Hampshire College believes that:

Natural breeds occasionally arise. One way is through simple adaptation to

different environmental nic hes; dogs in Northern regions had to be bigger because of

the cold. Another way is when a catastrophe like rabies wipes out an entire local

population of dogs. If just one pregnant female survives the catastrophe, or if a new

pair arrives from elsewhere, their descendants will only have that female or the pairs

genes to work with. If that lone female or both the new arrivals have red hair and

curly tails, their offspring will have the same.

Some evidence suggests that several varieties of ancient wolves contributed tothe modern dog. There were sub-species of wolves spread across the world.They had distinctive appearance and social structure. The Japanese wolf (now extinct since the 20th century) was much smaller and had a grey coat with a redunderbelly. The North American wolf on the other end of the scale, is muchlarger than other wolves and has a variety of colours in its coat. It also has a

complex social structure whereas the Japanese wolf was more solitary.

The Asian wolf probably led to the development of more breeds of dogs thanother sub-species of wolves. The Pariah Dog, The Dingo and many wild dogsof today are descended from the Asian wolf. Until recently it was thought thatthe dog, like humans, evolved originally in Africa but recent scientific researchhas proved that the dog evolved from the Asian Grey Wolf. The Asian wolf also

interbred with descendants of the European wolf to create the Mastiffs,(Molossus). TheTibetan Mastiff is an example of this ancient breed and can beseen in more detail in theK9 Obedience Breed Directory on our website.
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The European wolf contributed its attributes to the Spitz dog types. Also many of todays sheepdogs and terriers can be traced back to these sub-species of wolf.The Chinese wolf is ancestor to many of the toy groups such as thePekingese.The North American wolf is ancestor to most of the sled dog types.

Breeding between dogs and wolves still occurs bothdeliberately and accidentally.Mixing and crossbreedingarctic dogs with wolves is doneto retain the characteristics of

the wolf so the Arctic sleddogs can survive in such ahostile environment. It is likely that wolves and dogs have interbred for as longas both species have existed. This would have been most likely between wolvesand wild or feral dogs. The resulting offspring may have been a hazard to any human communities nearby and may account for most of the reported wolf attacks on humans.

Breeding between wolves and dogs has been deliberately done, mostly by breeding large dogs such as theGerman Shepherd with a relatively tame wolf.The resulting pup is a beautiful animal. Regal, captivating and highly intelligent the wolf dog has grown in popularity and the number of hybrids inthe USA is estimated at around 300,000. Much controversy surrounds thebreeding of hybrids. In the wild, a wolfs natural instinct would be to kill a dog

and not breed with it. These are no ordinary dogs as they retain many of the wolfs character and behavioural traits. Contrary to popular beliefs they do notmake good guard dogs. Wolves are shy and wary of humans by nature and arehighly social and pack orientated animals. A wolf dog hybrid doesnot make agood pet. Nine out of ten such hybrids are put to sleep before they are two
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years old due to aggression and other behavioural problems. Wolf dogs over74% wolf are illegal to own without a special class 2 licence in the USA. It isillegal to keep a first generation wolf in many countries including Great Britain.

In the Cevennes region of Southern France between 1764 and 1767, about 100people were attacked and at least 64 killed by a pair of savage wolves. Most of the victims were children. These animals came to be known as the Beasts of Gevaudan. They were hunted and killed whereupon it was found that theanimals were wolf hybrids, perhaps siblings born from the breeding of a wolf

with one of the large dogs commonly kept by farmers in the region.

Red Wolf


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When the Man waked up he said, What is the Wild Dog doing

here? And the Woman said, His name is not Wild Dog any more, but the First Friend, because he will always be our friend for always and alwaysand always.

Rudyard Kipling

In 350 B.C. Aristole made a list of the known dog breeds of the time. The

breeds were categorised into three groups. Sight/Hunting dogs, Mastiffs/Guarddogs and Toy/House dogs. Today there are over 500 breeds of dogs worldwide.

Elaine Ostrander of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre in Seattle, Washington, led an extensive study into the genomes of dogs. The researchersused genetic analysis to group dogs into various breeds. They attended many dog shows around the USA, taking samples of cheek swabs. Genetic researchcarried out on 85 breeds of dogs has shown that 14 of the breeds have geneticfingerprints and form a cluster most like the early domestic dogs. Seven of these have the oldest patterns. These are:

Chow Chow, Shar Pei, (China) Akita and Shiba Inu, (Japan) Basenji, (Africa) Siberian Husky, (North East Siberia and Alaska) Malamute, (North West Alaska)


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This confirms the study carried out in 2002 that suggested that ancient dogsoriginated in Asia and migrated to Africa then on to the Arctic.This latest research has led to much controversy, as many people believe theIbizan Hound and the Pharaoh Hound were ancient dogs and these are not

included in the list. The researchers say that although the appearance of thesehounds matches those found depicted on Egyptian tombs, their genomes arenot linked to the ancient dogs. More likely these dogs are a result of interbreeding amongst the true ancient dogs.

Many other studies have also been carried out which reveal how close breeds areto one another and the order in which they emerged over the millennia. Dogs

are grouped into sight and scent hounds, working and guard, toy andcompanion, northern, flushing spaniels, water spaniels and retrievers, pointers,terriers and herding dogs.

As people began to work with animals in herds, dogs were used both to help inherding and guarding the flock. This is thought to have begun during theNeolithic period. As agriculture began so dogs became more useful in guarding

villages and in war. The different breeds of dogs were established.

Location played an important part in how the breeds were evolving. Sighthounds were bred in open desert countries such as the Middle East. Scenthounds were bred in lands such as Europe, where dense woodland made itdifficult to see game. Each group of breeds developed special physical andbehavioural characteristics that enabled them to accomplish certain tasks.

Greyhounds have been found on ancient Mesopotamian pottery fragments,dating back to 5000 B.C. These dogs had been bred purposely to hunt in thedesert. They had deep chests, long legs and a sleek head and could run swiftly across the sands to bring down prey.


