Continued from page 2
Scent hounds. These dogs form a well defined group of dogs with a strong orientation towards scent hunting. The smaller breeds are traditionally used on rabbits, the larger breeds when used on larger or more dangerous game are used in packs. The pack hunting dogs have the drive to actively kill cornered game. When used on prey that will retreat to a burrow the pack also would include a terrier to to dig the prey out. Because scent hounds are used for forest and brush hunting they are also bred to give tongue or bay during the hunt and their voices are selected to have the low tone baying sound that carries well over considerable distance. A good huntsman can identify his various hound by their voices. However this behavior of baying can make them undesirable as pets in situations where owners are sensitive to noise or where neighbors live close to you. Small scenthounds are generally hunted from foot, medium sized and large scent hounds may be hunted from horseback or leashed if hunted from foot.
Coursing hounds - Hunting dogs who are more highly developed as high speed runners than the wild canid ancestors. The primary trigger for their pursuit is the sight of fleeding prey which they overtake and capture during its flight. Generally hunted in pairs on small game such as hares or jackrabbits or in greater numbers if the prey is large and can fight back such as wolves or deer. In most traditions of hunting with coursing hounds the hounds kill the fleeing game. If the game is brought to bay at a standstill the hounds were aided in the kill by the hunter. The larger coursing hound breeds were hunted from horseback and they are suitable for hunting in open landscape, not heavily forested regions. They hunt silently.
Dachshunds - These small hunting dogs were developed in Germany and exist in many varieties of size, coat type and color. Although bold and eager to hunt they are more tolerant of other dogs than the working Terriers. Their short legs are unique in the hunting dogs (other than terriers), and adaptation for going into borrows after game. The name means "Badger Hound" and they are bold enough to take on such a strong willed opponent.
Terriers (Earth dogs) - Terriers are high energy dogs bred for the hunting and killing of rats, mice, foxes and other small to medium sized animals that are reguarded as pests or vermin in relation to human activities, especially farming activities. They are very active dogs with strong prey drive directed to small and medium sized furry animals. Their behavioral profile includes a strong drive to dig because the animals they are targeted on to hunt retreat to burrows. Terriers were expected to follow them into the burrow and to have the feistyness, energy and pluck (courage) to fight the cornered prey in these close quarters. This fiestyness and courage combined with their well developed sense of territory means that they are often intolerant of other dogs.
They are active little dogs and frequently come with wire texture coats which leads them to have 'cute faces'. Their livelyness, lack of fear and alertness makes them relatively easy to motivate in situations such as being a canine actor so they are frequently present on TV shows and in the movies. A lot of terriers end up being given up by novice owners who were attracted to the small size thinking they were getting a companion-temperament dog rather than an active small hunter with strong territorial desires. Before getting a terrier, thoroughly investigate the breed in question! The small terriers are one of the best examples of the observations that NOT ALL SMALL DOG BREEDS HAVE THE COMPANION DOG PERSONALITY.
The hunting terriers are encountered in a range of body forms from long headed, square built dogs to long headed, short legged dogs for following prey into their burrows. The bull (short) headed terriers are considered under Bull Breeds in our classification.
(4) LIVESTOCK HERDING DOGS (Drover's Dogs)
These are high energy dogs used to move livestock around as well as to guard the herd. The act of herding is an interrupted hunt so most of the primitive predatory behavior is retained in these dogs with the terminal act of predation, the kill, being blocked by training and selective breeding. Obviously maintaining this specialized behavior of the kill-blocked hunt is a difficult matter in dog management and quite a bit of our older dog fiction is devoted to the tragedy the shepherd's dog gone bad.
The larger dogs of these breeds have proven to be so well suited to police and military work that the average non dog person does not realize that the reason the German Shepherd Dog is so named is that it was used to move livestock around in response to the owner's command. These dogs are not easy to own because their energy levels, especially as puppies, require that the owner be involved in an active training program. Such dogs cannot trained by a certain age and then ignored - rather, owning one is a life long commitment by the owner to provide work and companionship. If you are looking for a high energy attentive dog with which to interact, these are breeds to consider. However the fact that they are a very trainable group of dogs means that owning one demands that you have time, energy and interest in training. If you do not the dog will be uncontrollable and you will not be a happy dog owner.
