LEVANTE LIFESTYLE

DOG BREEDS

By Dr Inka Labsch

WHICH BEST SUITS ME?

If you want to acquire a dog you can choose between more than 300 different breeds. The problem is deciding which breed suits you.

Breeds of dog differ in their current or traditional main use. Every breed was bred for a specific purpose, which still dominates their behaviour.
We can distinguish five main breed groups based on the objective they were bred for:

1. Utility dogs: bred for defence, life-saving and/or cattle guarding or pulling sleds.
2. Hunting dogs: bred for different hunting tasks.
3. Company dogs: bred purely for company.
4. Racing dogs.
5. Terrier group.

UTILITY DOGS
They are mostly big or even huge dogs. They were used to guard cattle in remote areas, even on their own (Spanish Mastin, Pyrenean Mountain Dog), or to defend the owner or their property. The St. Bernard was used to save people who were lost in the mountains, and the Newfoundland to rescue people from the water. The German Shepherd is used more for personal defence, drug searches or for searching for survivors after earthquakes and natural disasters than cattle guarding.
Huskies and Alaskan Malamutes are still used for pulling sleds in Alaska and Greenland. Breeds like Schnauzer, Boxer, Mastiff and Rottweiler have always been used to guard properties or by the police and military for defence.

Every country has bred its own utility breed. For example, Collies and Mastiffs are bred in England, Boxers, Rottweilers, Dobermans, Great Danes and German Shepherds are bred in Germany, while the Bernese Mountain Dog and St. Bernhard are Swiss breeds.

Spain has the Spanish Mastin and the Pyrenean Mastin, Italy the Mastine Napolitano.
There are about 100 different utility breeds, and I’m not going to mention them all here. But if you want to acquire a dog from this group you have to know what it means to live with a big, strong dog:

• They need a task! As we do not normally use them to guard cattle or our belongings on the market as in former times, we have to create a task for them. This means training and education and the development of a strong relationship between the dog and its owner. These dogs need a boss.
• These dogs can be very stubborn, especially the giant breeds, as in the past they were left on their own. They can be dangerous if they run out of control.
• They need long walks and some task training. Giant dogs are good for guard dog training (avoid defence training), and for searching. Lighter dogs are very good for agility lessons; shepherd dogs in particular can burn up energy well in this way.
• They are natural guard dogs. If they have a close relationship with their owner they guard both them and their property. If they are not properly trained they can be dangerous guard dogs which have to be closed in all the time.

In summary, utility dogs are not suitable for beginners. Owners need some experience and training; they should have the time for this and should enjoy dog training.

Beginners should join a dog training group, so they are given good advice right from the start.
If you fulfil all these conditions, you will have a great dog you will love and which will be a marvellous companion.

HUNTING DOGS
Hunting dogs is a very large dog group. Are lot of breeds are kept as pets, and you may be surprised to learn they have been bred for hunting.

There are breeds for ‘water hunting’, that is to pick up short water birds from the water: *bleep*er Spaniel, Irish Water Spaniel, Labrador-Retriever, Perro de Agua Español, to mention the most common breeds. The Poodle was also once used for hunting in the water.

Other breeds are used to hunt underground. They were sent into underground caves or holes to chase out or kill foxes or badgers, and include Dachshund, Basset Hound and the Silky Terrier.

The biggest hunting dog group is the “Braco”, or Pointers. They indicate where the prey is, and after it is shot they locate it and recover it. This group includes: Pointer, English Setter, Irish Setter, Gordon Setter, the German Bracos, Golden Retriever and Flat Coated Retriever.

Within this group there are extremely good tracers with an experienced nose, which are used to fetch wounded wild animals or animals which have disappeared: Springer Spaniel, Field Spaniel, Blood Hound, Weimaraner.

Other dogs were bred for chasing and killing prey: Beagle and Foxhound for foxes, Podenca and Greyhound for rabbits, Presa Canario and Dogo Argentino for wild boar and other bigger animals, and Rhodesian Ridgeback for lions.

Apart from this final group and the underground hunters, hunting dogs generally have a good character. They are lovely companions, good with children and good with other dogs, but very active. They need long walks and a lot of playing or activity to avoid undesired hunting.

Of the water hunters, only the Red *bleep*er Spaniel had a bad reputation for a while due to over-breeding when it became a very fashionable breed, which led to fearful-aggressive behaviour.
The underground hunters are very self-aware: imagine how brave they are to go alone into a cave to kill a fox or a badger much bigger than themselves!

This means they need strict training to prevent them from fighting with other dogs. They have guard dog faculties, something which Pointers and Bracos have not inherited.

The ‘searching’ dogs for big prey are a special group which needs dog experiences; some of them feature on the dangerous dogs list.

The dogs used for smaller prey have good characters, but they need training and lots of agility or other tasks to avoid unwanted hunting.

The Podenca is the ideal companion dog for horse riders or walkers, but without intense activity they will become depressed or tend to escape on their own.

While the Spanish greyhound can be really quiet, it is a beautiful and elegant dog, which needs a soft bed, a quiet environment and one big run a day.