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The Mastiffs:

Another group were the Mastiffs andRottweilers. Large, strong and aggressivedogs were excellent at guarding property and livestock. Many such dogs were

used in battle. Archaeologists have discovered bas-reliefs from the Babylonian Assyrian empire showing Mastiff dogs hunting lions, dating around 2,500 B.C.Phoenican traders introduced the dog to Britain around 500 B.C. TheseMastiff dogs were taken with the Celt tribes as they battled their way across theSwiss Alps and down into Italy. The Carthaginian General, Hannibal (218B.C.) led his forces to eastern Spain over the Pyrenees Mountains. He took

with him several battalions of trained war Mastiffs. On the long journey the

Mastiffs mated with local breeds, which in turn introduced breeds such as theSt. Bernard (Alpine Mastiff), Neapolitan Mastiff , Pyrenean Mastiff and theSpanish Mastiff.

During the Roman occupation of Britain (55 B.C.-415 B.C.) dogs were takenfrom Britain to Rome to guard prisoners and fight in the Roman arenas againstlions and bears. The blood thirsty Romans considered it great sport to watch

these huge dogs compete against an equally strongadversary. Human prisoners were also thrown into the arena to face the dogs much to the crowds delight.The dogs were clad in armour and accompanied the Romans into battle. A dog

weighing 100 kilos, trained to leap, bring down and disembowel a man onhorseback was a violent and feared warrior. Romans held their dogs in highesteem and many dogs lived with their masters. A Romans house with a watchor guard dog had to display a sign saying Cave Canem which meant Beware

of the Dog. The Mastiff was said to be Caesars favourite dog bringing to mindthose famous lines from Shakespeares Julius Caesar: Cry havoc! And let loosethe Dogs of War.
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The Hunting Dogs:

Dogs were not only being bred for their strengths on the battlefields or for theirswiftness in catching the prey. In Europe the Abbots of the Saint Huberts

Abbey in Ardennes recognized dog breeding to be a source of revenue andcreated breeds to sell to wealthy nobles. So the hunting dogs emerged, notably the Chien de Saint Hubert (Bloodhound). This dog was said to be the father of all European hunting dogs. Dogs became expensive and hunting was reservedfor the rich. The peasants dogs had to wear huge blocks around their necks tostop them mating with the pure bred dogs. Speciality breeds thrived. Theexpertise of the hunting dogs was invaluable to man. Different dogs were bred

depending on the prey to be hunted.

The scent hunting dogs were bred to track prey through dense forests. They had pendulous ears that are thought to assist in gathering the scent whenfollowing a trail. Scent hounds tend to be numerous as they were often kept inlarge packs. Different hounds were bred to hunt specific prey such as boar,deer, and hares. Many of the ancestors of scent hounds today were bred in

France and Britain. Whilst hunting in thick forests the huntsman would losesight of the dogs therefore they were bred to have a low melodious voice that

would carry across the undergrowth. This is called baying or giving tongue. A scent hound has approximately 220 million smell sensitive cells over an area assmall as a pocket handkerchief.

The Portuguese Water Dog dates back to 700 B.C. It was first used as a patrol

dog along the Russian-Chinese border. The Berbers captured these dogs andtook them into North Africa where they spread and arrived in Portugal in the8th century. Portuguese fishermen soon discovered that the dog (called Cao de

Agua) was an excellent swimmer as well as a hard working creature. They usedthem to herd fish into their nets or to retrieve lost nets. Being such good


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swimmers the dogs were used as couriers from ship to ship or from ship toshore. The Irish Water Spaniel was bred around A.D. 650. It had a curly,greasy coat that repelled water and webbed feet for swimming. Many Spanielsand Retrievers were bred for the specific purpose of assisting man on the hunt.

Early man had many ways of hunting prey. Not having the modern weapons of today he had to use spears, stones, blowpipes, bows and arrows or nets. TheFrench hunting dogs were bred to hunt any sort of game but the Englishspecialised in breeding different dogs in accordance with the prey being hunted.Smaller dogs were bred to track through dense undergrowth or woodlands. InScotland, a breed of dog was needed to chase vermin and small animals so the

Scottish Terrier was bred with later offshoots such as West Highland White,Skye Terrier, Dandie Dinmont and the Cairn Terrier.

(Find out more about this breed in the www.K9Obedience.co.uk breed directory)

A Modern-Day Cairn Terrier makes a great, fun family pet
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The red long tailed dog goes at night into the st alls of the hills; he isbetter than the long faced dog. He makes no del ay in hunting, his faceglows like a god and he delights to do his work.

(Translated from Egyptian Hieroglyph)

The Basenji or Congo Terrier(pictured) is recognised to beone of the true ancient dogs.They originated in Africa andspread into Egypt where they can be seen depicted on stelesin Egyptian tombs datingaround 3500 B.C. Tribes inthe North Eastern Congo bred the Basenji for hunting. They call the Basenjiembwa na bwasenji meaning dogs from when we were wild. The Basenjidoes not bark but yips or yodels instead. Sculptured in stone dating back to3,000 B.C. he is shown to be a hunter and a companion. A bronze statue of aman and a Basenji type dog, dated around 1,500 B.C. with a curled tail and a

wrinkled forehead can be seen in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Many different breeds of dogs emerged around this time. Sight hounds werebred for their swiftness and keen eyesight. Salukis, Afghan Hounds,Greyhounds, Pharaoh Hounds, Ibizan Hounds, Sloughi, Irish Wolfhound, andthe Borzoi. These dogs were all possibly bred from the dogs of the Bedouin andBerber tribes of Africa thousands of years ago. The need arose for swift, leggy dogs with keen eyesight, which could course prey over rough and open terrain.
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The Greyhound is such a dog. Bred by the Bedouin tribes in North Africa and Asia they were taken into Egypt and were so highly favoured that the birth of aGreyhound was celebrated as much as the birth of a son. Although theEgyptians kept many dogs, the Greyhound were highly prized and lived with

families. Often they had special kennels and were cared for by dog handlers. If one of the Egyptian nobility died, his Greyhounds would be buried with him.