Different strategies are required for herding sheep (which can be easily panicked) and cattle (which can fight back). Thus Livestock Herding Dogs are divided into dogs bred to herd cattle (Cattle Dogs, Bouviers, Treibhunde) and dogs bred to herd sheep (Sheepdogs, Bergers, Schäferhunde )
(5)LIVESTOCK GUARDING AND PROTECTION DOGS
After the domestication of the dog as a hunting companion this may represent one of the oldest functions for which dogs were bred. Large massive dogs with greatly reduced prey drive and a strong sense of territory are reared with flocks of domestic sheep and goats even today. They regard the flock as their pack and protect it. They are not used to move the flock, this would require retention of hunting behaviors. The large size not only increases their effectness in a fight but discourages excessive activity. Even today, most of these breeds are recognized as being herd guarding dogs. Generally these breeds show some degree of shortening of the face when compared to wolves. This shortening of the head is termed "Brachychephaly".
(6) MASTIFFS AND WORKING BULL BREEDS
Mastiff breeds - the most extreme in size of the guarding dogs, mastiffs are characterized by widening and great shortening of the head and great massiveness of the limbs and body. The wide short muzzled heads are associated with reduced size of the internal nares and these dogs are prone to overheating in hot, humid situations pretty much in direct proportion to their size and shortness of muzzle. The Mastiff type is quite ancient, being seen in the old Roman breed the Molossus
Bull Breeds - specialized dogs bred for extreme shortness of head and breadth of shoulder. Originally these were athletic short headed dogs used by butchers to hold cattle and other animals for slaughter as well as do some herding under command. However modern English Bull dogs are so exaggerated in their characteristics to have become a parody of the working animals. The overheating and breathing problems seen in Mastiffs are of course also present in these very short headed dogs.
(7) FIGHTING DOGS.
Fighting dogs are a specialized class selected for willingness to engage in battle with another dog. The fighting breeds generally have certain physical characteristics in common. Loose skin, small ears, small tight lidded eyes, massive jaws and heavy muscling. They do not have the exaggerated short heads of the bull breeds as this would lead to overheating and loss of endurance. They tend to be quite resistant to pain and to have a sort of bipolar personality in which they are either relaxed and outgoing or are in focused fighting mode. In most countries in which this essay will be read dog fighting is illegal because it is considered inhumane. It is still pursued as a sport even when banned.
Fighting dog breeds have an appeal as guard dogs. In addition the individuals who have the overall breed personality of being outgoing and confident but lack the breed specific fighting frenzy make excellent pets. The association of images of human power and worth with the ownership of a dog from a fighting dog breed has lead to an unfortunate popularity of these dogs and a tendency for novices to obtain them. Thus dogs of the fighting dog breeds, principally "pit bulls", are among the commonest large dogs in urban animal shelters in the United States and are frequently the focus of 'dangerous dog laws'. Fighting dog breeds seem to have originated from other breeds and breed crosses by selecting for exaggerated pluck and courage, the ability to focus on the task at hand, especially fighting, massive muscling and reduced sensitivity to physical pain. They blend in with the terriers on the one hand and the mastiff/bull breeds on the other.
Before buying any breed of dog, learn about the natural instincts of that breed. Before buying any breed of dog, learn about the sort or training required to create a dog that is your idea of a suitable companion.
This is especially true of dogs bred as working dogs. Working dogs generally have enhanced levels of energy as well as highly focused drives and well developed behaviors related to their expected work: guard dogs bark alarms and pace, hunting dogs seek to roam and hunt, herding dogs become bored if they can't drive livestock around and will take out their herding needs by nipping at the heels of children. Dogs from the fighting dog breeds are not dogs to be owned by people who lack the time and interest to thoroughly train their dog, and they should never be owned as a first dog.About the Authors
Top Back
 NetPets® Main Page |  The Dog Center |