The Vizsla has multiple names just like the Australian Cattle Dog. They are known as Vizsla (which means pointer), Hungarian pointer or the Magyar Vizsla. This breed has been around for over a thousand years and are considered one of the oldest known hunting dogs. It is thought that the vizsla is a descendant of the eighth-century Hungarian hunting dogs. The vizsla has faced near extinction not once but twice with the first being from the Turkish Occupation (1526-1696) with a more serious decline after the Hungarian Civil War (1848-1849). The breed recovered from a small stock of about 12 true vizslas thanks to Hungarian sportsmen. The second near extinction the vizslas faced was after the two World Wars and Russian Occupation but were saved this time in part thanks to Mrs. Elizabeth Mihalyi. Mrs. Elizabeth escaped Hungary with her family Vizsla named Panni XV and was bred with Betyar from Austria. This breeding established the Panni-Betyar line which is recognized by the AKC as a foundation stock of the breed. Vizslas are known for their exceptional hunting skills, relentless loyalty, and versatility. The breed was highly regarded and treasured by Hungarian nobility. For centuries landowning aristocrats horded the vizsla and preserved their pure blood with more recently the breed is seen as not only a great hunting companion but also one great for families. The vizsla is not only treasured for their physical features but also their ability to adapt to various situations which made them versatile and reliable for tasks beyond hunting. The vizslas were not only tied to nobility and status but they also proved their worth during times of war and conflict. They were used to guard camps, sentinels, deliver messages and be a part of miliary campaigns. Dye to their speed and endurance that allowed them to be able to travel long and difficult terrains the breed was entrusted with carrying important messages across the battlefield to friendly commanders and troops. Even during the hardships of the battlefield the vizsla remained by the side of their soldier companions.

The Australian Cattle Dog aka Heelers have also been called Queensland Heeler, Halls Heeler, Blue Heeler and Red Heeler. The Australian Cattle Dog earned their other name, Heeler, due to moving cattle by nipping at their heels. This trait is present due to their dingo ancestry. What breeds were used to make up the Australian Cattle Dog is up for debate due to the records being disposed of but it is thought that some breeds include: Blue Collies, Kelpie, Bull Terrier and the Dalmatian (although the Dalmatian has been questioned). How a wild dog would breed with a domesticated dog is not entirely known but a popular theory is that a litter of Dingo puppies were abandoned and raised domestically and from there was able to breed with domesticated dogs. While the theory is a consideration it is in fact a man named Thomas Hall who is credited for developing the breed. It is said that Hall, a cattle rancher, imported dogs from the United Kingdom, such as the blue-speckled Highland Collie, other sources say bob-tailed drover dogs with a blue coat, and crossbred them with the wild Dingo. This crossbreeding created a dog that was sturdy, tough, robust, active and could handle the Australian Outback but also work alongside their human. It was in 1825 that Hall was first successful in breeding this new breed of cattle dog. Through continual and selective breeding, he had developed an extremely handy cattle dog by 1832. It wasn’t until after his death is 1870 that his dogs would become available to other people aside from friends and family. This is also where the breeding records of how the cattle dog came to be is lost to history due to the details of his breeding program being thrown away. Sometime between 1845 and 1855 another type of Heeler was developed. These were known as Timmins’ Biter and were leaner than Hall’s Heelers, were blue and had stumpy tails. Cattle dogs were also said to be mixed with Kelpie which helped further develop their herding abilities and changes to their markings.