Anubis, the Egyptian God had the body of a man and the head of a Greyhoundtype dog. Trade routes took the Greyhound into the Mediterranean where they became just as prized by the Greeks. These Greyhounds had deeper chests and

were bred to be heavier as they hunted larger animals. These dogs also featuredin Greek mythology and architecture.

The Sloughi was native to Libya, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The Bedouinvalued the dog as much as they valued their Arabian Horses. If a Bedouin wentvisiting, his Sloughi went with him and would have been treated as anhonoured guest. A Bedouin tribesman would give up his blanket rather than lethis Sloughi get cold at night. If a Sloughi died, its master would grieve for hisdog just as he would grieve over the loss of a child. The Sloughi was used to

hunt Desert Hare, Fennec (desert fox), Gazelle, Hyena, Jackal, and Ostrich.They were excellent open space hunters that relied on vision, stamina andspeed. They tended to have larger heads than Salukis and were much stronger.


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The Saluki(Also known as Gazelle Hound, Arabian Hound, and Persian Greyhound.)

Named after the Arabian city

of Saluki in the Middle East,this was the only breed to begiven any status by theMuslims. The Saluki (picturedleft) is thought of as a sacredgift of Allah.

For this reason a Saluki could never be sold but could only be given as a gift of friendship. The Salukis origins go back to 7,000 B.C. Man had spread acrossthe land mass known as Mesopotamia and with him roamed the small Desert

Wolf (C. I. Arabis) which was a lighter, faster variety of wolf. Over time thedog evolved, capable of surviving in the harsh desert climate. The Saluki wasalso cherished by the Egyptians who called the dog El Hor, meaning theNoble One. The Saluki had feathered ears, legs and tail. A bas-relief, dated

1450 B.C. from Thebes, shows two Saluki type dogs bringing down game.The tomb of Tutankhamen held an ostrich feather fan decorated with scenes of a boy king hunting with dogs very similar to Salukis. The remains of Salukishave been discovered mummified bearing elaborate collars. This signifies justhow important the dog was to the Egyptians.


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The Afghan Hound

The Afghan Hound (also known as theBaluchi Hound) has been described as the

King of dogs.

Native to the Sinai, the Afghan Hound ismentioned in Egyptian papyruses. 4000year old pictures of Afghans have beenfound on the walls of caves in Afghanistan.This was a land of high mountains, deep

valleys and wide-open deserts. Tribalnomads roamed across the terrainsaccompanied by their Afghan Hounds. Thedog had been bred from many local breeds.

These dogs needed no instruction when coursing prey. With exceptionalswiftness they would run and keep running until the prey was caught. They possessed seemingly endless stamina and could leap and turn at speed when

chasing Hare or Mountain Deer. The dog spread across the area from easternTurkestan to Turkey. The Afghan Hound is such an ancient breed that it isoften called The dog of Noahs Ark.

The Pharaoh Hound(Kelb Tal-Fenek)

Pharaohs origins lie in Egypt and the hound is depicted on many Egyptiantemples dating back to 4400 B.C. The Pharaoh Hound travelled with thePhoenician traders to the islands of Malta and Gozo where the hound was usedprimarily for hunting rabbits. It has survived on these islands for over 2,000
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years. It is one of the fe w dogs that have remained unchanged from its ancientancestors. The Pharaoh Hound blushes when excited.

The Ibizan Hound

Also known as Podenco Ibicenco, another of the Egyptian dogs, the IbizanHound was taken to the Balearic Islands in the 8th century. The Ibizan Houndhad been bred from the small pricked-eared greyhound and it was a swift littlehunting dog, quick to catch rabbits and other small animals.


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Many years ago in the lands of early man, a couple of dogs sat on a

hill passing the time of day whilst watching a group of humans who weretrying to round up a herd of reindeer. Having watched the humansrunning around, waving their arms and yelling, the dogs declared: Wecould do that better and they did. The question is, did the ancient manbreed an irreplaceable helper or a dog who himself wanted to help?

The world in the Stone Age looked vastly different than it does today. Thecontinent of Asia touched every ocean and every continent. The Asian terrain

was vast and rugged with extreme differences in temperature. It is hardly surprising that most of the dogs ancestry began here. The New Stone Agepeople were gatherers and had started keeping herds of livestock.

Archaeological findings show that they kept herding dogs to assist them inguarding their flocks. These dogs were interbred for type and location. Tribes

such as the Goths (100-200 A.D.), the Cimmerians (700-600 B.C.), and theCimbri (100 B.C.) travelled far and wide accompanied by their livestock andtheir dogs. One direct descendant of these dogs is the Portuguese Water Dog.

Tribal people such as the Berbers took dogs into North Africa and on toMorocco. Tribes known as the Iberians migrated from South West Germany over the Pyrenees and into Iberia (Portugal), Ireland and Wales. The Irish

Water Spaniel is a descendant of the Portuguese Water Dog. Wherever manroamed they needed dogs to guard and control their livestock.

The Canaan Dog (Kelef Knaani) was an ancient dog of the Israelites, 2,200years ago. This tough, hardy dog was used to herd and guard flocks of sheep


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and herds of camels andgoats. It is thought that the Welsh Corgi, BorderCollie, Old English Sheepdog and the German Shepherd have been bred fromthe Canaan Dog.

Depending on the geographical location herding dogs were bred for a specificquality. In cold climates the herding dogs had thick coats and were large andstrong. They were used to guard livestock rather than control them. Their sizeand strength meant that they could fight off wolves and bears. The Akbash,Maremma, Komondor and Great Pyreenean dogs were fierce guardians andprotectors of the flocks. These big dogs were generally light in colour so as toblend in with the animals they guarded.

