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| Cover of current issues of Earth Dog- Running Dog. Picture by Paul Dooley! |
I recently read the standard of the Portuguese Podengo Pequenos, a very terrier-looking dog. Some of the reasons given for various structural requirements show the writers knew little or nothing about hunting. They claim this little dog should be able to hunt down, kill and carry an eight to ten pound rabbit. Sounds more like a jack rabbit-sized quarry, and a small dog isn't going to catch a jack. However, the standard does say there is no size limit in the breed, so maybe the big ones are the coursing dogs and the little ones do the tight cover work? Give it a look.
Also, the same publication, 'Sight and Scent, The Magazine of the Hound Group', has comments from breeders about what to look for in Bluetick Coonhounds. Read this:"I would also like to stress the importance of tight cat feet. Coonhounds need these tight feet to keep their feet safe from briars (What? How?) and other hazards on the ground as well as helping them move fast in all types of groundcover. They also need to be able to 'grab' the tree when they are treeing their desired quarry." How do cat feet help hold onto bark? Crazy. The best comment this breeder includes is when she talks about the 'head piece of the Bluetick': "They should have proper lips,...". What the heck are 'proper' lips?
Best,
Teddy, on my way to dig a groundhog with my less-than-show-quality dachshunds!
Let's be clear what these dogs are (and let's toss in their associates the Ibizan Hounds, the Pharaoh Dog, and the other less well-known Podengoes of the Azores and Canaries).
These can be described as "ancient breeds of primitive type," but more accurately they can be described as a pariah village dog that the show dog world is now trying to force into a closed registry so they can collect more ribbons.
A hunting dog? Sure -- but only if you yourself hunt them, and only to the extent that any dog can be used to brush for rabbits.
And how many Podengo or Pharaoh Hound owner actually use their dogs to hunt? Not many!
What owners of these breeds mostly chase is ribbons, plastic bags, and fantasy.
Of course, this is not the first time that a village pariah dog has been pulled into "the fancy," is it? I have written about the true history of their cousin, the Basenji, im an article entitled "What the Hell is a Congo Terrier?" and there are a few others to write about if I only had the time.
And is the Podengo a breed? Nope. Not even close. Remember, this is a dog that comes in three sizes and as many coats per size, and has more "looks" than David Bowie did in the 1970s.
A dog that breeds true? Well, sometimes. Maybe from kennel to kennel. It depends on who is doing the breeding!
But no, this dog is not a breed as that term is commonly understood, but a dog of three very different "types."
A "type" is a far larger and far looser group structure than breed, and types are very common in the world of true working dogs where the standard is the work, not the look.
But is the work standard of the Podengo very tough?
Only if you think it's hard to bush rabbits or drive boar.
Since that's a job that has been done at various times by terrier, whippet, corgi, collie, dachshund, retriever, and lurcher, you will pardon me if I am not willing to give these "ancient breeds of primitive type" a more specialized distinction than "village pariah dog" of which a few might actually be useful.
And no, there's nothing wrong with being just that! Why would anyone think that is an insult?
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** Earthdog - Running Dog Gets Its Own Site
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5 comments:
While I agree that a great many "breeds" have "jobs" which can be done by any number of other "breeds," I have to say that with respect to the Ibizan Hounds, and other podenco types like the Pharaoh Hound (properly known as the Kelb-tal Fenek), the work that they do in their country of origin is quite unique and the fact that they continue to be used in that capacity I find to be quite telling of their specialized skill in that particular field of hunting. I have watched Ibizan Hounds run jackrabbits in California and it's very clear that these dogs are not coursing dogs. However, when faced with the kind of terrain and cover they might encounter in Spain (i.e. rocky hills with high and heavy cover) they are suddenly in their element and it's very clear what they were designed to do.
The "work" of these dog is not unique at all.
Rabbits exist all over the world and they are either caught above ground with TRUE running dogs, or else they are feretted or netted or shot or snared.
Same work with the same quary all over the world, and the Podenga and these other pariah dog types are so poor at the job that they are not used in most of the world and that is a fact.
As for the rocky ground (which also exists all over the world, I assure you), here is how these dogs hunt, and it is hardly an impressive feat of running or finding.
From >>
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/en/newsdetails/news/national/Shots-in-the-night-or-in-the-foot
"In his blog 'Rabbit hunting with the kelb tal-fenek in Malta' Peter Gatt writes that 'a dark sky with a good breeze, preferably from the north,' are good conditions for a night hunt for rabbit.
"He explains that the 'fenek' (rabbit) has excellent eyesight with optimum sense of smell and hearing. 'A dark, windy night does increase, to some extent, the chance of the Pharaoh Hound (Kelb tal-Fenek) to catch its prey.
"On the contrary, a moon-lit night would allow the 'fenek' to see its predator well in advance, thus enabling it to flee, well before the dog has caught sight or wind of it. When working against the wind, the dog has the advantage of scenting the prey well ahead, and this without the rabbit having a clue that the dog is on its tracks.
"The hunt is done with the aid of a ferret (nemes), which is usually placed inside a 'garzella' - a round basket made locally out of wicker. With long canvas straps, this is held slung over the shoulder. The 'xbiek' - strong nets of varying sizes - are placed into a sack."
Also told at >>
http://www.kelb-tal-fenek.com/rabbithunt.htm
So how is this different from ferreting rabbits with mutt dogs (terriers and lurchers) anywhere in the world? It's not, other than in Malta all this seems to be done at night because... ???!
Bottom line: This is very common, low-grade, and not very specialized rabbit-bushing work that is done by a pariah dog. This pariah dog's performance at this work is so undistinguished that the "breed" has not caught on much, and it's main feature seems to be to help bolster personal and regional identity.
Perhaps I worded my last post incorrectly. You are right that rabbits exist all over the world and are hunted by a variety of different types of dogs. What is unique about the Ibizans is the way that they hunt them. The terrain they hunt in is very different than the terrain ferreters in the UK usually face. In Spain, where Ibizans are still used to hunt rabbits, the terrain is very, very steep and covered in thick and tall brush. The typical terrain encountered by a rabbit hunter in the UK is grassy and relatively flat as compared to the terrain hunted by rabbiters that use Ibizans. A whippet or lurcher works very well in an environment where sprinting flat out after a rabbit is what you need. Spanish terrain, with its dense, tall brush is not conducive to flat out sprinting dogs. Ibizans are not flat sprinters; they are designed to work in heavy cover where staying sighted on a rabbit is much more difficult.
Yes, they are bushing dogs, as I have noted, but bushing is pretty easy and is taught with experience. Apparently the rabbits are bushed into rock walls where they are ferreted since normal dirt warrens are rare.
Bushing can be learned, but Ibizan Hounds, in my experience, are attracted to bushes like flies to a pile of shit. They are, in my opinion, unique in that way. Aside from their natural desire to work in brush, they are built to actually chase and catch the rabbits once they are flushed, which is no small task given the fact that there's a bush every 10 inches in the hills that they were bred to hunt in. To be able to do what they do they need acute vision and hearing, as well as speed and nimbleness of foot. A Basenji, which is the prototypcal pariah dog does not have the features that the Ibizans have. And while I agree that Ibizans can be properly classified as pariah dogs, they are one of the most specialized of that type (the Basenji and Podengos being the least specialized and on the opposite end of the spectrum).
I can't speak to the function of Pharaoh Hounds. They bear many similarities to the Ibizan Hounds, but are not quite as specialized in physical form. They are however a step above the Basenji and Podengos.
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