To most of us in the Western World, if we refer to someone as a "Pariah" we are calling them an outcast, shunned by society in general. It is used as a pejorative term to describe someone whose very presence offends; an untouchable in fact. It is one of the many words that have come into the English language as a result of Britain’s long association with India. Its common usage in English stems from an imperfect understanding of the ancient caste system of India.

When applied to the dogs which run freely in the streets of Indian cities many westerners mistakenly assume the name to mean that they are stray, unwanted mongrels, carrying disease and parasites. In fact the Pariah dog is a specific breed of dog. It is the native dog of the sub-continent which today comprises of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. In the case of the dogs, there is nothing derogatory about the name and many of them do actually belong to someone.

The breed is also known by other names, "Pye dog or Pi dog or sometimes Pie dog". In modern times, enthusiasts for the breed refer to it as the INDog, an abbreviation of "Indian Native Dog".

The Pariah dog is the dominant breed of dog in India and the streets appear to be its natural habitat. However many Indians keep these dogs as pets or companions so, although they may roam the streets, they frequently do have homes to go to.

The origins of the breed are somewhat obscure. Some believe that the dogs are descended from dogs brought into India from China many centuries ago. That has yet to be proved and tracing their evolution remains a work in progress.

The European presence in South Asia over the last few hundred years, most notably the British Raj, led to some interbreeding between the Pariah dogs and European breeds imported by the in-comers. The humans didn’t have all the fun! However, there are still plenty of examples of the original, undiluted breed still to be found all over the sub-continent.

One clue to identifying the pure Pariah or INDogs wherever they are, in South Asia, is their marked similarity in appearance. Mostly free living, they have lived alongside the human population for centuries and the breed has evolved naturally with no human interference in the form of selective breeding, unlike most European breeds.

The physical features of these animals have been found to match those of fossilised dog remains found all over the world dating from the earliest times. If you want to see living examples of mankind’s original domestic dogs, go to India and look out for the true pariah dogs.

This article was provided by Freelance Copywriter UK, Pete Hopper.

The Inuit peoples of the Arctic regions, more commonly referred to as “Eskimos” or “Esquimaux”, have always depended upon their canine companions for their very survival in those hostile climes. Indeed the dependency has been mutual throughout the centuries.

What we know today as the Canadian Eskimo Dog has been established in the Arctic for 4,000 years or probably more. The Thule people were the first known breeders of these dogs, though the origins of the animals they first bred from are somewhat obscure. There is also the Greenland dog which modern research suggests is related to the Canadian Eskimo Dog with so little significant genetic difference that many authorities consider both to be the same breed. Apparently some people criticise the Greenland Dog for its lack of any proper breeding programme. They cast doubt on its validity as a pure breed.

That raises a question. How can a dog be criticised for lack of a breeding programme? Dogs do not organise breeding programmes, they have them foisted on them by humans! Human imposed breeding programmes would have started with the Inuit trying to match their dogs with the right bitches and vice-versa in order to produce pups in which the most useful characteristics of their parents were emphasised. There would have been no Kennel Clubs in those days! Those early breeding attempts must have been quite hit and miss affairs with the Inuit learning from their mistakes along the way.

They probably ate the mistakes since it must not be forgotten that these dogs were not only used to perform essential work for their masters. They provided an important emergency food supply when food became particularly scarce, which would not have been an infrequent occurrence. From our comfortable present day perspective the idea of killing and eating our canine helpers does seem quite repugnant. However, people who live in such harsh and primitive environments tend to have no concept of sentiment towards their animals as we do. Indeed it seems that Inuit people never even considered their dogs to be animals at all. They regarded them as just another tool to be used in the daily struggle for survival.

These four legged tools were put to use in a variety of ways. They were real maids-of-all-work. Hunting seals and other animals as well as hauling supplies of all kinds and people on sleds. In Canada the Inuit still make limited use of the dogs for similar purposes although their haulage role has largely been usurped by the ubiquitous snowmobile. Early explorers from outside the Arctic Circle were impressed by the dogs’ prowess in finding seal holes from considerable distances and their enthusiasm for hunting polar bears. Dogs soon learned to recognise the name for polar bears, “nanuq,” and their handlers would often shout that word to spur them on to greater effort when hauling sleds.

Wolves were another matter entirely. The wolf was the one animal the Inuit dogs feared and they would not attempt to chase them. When they sensed that wolves were in the vicinity they would let everyone know by howling in fear.

The value of these dogs to the Inuit is comparable to that of the reindeer to the Lapps of Northern Europe. Their service did not end with being an essential aid in hunting for food, furs and defence and moving everything that needed to be moved. They even provided medicine! The Inuit froze their urine and used it as an antiseptic for wounds. The dog did not even cease to be of use to them when it died. Not only was it then a source of emergency rations as already mentioned but its skin and fur were of great value to the Inuit. It was considered to be better than wolf fur and was prized for its harder wearing qualities.