Further north in the cold climates of the Artic and Siberia, dogs were bred suchas the Siberian Husky, Samoyeds, Inuit Dog and the Alaskan Malamute. TheMalamute gets its name from a group of Eskimos known as Mahlamuits. Thesepeople needed a dog that served three purposes: guarding, hunting and herding.These all round working dogs had to pull heavy sleds for long distances inextremely cold temperatures. They were also used to hunt polar bears, moose,

wolves and walruses.

The Inuit Dog (Qimmiq) dates back 4,000 years. It originated in the region of Mongolia. The Tunit people who lived there migrated across the Bering Straitsbetween 900-1100 A.D. and their dogs went with them. The Tunit peoplesettled in Greenland. The Inuit dog could sniff out seal breathing holes andhunting in packs they would surround a polar bear and hold it until the hunter

arrived. They were also true herding dogs, keeping vigil over the Tunits herdsof reindeer. The Northern people bred many Spitz type dogs that retainedsimilar characteristics.
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All of these dogs couldstand extreme temperatures of more than 50 degreesbelow zero.

They were bred to herd, hunt and guard. They had thick, waterproof double

coats. Often they had thick bushy tails to curl around their faces when sleepingfor protection from the cold. Most had long noses to warm the cold air beforeit reached their lungs. They had oil deposits under their eyebrows that helpedthem shake off thick snow. The ears were thickly furred as a barrier against thecold. Robust and hardy, they could tolerate pain, which enabled them to keep

working against all odds. They needed the ability to think for themselves inorder to survive in such harsh environments.

The Irish Wolfhound is one of Europes oldest herding breeds. Their originscan be traced back to 273 B.C. Bred by the Celts in the first century B.C. they

were first used as war dogs then they shifted to herding. The PhoenicianTraders had brought their dogs with them to Europe and these huge Mastiffsare the ancestors of most of the herding dogs used across Europe today. TheCelts contributed most towards breeding the various strains of herding dogs.

The Celts were constantly travelling and by mixing dogs with superior abilities with their own dogs they created specific breeds of dogs. The Greeks had aherding dog from the Molossi Barbarians. The Celts admired these dogs andused some of them to breed with their own dogs. In 1000 to 600 BC the Celtshad hundreds of different breeds of dogs dispersed across Europe from GreatBritain to Asia Minor and across the continent from Germany to Spain. Eachvillage would have a breed of dog based on the needs of the community, the

local geography and the climate. The Irish Wolfhound was owned by Emperors, Kings and nobility. The Roman consul Quintas Aurelius receivedseven wolfhounds as a gift. It is written that, all Rome viewed with wonder.
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The true herding dogs of Europe developed with Tibetan ancestry of which theKomondar and the Kuvasz still remain true to form today. Herding dogs work in various ways. The Border Collie gets in front of the sheep and gives eye

which means it stares hypnotically at the sheep to turn them. Dogs such as this

are called headers. Other dogs work by nipping at animals heels and are calledheelers. One such dog is the Australian Cattle Dog. Other dogs will actually

jump on an animals back to herd them and control them, such as the Koolie. Ancient man knew nothing of genetics but would breed one dog with anotherto obtain a working dog that suited his purpose. Many of the early Europeanherding dogs originated near the Basque regions near the Pyrenees Mountains.Little thought was paid to the appearance of these dogs, which remained shaggy

and unkempt. Selective breeding focused on enabling a dog to function wellover different terrains. The dog had to be able to withstand fluctuations intemperatures, it had to be athletic and flexible, and it had to be independent incharacter yet remain obedient to its master.

Most of the herding dogs today have been bred within the last couple of centuries. Sadly few remain as true working dogs as keeping livestock for the

small farmer has proved to be increasingly unprofitable. On larger ranches menusing quad bikes or tractors still use herding dogs to work livestock. Innorthern countries, sled dogs are hauling freight, aiding exploration teams, and

working in search and rescue. One famous incident concerning sled dogs is re-told below:

THE IDITAROD DOG SLED RACE

The Diphtheria epidemic that threatened the town of Nome and thesubsequent race against time to fetch the serum from Nenana by mushers andtheir dog sleds is truly remarkable. Much is made of Gunnar Kasson and hisdog, Balto as he delivered the serum on Feb 2nd 1925 being the last team on


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the trail. It is true that he had faced blizzards and sub zero temperatures as hetravelled the last 53 miles.

The real unsung hero of this saga is Leonhard Seppala. It was he that surpassed

all that Mother Nature threw at him and travelled 340 miles in total to get theserum to the people of Nome. Never before had this been done or in suchdangerous conditions. Seppala defied all odds to help the townspeople.

Leonhard Seppala, (1877 1967) was a Norwegian immigrant who arrived inNome, Alaska in the year 1900 as a participant of the gold rush. He learntquickly to drive a dog sled and his first dogs were called Nigger and Jack. Soon

he was entering and winning sled dog races. Seppala was a quiet man who hadthe strength of an ox and a genuine love for his dogs. A bit of a loner, he spenta lot of his time with his dogs, training in the Alaskan wilderness.

Russian fur traders broughtdogs with them from EasternSiberia and started entering

the sled dog races. They werelaughed at because of theslender size of their dogs,

which was only half that of thetypical Alaskan Sled Dogs of the day. Given odds of a hundred to one, the Russians were soon laughingloudest as they began to win races. A wealthy young Scot named Charles Fox

Maule Ramsey imported seventy of these Siberian dogs and soon his threeracing teams dominated the 1910 All Alaskan Sweepstakes. Leonhard Seppala

was entrusted by Ramsey to breed and train his dogs and in return, Seppala wasgiven his own bitch and dog. Seppalas own Siberian dog team began racingand he won the Norse Sweepstakes. Seppala was said to have hypnotic powers


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of control over his dogs, so unbelievable was their performance. Sled dogracing was discontinued at the outbreak of World War One.

After the war, Seppala began successfully racing with his Siberian dogs. At the

time of the Diphtheria epidemic, Seppalas lead dog Togo was a seasoned Husky.Never had he owned a dog with such stamina and courage. It was mainly dueto this magnificent dog that he managed to travel 340 miles in the worstpossible conditions.