The Labrador Retriever that we know and love today has quite the interesting history. The Labrador Retriever how they are recognized today is originally from England but they actually go back further than that not only in time but also distance. The Labrador Retriever goes back to the 18th and 19th century but went by a different name and look entirely. The St. John’s Water Dog, named after Newfoundland’s capital, had a dense, oily waterproof coat and thick tail with more forward-facing ears. They loved the cold and the water and were more than happy to retrieve anything from lost fisherman hats to fish that managed to get away despite temperature and conditions. These hardy and useful dogs lived on the island of Newfoundland but are thought to be the result of Europeans coming over with their own hunting dogs and they are the ancestors of Newfoundland dogs. It is thought that, much like the spaniels, there were two distinct size and appearance of dogs, one that was large and long coated, and one that was smaller with a short oily coat, which the fishermen preferred as it was easier to maintain. The smaller dogs became known as St. John’s Water Dog and were very important and essential to the fisherman in Newfoundland. How the St. John’s Water Dog turned into the Labrador Retriever began with one man named James Harris, the 2nd Earl of Malmesbury, and he imported some of the St. John’s Water Dog dogs in the early 1800s and began breeding them for shooting companions. Later a man named Walter Scott, the 5th Duke of Beccleuch, also imported some St. John’s Water Dog dogs to Scotland and started his own breeding kennel, which is still in operation today. It wouldn’t be until a generation later, in the 1880s, when these two men’s sons met at a shoot and decided to work together and breed these two lines of St. John’s Water Dog together and thus the Labrador Retriever was born. The Labrador Retriever got their name from the Earl of Malmesbury who is thought to have been a little rusty on Canadian geography. It is also said that Newfoundland and Labrador were also used interchangeably when referring to the region. When he first saw these dog’s he, correctly, thought that they would be good at duck hunting.

A Hurricane in a Teacup One of the earliest mention of spaniels in England was in 1576 by English physician John Caius in his book Treatise of Englishe Dogs. In his book spaniels were described and separated by function then later in 1801 Sydenham Edwards suggested that they be divided into Springing, Hawking Spaniel, or Starter; and the Cocking or Cocker Spaniel. The English Springer, alongside other spaniels, primarily grew in the counties of Norfolk and Shropshire. They were originally separated by size: less than 25lbs would be a cocker spaniel and those over 25lbs would be called springers. During this time both types of spaniels were born in the same litters, and both had a function: to serve as a hunting dog. The smaller spaniels, cockers, were used to hunt woodcock, hence the breed’s name, and the larger spaniels, springers, would “spring” or flush the gamebirds into the air. In the 1600s these spaniels were further categorized as land spaniels and were used to not only flush out birds but also rabbits. In 1902 the English Springer Spaniel was officially recognized by the English Kennel Club and recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1910. In 1914 the first English Field Champion was crowned, FTC Rivington Sam, and is considered one of the foundation sires for modern field lines. The Springers job back then is similar to what the field line is bred for in modern day: bird hunting and retrieve game. Whether the hunters used nets, bows, birds of prey or rifles to hunt down the flushed birds the Springer Spaniel remained very important and became known as a gun dog. . Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Springer_Spaniel, https://moderndogmagazine.com/articles/breeds/the-english-springer-spaniel/

The St Bernard: the making of an Alpine legend The St. Bernard is a dog that when mentioned most of us will have the same image in their mind: a large fluffy dog with a droopy face and a small barrel (cask) strapped around their neck. If this was the image in your mind you are not alone as it is essential to the St. Bernard image. With various origin stories as to whether the cask played a part in their rescue missions it is thought that the little barrel contained alcohol that lost travelers consumed to restore blood flow temporarily. The type of alleged alcohol is unknown but there is speculation as to whether it was rum or a local secret concoction. In 1887 the St. Bernard was recognized as a Swiss dog breed, but they had been in the area for hundreds of years already. The breed is said to be descendants of dogs that were gifted to the monks and were originally bred to guard and protect hospice residents. The hospice was founded by Bernard de Menthon, the Archdeacon of Aosta, to make the St. Bernard pass safer for travelers. The hospice also provided a place to worship on site which is documented as far back as the year 1125. Soon the breed began to show their amazing skills of rescuing lost travelers and those buried in the snow The monks began training St. Bernards (aka “Barry Dogs”) in the 1700s. They recognized that these dogs had an incredible sense of smell and their thick double coat and large “snowshoe” paws were ideal for such a dangerous environment. These rescue missions are well documented, and legend has it that Napoleon Bonaparte’s soldiers helped confirm the reputation of the St. Bernard. The most famous being Barry the St. Bernard: the original rescue dog. Barry (1800-1814), who now has the Barry Foundation and has a museum called Barryland, is credited with at least 40 rescue missions. He began his heroic rescue missions long before search and rescue teams ever existed. He is not only known for his legendary courage towards saving human lives he is credited with developing the entire idea of mountain rescue.