Even up to Victorian times the Eskimo dog was believed to be a semi-domesticated hybrid bred from wolves. Even Charles Darwin was deceived by the dogs’ appearance and their wolf –like howling into assuming this to be the case. However he and his contemporaries did not have access to genetic testing. With that advantage, modern scientific research indicates no evidence of wolf ancestry within recent centuries.

The decline of the Eskimo Dogs of Canada in modern times is a story in itself but that’s for another time. Watch this space for more on those fascinating dogs of the frozen north.

This article was provided by freelance copywriter uk, Pete Hopper of Write For You.

Last time we looked at Spitz type dogs in general and the ways in which they have helped the human inhabitants of those cold polar and sub-polar regions to survive and go about their business. Now let’s take a closer look at what makes the Spitze so well adapted to life in the high latitudes and at some of the individual breeds that make up the Spitz type.

These dogs have thick fur growing on their paws which help to protect the pads from the sharp edges of ice ridges and fragments which so commonly lie underfoot in the frozen wastes. A thick undercoat of extra dense fur, which lies under the outer coat, provides both waterproofing and insulation, keeping body heat where it belongs, in the body.

The small ears which are characteristic of many Spitze are less susceptible to frostbite than larger ears would be. When laid flat against the head they are sheltered from the icy winds experienced in the far north. Spitz dogs’ hearing is no less acute for having such small ears.

The Samoyed, the Alaskan Malamute and the Siberian Husky are all breeds descended from the oldest breed of dog known to man, the sled dogs of Mongolia. It’s reckoned that they probably evolved somewhere between 30000 and 35000 years ago. Scientific studies indicate that humans first migrated to areas to the north of the Arctic Circle some 25000 years ago taking these dogs with them. At that time the dogs were used in hunting. Evidence suggests that it took 22000 years for them to think of using their dogs to pull sleds, that is about 3000 years ago. The breakthrough came when communities that lived by fishing and hunting were driven further north into the desolate, snow covered lands of Siberia as livestock farming and agriculture took over the more temperate zones.

The use of sled dogs soon became widespread throughout the northern latitudes, in what we now know as Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Siberia as well as in Lapland, Norway, Finland and Chukotka. It was as recently as 1908 that dogs from the Anadyr River basin in Chukotka were imported into Alaska. These were the first Siberian Huskies to be seen in that part of North America. Their combination of strength with speed and agility soon made them the sled dog of choice for most users and they became the dominant breed in the region.

Although the name, “Husky” properly belongs to the Siberian Husky breed, it has become a generic term for any dogs that pull sleds in the Northern Hemisphere. It is a corruption of the nickname, Esky, used by non-Inuit people as an abbreviation for “Eskimo” and applied by extension to their dogs.

Siberian Huskies made it possible for whole tribes of human beings to survive in these inhospitable regions. Indeed they made not only survival possible but enabled the tribes to migrate further and discover territory hitherto unknown. As recently as 1909 when Rear Admiral Peary of the US Navy set out to reach the North Pole he relied on sleds drawn by Siberian Huskies for transport.

The Gold Rush years between 1908 and 1928 saw the development of long distance dog sled racing. The Siberian Huskies dominated the sport right from the beginning and they were imported from Siberia in large numbers until 1930 when the Soviet Government put a stop to the importation when it closed the border between Alaska and Siberia to all trade.

By that time the dogs were being bred in Alaska and Canada anyway so there was much less need for imported huskies. The breed was by then established in North America and became recognised by the National and State kennel clubs.

In this article, Siberian Huskies have managed to dominate just as they did in Alaska and push out the other breeds. The Eskimo dog breeds can have our full attention next time.

This article was provided by freelance copywriter uk, Pete Hopper of Write For You.

The frozen lands within the Arctic Circle, or close to it, of Northern Europe, Siberia and North America are home to a variety of dogs all of which fall under one generic type, known as the Spitz type. This is not a specific breed, it is a type. By the way the name is originally German which is why the correct plural form is “spitze”.

No-one seems to know the actual origins of the type but pretty well all of the breeds of Spitz type known today have their origins in those harsh northern climes, either the Arctic or remote cold parts of East Asia. Spitz type dogs are recognisable by their thick, long fur, frequently white in colour, their pointed ears and muzzles and their tails. The tail is normally seen curled up and over the animal’s back. This is particularly noticeable when the dog’s attention is attracted or it is excited by something.

Historically these have been working dogs and over centuries they have been selectively bred to serve their human masters in three principal ways, as herding dogs, to assist with hunting and to pull sledges over the snowfields. The different breeds of Spitze vary in size and build and were used for different purposes accordingly.

Some of the more powerful, larger breeds were used for what we might call big game hunting, targeting brown bears and moose. The Karelian Bear Dog, Norwegian and Swedish Elkhounds and the Akita Inu would typically be employed in this sort of activity. Across Scandinavia, hunters of smaller animals and birds would favour smaller breeds like the Finnish Spitz or the Lundehund.