Only a last minute decision by Alaskas governor to speed the delivery by addingthe extra team of Gunner Kasson, robbed Seppala and his dog Togo of their

rightful place in history. It was Gunner Kasson and his dog Balto that receivedthe honours and the subsequent fame.

Togos preserved carcass is on display at the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog RaceMuseum, Wasilla, Alaska.


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Today, the Iditarod Sled DogRace commemorates thishistoric event. The Iditarod

trail was a major lifeline for Alaska, right up until theaeroplane replaced the dogsled. The Iditarod race wasthe brainchild of a womancalled Dorothy Page who planned Alaskas 1967 centennial celebrations. Thefirst race was held in 1967 and still has worldwide interest.

e Last Great Race

This is a time for heroics,

This is a time to be brave

If we all work together

And do our part

These peoples lives well save!

Mush! Everybody Mush!

by Rudyard Kipling


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Even the tiniest Poodle or Chihuahua is still a wolf at heart

Dorothy Hinshaw

Ancient China bred many dogs for uses such as herding, guarding andcompanion dogs. The Chongquing Dog is thought to have been in existencesince the Han dynasty (206B.C.-22A.D.) Dogs were primarily used for huntingbefore the Tang dynasty (A.D. 618-907). Fu Xiuyi, writing in the western JinDynasty (A.D. 265-316) wrote:

A dog is as fast as an eagle and as fierce as a tiger

Bones of dogs have been found alongside human remains in Central ChinasHenan Province. A Neolithic Age pottery vase has been unearthed in Qinan,Northwest Chinas Gansu Province. On this vase are four muscular dogs

fighting each other. The vase has been carbon dated to approximately 7000years old.

Ancient Chinese people believed the dog to be the God who safeguarded peopleat night. They saw the dog as a lucky sign and he was welcomed into theirhomes. One dog which China embraces as its own is theChow . Artefactsdating from 150 B.C. show the Chows existence as a hunting dog. The Chow

is one of the worlds oldest breeds of dogs. They were a wonderful all-roundbreed of dog that could hunt, retrieve, and point. They were excellent sled dogsand would haul loads in severe weather conditions with their thick, heavy coatshelping to keep them warm. They were used to guard property and boats. OneChinese Emperor is reputed to have kept 2,500 pairs of Chow! The dog was
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also bred for its distinctly flavoursome flesh, Chow or Chou being the Chinese word for edible. In 1878, a British historian wrote that he had found 25restaurants in Canton with Chow on the menu. A distinctive feature of theChow is its blue-black tongue that was said to taste most delicious. China

prohibited the buying or selling of dog meat in 1915.

Another ancient breed is theShar Pei, which originated inthe Kwangtung Provincearound 200 B.C.

Shar Pei means sand skinreferring to the coat, which isshort and rough. It also has ablue-black tongue. These dogs were highly intelligent, aloof and stubborn.They were also bred for fighting, their short coats and loose skin made itimpossible for an opponent to get hold of them. The loose skin also helpedthem to twist and turn to face their adversary even when being held. The Shar

Pei had hooked teeth for a firmer grip. Following World War Two, as Chinastabilised under communist law and became The Peoples Republic of Chinathe government were hard put to feed the human population. Dogs were atfirst highly taxed and later banned altogether. The dog population of China

was virtually wiped out only a few being kept in far-flung villages. The Shar Peifaced extinction but the breed survived as a few were bred in Taiwan and HongKong. In 1973 a Hong Kong breeder called Matgo Law wrote to American

magazines for help in reviving the breed. This resulted in the continuance inthe breed, as we know it today. In 1978 the Shar Pei gained distinction as beingthe rarest breed of dog in the world and was entered into the Guinness Book of Records.
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The Chinese Fu Dog The Pekingese was also known as The Sacred Dog of Sinkiang or The Chinese Temple Forest Dog and it was bred from NorthernEuropean dogs mated with the Chow. It is thought that the Fu dog may also bethe link between the Chinese wolf and the Chow. The Fu dog or Pekingese was

considered to be protector of the home and the children. In the study carriedout by Elaine Ostrander into the genetic origins of dogs, the Pekingese was oneof the fourteen dogs which showed genetic ancestry. They are thought to be2000 years old. These dogs are highly revered by Chinese people.

The Peke is a striking dog with a black face and brown eyes. Colours rangefrom red sable to blonde and black and tan. They were bred to be bow-legged

to discourage them from straying far.

The Pekingese or Fu dog was bredexclusively to be a companion to theEmperors, his ladies and his eunuchs. Noone else could own these dogs and to stealone was punishable by death. The

Forbidden City was invaded during thesecond opium war or the Boxer Rebellionby allied troops. The Emperor Xianfeng

was forced to flee along with other membersof his court. One elderly aunt remainedaccompanied by her five Pekingese dogs. Asthe, foreign devils entered the palace she committed suicide. The five dogs

were removed before the palace was burned. Lord John Hey took a pair, whomhe called Schloff and Hytien to give to his sister, the Duchess of Wellington.Sir George Fitzroy took another pair for his cousins, the Duke and Duchess of Richmond and the fifth was presented to Queen Victoria of England, whonamed the dog Looty. This was the beginning of the breed in Europe.
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An Irish doctor called Dr Heuston had established smallpox vaccination clinicsin China at the request of the then Chinese government. The impact wasdramatic, resulting in a huge fall in the rate of death from Smallpox. To show his gratitude, the Chinese minister Li Hung Chang presented Dr Heuston with

a pair of Pekingese called Chang and Lady Li, which returned with the doctorthus establishing the breed in Ireland.

The Pekingese is said to have come from Buddha hence his name, the TempleDog. The rumoured reason Buddha made him so small was so that the littledog could destroy all the demons hiding in the corners of the temple. Buddhathen gave the Pekingese the heart of a lion so the dog could fight the fiercest

demons in China.

