Breeds Week 8 Flashcards
Afghan Hound
Country: Afghanistan
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: b/b, clipper
Fact: Some authorities maintain that the Afghan Hound is the oldest breed of purebred dogs. The AKC registered its first of the breed in 1927, but not until the early ’30s did the breed really catch on with U.S. breeders and owners. The giant sculpture by Pablo Picasso in Chicago’s Daley Plaza depicts Kabul, the artist’s much-loved Afghan Hound.
Bloodhound
Country: Europe
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: b/b
Fact: The world famous ‘Sleuth Hound’ does one thing better than any creature on earth: find people who are lost or hiding. “blooded hounds” —“blooded” meaning “of aristocratic blood.” Even in these days of high-technology, no scenting device yet invented is as accurate as the Bloodhound nose.
Ibizan Hound
Country: Egypt
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: b/b (smooth), card or hand strip (wiry)
Fact: Can be smooth or wiry coated. Ibiza is one of the Balearic Islands, off Spain’s Mediterranean coast. About 3,000 years ago, Phoenician traders first brought Egyptian hounds to the rocky island. Islanders used packs of these hounds as rabbit hunters. Food was scarce on rugged Ibiza. For hounds and hunter, chasing rabbits wasn’t sport—it was more likely a matter of eating or going hungry. The elegant, racy body stands 22.5 to 27.5 inches at the shoulder.
Otterhound
Country: England
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: Card, hand strip
Fact: Otterhound was bred in medieval England for the now-outlawed activity of otter hunting. This scarce breed is known for his dense shaggy coat, webbed feet, acute sense of smell, and affinity for swimming. Otterhound packs were so good at their work that river otters nearly went extinct and hunting them was outlawed.
Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen
Country: France
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: Card, hand strip
Fact: Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen is a vivacious French rabbit-hunting hound known for a happy demeanor and durable constitution. Bred to work in a pack, bred in France even today for their original purpose: to hunt game by scent. A loose translation of the name describes the dog well: Petit (small), Basset (low), Griffon (shaggy), Venden (from the Vende region of France).
Pharoh Hound
Country: Egypt
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: Card, hand strip
Fact: The history of the canine race might be very different without the Phoenicians. These seafaring traders, from what is today Lebanon, sailed the Mediterranean 2,500 years ago doing a brisk business in luxury items. It’s assumed that the Phoenicians disseminated Egyptian hounds throughout the ancient world, as far west as Britain. The prevailing theory suggests that Phoenicians introduced the Pharaoh to Malta, where they were used as rabbit hunters. In 1979, the Pharaoh was named the national hound of Malta.
Plott Hound
Country: USA
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: Card, hand strip
Fact: Unique among the six AKC coonhound breeds, Plott Hounds are descended not from English Foxhounds but from German “Hanover hounds.” In 1750, a German immigrant named Johannes Plott arrived in North Carolina. Accompanying him were five Hanover hounds he brought from the old country. Plott settled in the mountains, where he raised a family and hunted bears with his hounds. His son, Henry, bred the family pack to local stock and produced a big-game hunter originally known as “Plott’s hound.”
Rhodesian Ridgeback
Country: South Africa
Group: Hounds
Correct Groom: Card, hand strip
Fact: Solid Tan/Red only. The Rhodesian Ridgeback is an all-purpose ‘Renaissance hound’ whose hallmark is the ridge, or stripe of backward-growing hair, on his back. Though the breed was made famous in its native Africa for its skill at tracking and baying ‘“ but never, ever killing ‘“ lions, today Ridgebacks are cherished family dogs whose owners must be prepared to deal with their independence and strong prey drive
Scottish Deehound
Country: Eurpoe
Group: Hound
Correct Groom: Card, hand strip
Fact: The crisply coated Scottish Deerhound, ‘Royal Dog of Scotland,’ is a majestically large coursing hound struck from the ancient Greyhound template. Among the tallest of dog breeds, the Deerhound was bred to stalk the giant wild red deer. The breed’s home turf—the rocky, rain-swept Highlands—was remote, but Deerhound courage became proverbial in all of Britain.
Chinese Shar-pei
Country: China
Group: Non-Sporting
Correct Groom: b/b
Fact: The Shar-Pei goes back more than 2,000 years to the Han Dynasty. It was believed to have been a peasant’s dog, and in the manner of peasant’s dogs in all times and places, the Shar-Pei was expected to be versatile. The breed’s documented U.S. history began in the mid-1960s, but American interest in the breed truly began in 1973. In that year, a Hong Kong breeder named Matgo Law appealed to the U.S. fancy to save the endangered Shar-Pei from extinction. The enthusiastic response from American dog lovers ensured the breed’s survival. The AKC recognized the Chinese Shar-Pei in 1992.
Finnish Spitz
Country: Finland
Group: Non-sport
Correct Groom: b/b
Fact: Red shades only. Looks like an Akita, but less meme-ish. a small but fearless hunting dog whose unique style of tracking and indicating quarry has earned him the nickname the ‘Barking Bird Dog.’ In his native land, Finland’s most popular dog breed is called the Suomenpystykorva. They arrived in America around 1960 and began competing in the AKC Non-Sporting Group in 1988.
Löwchen
Country: Germany
Group: non-sporting
Correct Groom: b/b, clipper
Fact: The name is German for ‘little lion’. Löwchen origins have long been subject to debate, and historians can’t agree on the breed’s birthplace. The name is German, but since the Middle Ages Löwchen were popular among noblewomen of France, Italy, Holland, Spain, and Russia, as well as Germany. Löwchen descend from the same ancient line that produced such companion breeds as the Bichon Frise and Maltese, and, thanks to sightings in the Renaissance art of several countries, we know that the Löwchen look hasn’t changed for at least 500 years.
Tibetan Terrier
Country: Tibet
Group: non-sporting
Correct Groom: Card, hand strip
Fact: ‘Holy Dog of Tibet,’ is an ancient watchdog and companion long associated with Buddhist monasteries. A profusely coated, small-to-medium-sized dog with ‘snowshoe’ feet, the TT is affectionate, sensitive, and clever. but during their long history they’ve worked as herders and flock guardians.
Akita
Country: Japan
Group: Working
Correct Groom: b/b
Fact: Akitas are Japan’s entry in the ancient canine clan of spitz-type dogs bred around the world on the globe’s northern latitudes. The breed as we know it was developed in the early 17th century in the Akita prefecture of northern Japan. Helen Keller is credited with bringing the first Akita to the United States, a gift she received while visiting Japan. Akitas caught on in America after WWII, when returning GIs brought them back from the Pacific. The breed entered the AKC Stud Book in 1972.