Up until sometime in the 19th Century three particular Spitz breeds were being employed more than any other for pulling sleds or sledges because of their size and strength. The Greenland Dog, the Canadian Eskimo Dog and the Alaskan Malmute were the favourites.

Then in the 19th Century speed became name of the game (sounds familiar doesn’t it?) as fur trapping became profitable. Just as the fisherman who gets his catch to market first gets the best price, so it was with the trappers and their furs. The Siberian husky (bet you were wondering when huskies would get a mention!) became the more popular choice in Alaska and Canada because they are smaller and above all faster than the others. The Sami people of Scandinavia, otherwise known as Lapps, began to favour the Finnish Lapphund for the same reasons.

In Alaska and Canada people started racing sleds as a sport and that became a lucrative business. Again the Siberian husky was the sled dog of choice which is probably why nowadays people tend to refer to all dogs that pull sleds as “huskies”.

The Arctic regions are inhospitable to most forms of life, particularly humans and most dogs. Wolves have always inhabited these wild and chilly parts of the world and are well adapted to the conditions. Many Spitz type dogs are quite wolf-like in appearance and they are equally well adapted to the harsh arctic conditions, which has led to an assumption that they are closely related descendants of the Arctic wolf. In fact modern scientific research indicates that the line of descent of the Spitz dogs is quite separate from that of the wolf. There may have been some cross breeding long ago due to isolated instances of wolves mating with Spitze.

That’s just a brief account of Spitz dogs in general and their lives as working dogs. Next time we’ll look at some of the specific breeds and their stories.

This article was provided by freelance copywriter uk, Pete Hopper of Write For You.

Search and rescue dogs are well known to be a valuable asset to operations such as mountain rescue and police searches for missing persons. The sad task of finding dead bodies can be greatly assisted by the deployment of these canine search experts. In terms of mountain rescue the most famous example is probably the legendary St Bernard with his cask of brandy attached to his collar.

The breed takes its name from the Great St. Bernard Hospice, founded in the 11th Century by a monk, Bernard of Menthon, as a travellers’ hospice or lodge, on what is now called the St. Bernard Pass leading from Switzerland to Italy, in the Western Alps. The pass, which also takes its name from him, is often treacherous in severe alpine weather conditions.

It is to the monks living and working at the hospice that we owe the earliest written accounts of the use of these dogs for rescuing lost and stranded travellers, in 1707, although much earlier paintings and drawings exist depicting them at work. Whether they ever actually carried a barrel of brandy is doubtful as it would have been an encumbrance to the dog in its work. The barrel is more likely attributable to artistic licence on the part of those responsible for the early paintings and drawings.

The St. Bernard breed is believed to be descended from the Roman molosser dogs introduced to the Alpine regions by the Ancient Romans. The St. Bernard is recognised today as a molossoid breed. The line of descent seems to have been shared with the Swiss Mountain Dog or Cattle Dog, known locally as Sennenhunds. These large farm dogs are used by farmers and dairymen to guard their livestock, herd cattle and sheep. In addition they are employed in hunting and search and rescue of both people and livestock.

In fact the name “St. Bernard is a relatively recent innovation, about the mid 1800s. Prior to that, they were known by a number of different names, Alpenmastiffs, Noble Steeds, Saint Dogs was getting closer and Barry Dogs. The latter was probably linked to the most famous of the breed, Barry (or Berry) who is reputed to have been responsible for saving a great many lives in the region of the St Bernard Pass. Numbers vary with the source, between 40 and 100. Barry is commemorated by a monument in the Cimitière des Chiens at Asnierères-Sur-Seine in the Ile-de-France region of France. You can see his body preserved in the Natural History Museum if you visit Berne.

If you do, you might not recognise Barry as a St. Bernard because the dog we all know as a St. Bernard bears little resemblance to the classic St. Bernard of his day. This is all due to avalanches. The years 1816 to 1817 were disastrous for the breed, as particularly severe winters in those years led to the occurrence of an unusually large number of avalanches. As a result, many of the dogs which would otherwise have been used for breeding purposes were killed in their heroic efforts to rescue people caught up in the dreadful conditions. The St. Bernard breed was in danger of extinction and in an effort to prevent this happening great deal of cross breeding took place.

In the 1850s, Newfoundlands were brought in from the island colony to cross breed with the surviving St. Bernards. This was only partially successful however. The progeny inherited many of the St. Bernard’s characteristics but unfortunately they also inherited the long, thick furry coat of the Newfoundland breed. This greatly impeded their use as rescue dogs in the alpine regions because the snow would cling to the long furry coat then freeze so that the dog would be weighed down by the frozen mass.

Though no longer of value as a working alpine rescue dog the breed’s handsome looks and lovable nature ensured its popularity for less demanding roles. In 1884 The Swiss St Bernard Club was established based in Berne. In the same year the Swiss Stud Book had its first breed entered. It was, of course, the Saint Bernard. From then on the St. Bernard has been recognised as a national dog of Switzerland.

Article provided provided by freelance copywriter uk, Pete Hopper of Write For You