The Chihuahua got its name from theMexican state between west Texas and New Mexico. The Chihuahuas origins lie withthe ancient dogs of the Toltec people. Theirdogswere crossed with the hairless dogs

from the Orient. The Aztecs conquered theToltecs and took the dog as their own. TheChihuahua became a sacred icon of theupper classes and was used in religiousceremonies as a guide for the spirits of thedeparted. The Chihuahua is registered by Kennel Clubs as being the smallest dog. It

weighs only 2 to 6 pounds and stands at 6to 8 inches tall.

Other dogs such as the Lowchen, Lion Dog, or Le Petit Chien Lion originatedin Europe but these breeds are relatively modern in comparison with the
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ancient breeds of Chinaand Japan. Other breeds classed as Toy dogs includeCavalier King Charles Spaniel, Maltese, Yorkshire Terrier, Papillion and many others. It should be remembered that although these dogs are small in size they

were originally bred to assist man in various forms of work. The Yorkshire

Terrier for example was specifically bred to kill rats and other small vermin. While it is true that some of the toy dogs were bred to be lap dogs they have allevolved from the wolf and despite being small they carry many of their ancestralinstincts.


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Dogs are our link to Paradise. They dont know evil or jealousy or

discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to beback in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring...it was peace.

Milan Kundera

Kennel Clubs across the world recognise over 450 breeds of dogs. From anIrish Wolfhound or St Bernard to a Maltese or a tiny Papillion, no other animal

on the planet has such variety nor such genetic elasticity. Man has manipulatedthe dogs genes through breeding and interbreeding more than any other animalto suit his own needs and pleasures. Over the last hundred years dogs havebeen stretched and shrunk, their coats bred curly or smooth, their noses havebeen shortened and lengthened and their instincts honed and tuned to amultitude of specific tasks from killing to saving lives.

Someone once described dog breeding as painting with dog genetics. Dogbreeds are being split into even smaller categories. Desmond Morris wrote inhis book The Dictionary of Dogs that All a dog has to do is to look good,

walk proudly and not bite the judges.

This is the same animal that traces its ancestry back to Chinese Emperors,Egyptian Pharaohs, the Celts, and Alexander The Great. Would any of theseancient people recognise the dog as he is today?
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Amongst breeders, the purity of the breed has to bepassionately preserved and protected. In many cases thishas become an obsession. To register a newly born puppy

with any Kennel Club, the criteria is that both parents arepure bred and have registered pedigrees within the breed.Dog shows are taken extremely seriously and are highly competitive. There is big money to be made, as winningdogs can earn more than their keep as stud dogs or

breeding bitches. The standards for each breed have been decided and laiddown by Kennel Clubs. They are exact to the point of being almost ridiculous.

For example a King Charles Spaniel must have a coat that is: long, silky,straight and never curly and a Pekingese must have a slow, dignified rollinggait in front with close action behind. The descriptions of each breed read likea book, sometimes running into hundreds of poetic details. This is known asline breeding. Sometimes this interbreeding causes unwanted genes to bepassed down.

Often it is the case in breeding dogs that a champion sire will be usedrepeatedly, resulting in close family relations as generations pass. This isespecially true with dog breeds which are considered rare. Diseases andunwanted behavioural traits can be passed through generations, even thoughsymptoms are not apparent in the parents.Many traits skip generations, lying dormantuntil a recessive mutant gene emerges.

Pedigree breeding has to remain in-houseallowing no diversity to enter thebloodlines. This results in defects becomingcharacteristic to certain breeds. Forexample,Dalmatians are prone to deafness,

A dog making the best of Hip Dysplasia
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Boxersto heart disease,Border Collies have eye anomaly (CEA) and so on.Other conditions such as hip dysplasia, deformities and behavioural problemscan occur with pure-bred dogs.

Bruce Fogle writing in his Encyclopaedia of Dogs says that cross-bred dogs have a lifeexpectancy of 13 years compared to 7 yearsof some pure breeds. Sometimes precisionbreeding has its advantages. The fine-tuning of the sense of smell in some dogshas turned out to be of benefit to man. We

reap the benefits of a dogs wonderful senseof smell as the animal proves its excellence

with the Police Force and search and rescue teams. Border Collies have beenbred to enhance the herding instinct and are now reputed to be the best herdingdogs in the world. However, sadly mistakes have been made. It was decreedthat Bulldogsshould have big heads. Through this fine-tuning, the heads havebecome so big that they cannot pass through the birth canal, which forces them

to be born by Caesarean Section. Breeders decided thatGerman Shepherds,especially in the U.S., should be bred with sloped backs instead of the oldertraditional and more natural straight-lined backs. This has resulted in severehip dysplasia becoming a common problem.

Breeders are playing a dangerous game. In their search for perfection they arenarrowing the diversity of the dog as a species. Some say it would be better to

broaden the bloodlines to keep the breeds healthy.

The American Kennel Club and the Canine Health Foundation poured $1.4million into genetic research and other research. There has been an explosionin DNA testing for hereditary diseases. Now DNA tests are being used for 20

Increasing demands for sloping backs are unnatural and unfair on

these superb dogs.
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or so diseases that affect50 different breeds. The Dutch government has signedThe European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals. The DutchKennel Club tested 30 dog breeds. The results were alarming as they provedthat pure-bred dogs, because of exaggeration of type and inbreeding, suffered

more genetic problems than any other pet animal. To redress the problem they politely asked Breeders to stop the close inbreeding of dogs. This was met withlittle response so it has been decided to make the changes mandatory. TheDutch Kennel Club has changed the rules under which a dog can be registeredas a Pedigree. A pedigree certificate will only be given to puppies which meetthe new criteria. All other puppies will be issued with a Certificate of Descent.The new rules are far less demanding and no longer call for anything to be

excessive. For example, the standards no longer call for diamond shaped eyes, which have been the cause of horrendous diseases of the eyes.

Many people are against Kennel Clubadministered breeding programmes that severely restrict gene pools and base breeding rules onaesthetic qualities, thereby leading to ill-health in

the dog. Bulldogs are a classic example of manscomplete disregard for the well being of the dog,

when fashion and competitive edge is introduced.The Bulldog is grossly deformed and modernbreeders are perpetuating the problem with every puppy that is born. The Bulldogs healthproblems are directly related to the dog being interbred to emphasise certain

aspects of its appearance. The creature suffers from elongated soft palate, smalltrachea, eyelid anomalies, stenotic nares and hip dysplasia. The dog has severebreathing problems including snuffling, snorting, wheezing, grunting, and loudsnoring. In hot weather they struggle to breathe. They cant walk normally orrun without gasping for breath. Because of their stunted body they suffer from


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digestive problems andflatulence. Hip problems, heart problems, skinproblems, the list goes on and on. It is said that if you feel like throwing money at your vet then get a Bulldog!

Bulldog breeders charge from $1000 to $1500 per puppy. The reason for thishigh cost is to pay for the artificial insemination because Bulldogs cannot mate

without assistance. When the female is with young she cannot give birthnaturally as the bulldogs head is too large to pass through the birth canal. Inour view this is becoming shameful and is certainly breeding to extremes whichcauses dogs severe discomfort and sometimes death as our human requirementsand fashion-orientated demands grow beyond the natural realms of possibility

for a dog.

The Bulldog originated in England in the13th century and was called A ButchersDog as it controlled unruly cattle. Later itbecame more commonly used for bull-baiting. Not the most pleasant of pastimes

for sure, but the dog was entirely differentthan it is today. It was a strong, healthy dog, (it had to be to fight bulls) with atenacious, feisty character. The sport wasconsidered inhumane and was prohibited in1835. Show-dog breeders have turned the Bulldog into a caricature of the doghe once was. The dog has been bred to suit human social statements, with no

consideration to the well-being of the dog during its short life.

A picture of health, vitality and happiness?


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Assistance Dog is the generic umbrella term for dogs that have been trained orbred to assist humans in a functional capacity. A kind of extension of the very first steps humans and canines took when wolves came into contact with manfor lengthened periods.

Guide Dogs For The Blind

One of the first people to use a Guide Dog for the blind was Alan Caldwell, who said: Flash has revolutionised my outdoor life.

The first guide dog for theblind was trained in Potsdamin Germany. Towards the endof the First World War, adoctor was looking afterinjured war veterans when he

was called away from a blindman he was treating to anemergency case. He left his German Shepherd with the man. When hereturned he was so impressed at his dogs behaviour with the blind man andhow the two had interacted, that he decided to start an experiment in trainingdogs to work for blind people.

So successful was he that in 1923 a guide dog training centre was established which, over the next ten years, trained several thousand dogs. Most of the dogs were German Shepherds as the GSD has a strong sense of loyalty to its owner


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and by having a dog with excellent protective instincts, the blind person felt safeand protected.

A wealthy American woman, Mrs Dorothy Harrison Eustis, was breeding

German Shepherds in Switzerland for the customs service and the police. Shevisited the Potsdam Centre and was so impressed that she wrote an article forthe American Saturday Evening Post, in October 1927. A blind Americancalled Morris Frank bought the newspaper and later he was reputed to have saidthat the five cents he paid for the newspaper bought an article that was worthmore than a million dollars to me. Frank wrote to Mrs Eustis with a heartfeltplea: I want one of those dogs he said. Thousands of blind people like me

abhor being dependent on others. Help me and I will help them. Mrs Eustistrained a German Shepherd dog and a few weeks later Morris Frank hadBuddy at his side. He was the first person in America to have a guide dog forthe blind.

The dogs undergo an intense trainingprogramme both in-house and with the

public. The dog must have first learnt allthe basic commands to perfection. The dogmust be sociable with no sniffing, snapping,or jumping up on people. The dog istrained to negotiate obstacles, barriers,street crossings, city and country environments and all means of public

transport. Once the dog is considered to beexperienced with all aspects of the trainingit is introduced to its new owner. Then thetraining starts again to educate the guidedog and the blind owner as they form a trusting relationship.


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This was to be the beginning of a plethora of organisations across the worldtraining guide dogs for the blind. To have a guide dog means that a blindperson regains independence and can go outside to traverse the streets, usepublic transport, visit shops, and doing so safely in the knowledge that the dog

beside him will be his eye on the world. Millions of people have benefited onceagain from the special relationship that man has with dogs.

Therapy Dogs

Therapy Dogs International was

formed in 1978 after it wasdiscovered that holding or stroking adog lowers blood pressure andrelieves strain and tension in people

who are depressed. Therapy dogshelp people who are in need of anemotional service. Both children and

adult lives are enhanced by interacting with therapy dogs.Children with Cerebral Palsy, SpinaBifida and many other disabilitiesoften find benefit from contact witha therapy dog. Golden Retrievers, StBernards, and Labradorsall make

excellent therapy dogs with their soft fur and appealing eyes they bring smiles tothe faces of children and enhance their lives.

Medical Research has also shown that some dogs are able to use their incredibly advanced sense of smell to detect skin cancers. Many peoples lives have been
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saved by such scent testing, especially in Australia and the US in areas of strongsunshine and harmful UV rays where fair skinned people are especially vulnerable.

Hearing Dogs

These dogs assist deaf or hard of hearing individuals by drawing their attentionto a number of household sounds. This could be the ringing of a doorbell,alarm clock, appliance buzzer, or smoke alarm. Someone calling a name oreven a babys cry can be the trigger if trained correctly, and the dogs response

can be preset to whatever is required in their assistance environment. The dogsused are usually small to medium-sized dogs from various breeds and have to besociable and friendly. Like the guide dogs, the hearing dogs have to undertakean intensive training programme before meeting their new owners.

Service Dogs

Service dogs are trained toassist disabled people by fetching or carrying objects,opening or closing doors,turning light switches on oroff, and many other tasks

which the disadvantagedperson cannot do. Thegreatest gift the assistance dogbrings to its human partner isoverwhelming love and companionship.


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Search and Rescue Do gs

From someone trapped under tons of rubble in a disaster area or a child lost ona hillside, dogs are there to assist. In floods, hurricanes, accident sites and in

countries stricken by war we call for the expertise of a dog-enabled search andrescue team.

One dog and its handler can do the work of twenty men in a fraction of thetime. Dogs can sense odours at concentrations 100 million times lower thanhumans can. They have 220 million sniffer cells compared to our own inferiornumber of just 5 million. They can detect sound vibrations at 250 yards that

most humans cannot hear at 25 yards. They can detect one drop of blood infive quarts of water. The dogs eyesight is more sensitive than our own with a

wider field of view and a heightened ability to detect motion on the horizon.Dogs have super-sensitive hearing, another asset in locating buried or trappedhumans.

Every single country in the world uses dogs in assisting humans or rescuing

them. Teams of dogs and experienced search and rescue workers travelanywhere in the world to wherever there has been a disaster. In 2005 searchand rescue teams travelled to Pakistan to help people trapped after theearthquake. The professionalism demonstrated between the team members andtheir dogs led to many human lives being saved.

On September 11th, 2001, The World Trade Centre was attacked killing

thousands of people and causing devastation the likes of which America hadnever witnessed before. Scores of emergency service teams rushed to the site.Fire, Ambulance, and Police worked side by side to rescue victims buried underthe collapsed towers.


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Rushing to assist came search and rescue teams from several countries, as well asteams from across the states of America. Over 250 search and rescue dogs

worked tirelessly without any protective clothing or gas masks. They searchedareas far too dangerous for humans to venture into. Trained to detect sweat and

other body odours, they can also distinguish between the living and the dead.One exhausted team worker said of the dogs: They go underneath into voidspaces, anywhere we can get the dogs in. The site is very difficult for the dogs.They are crawling on their bellies and squeezing through things. Itsincredible. Many of the dogs were emotionally traumatised by the carnage andunprecedented stress they encountered, but still they carried on working.


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What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight;

its the size of the fight in the dog.Dwight D. Eisenhower (and Barry McGuigan!)

The Police, the Armed Forces and CustomsControl all use various breeds of dogs intheir daily fight against crime. Indeed, overthe centuries right up to the present day,dogs have been employed as peacekeepersand guards.

The Police Force in the United Kingdomstarted using dogs as early as the 15thcentury. Dogs went out on patrol withPolice Constables as they patrolled thestreets, especially in smaller towns andvillages. There was a lull in using dogs after1918, despite other countries in the worldbuilding up their own dog patrols. In 1946the Metropolitan Police Force decided to re-introduce dogs and by the late 60s mostforces throughout the United Kingdom

were working with dogs. Generally GermanShepherds are employed for patrol work,riot control and apprehending criminals. Other breeds such as SpringerSpaniels, Labradors and Border Collies assist in drug detection or in detectingexplosives.


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Military Forces use dogs in a similar way. Again, mostly German Shepherds are usedas sentry dogs to accompany military guardson patrol. The dogs give warning by

barking or growling when strangers arenear. This is useful at night to preventbeing attacked from the rear.

Dogs have also been deployed to war zones,right up to the present day. Many wereused in World War 2. A famous war dog

from World War 2 was Chips. He was assigned to the Third Infantry Divisionto serve in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany. He was trained as asentry dog. One day Chips broke away from his handler and attacked apillarbox containing an enemy machine gun crew. He seized one man and wasso ferocious that the entire crew surrendered. Chips was awarded the Silver Starand the Purple Heart.

In 1993 Disney made a TV movie about Chips. Chips went to Pleasantville,New York to enjoy life as a civilian. His new family gave Chips a loving homebut the dogs happiness was short lived. He died seven months later fromcomplications resulting from his war injuries. Chips was only six years old.

The war dogs role has not always been a pleasant one. For their amusement,the Romans would watch their huge Mastiffs disembowel people in the arena.

The Spanish Conquistadors invaded the West Indies taking their war dogs withthem. In 1513 a missionary called Bartolome de Las Casas wrote:

The Spaniards with their horses, their spears and lances began to commit murders

and other stranger cruelties. They entered into towns and villages, sparing neither


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old men nor women. They ripped their bellies and cut them to pieces as if they had

been slaughtering lambs in a field Most tried to flee. They tried to hide in the

mountains. Men who were empty of all pity, behaving like savage beasts. These evil

men had even taught their hounds, fierce dogs to tear natives to pieces at first sight.

During the Roman Empire entire formations of dogs were used in battle.Many were equipped with spiked collars and armour. Napoleon used dogs toguard the gates of Alexandria in Egypt. The Spanish used dogs against thenative Indians when they invaded Mexico and Peru.

The first American Canine Corps was set up in the Seminole war of 1835.Cuban-bred Bloodhounds were used to track Indians and runaway slaves.In 1884 the German Army at Lechernich, Berlin, set up the first organisedmilitary school for dogs.

Dogs were used by many of the armies during both World Wars. In 1988 theIsraeli Special Forces sent four Rottweilers with bombs strapped to their backs,

on a suicide mission against enemy bunkers in Lebanon. The operation wascode named Blue and Brown.

The East Germans used over 5000 dogs to patrol the Berlin Wall. 2500 wereused as guard dogs and 2,700 as horse dogs on patrol.

The French Armed Forces used 1177 German Shepherds and the Americans

used 88 teams of dogs during the Gulf War.

Throughout warfare, dogs have displayed bravery at their masters side. They have been used as guards, messengers in battle, mascots, in detecting mines andother explosives, and in tracking and searching for the enemy. They have been


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deployed to Vietnam, K orea, Northern Ireland, Singapore, Bosnia, and Kosovoto name but a few countries. They have been shot at, faced falling bombs, anddropped by parachute from aircraft. Dogs have played the heros role throughthe centuries, often sacrificing their lives in the line of duty.

A somewhat darker

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