The Standard Schnauzer is the oldest of the three Schnauzer breeds. It originally came from Germany. The word Schnauze itself comes from the German word muzzle. These brave dogs were used as messengers in World War I, as vermin hunters, as well guard dogs. It is now more commonly trained a herder and retriever.
The Mastiff ancestors were probably brought to England by the Roman invaders. Renowned as a fierce war dog, the Mastiff has been used as a fighter by European knights and Spanish conquistadors as well as a valorous helper to hunt lion, wolf, bear and deer. Nowadays, the Mastiff breed, also called the English Mastiff or … Read more
The Irish Terrier originated in Ireland and were bred to hunt rodents and otters but can also be used for retrieving. Today they are primarily companion dogs but still have their hunting instincts! Their most obvious ancestors were the Black and Tan Terriers that originated in Britain. This breed has a long rectangular muzzle and … Read more
The German Shepherd, also known as the Alsatian, was developed in the late 1800's. It was originally bred to help herd and guard sheep flocks, and characteristics thought best for its line of work were preferred, such as intelligence and keen sense of smell. One breeder, Max von Stephanitz, established a registry that espoused this … Read more
The Giant Schnauzer is also known as the Russian Bear Schnauzer, the Munich Schnauzer and the Riesenschnauzer. It comes from a cross between the Standard Schnauzer, Bouvier des Flandres and the Great Dane. The Giant Schnauzer was first used to drive livestock in Bavaria, but later was used as a guard dog for the police … Read more
It was in the 1870?s in Germany, that Louis Doberman, a tax collector who needed an alert and intelligent bodyguard dog, bred the Doberman Pinscher, to protect him on his rounds from bandits. It was developed presumably by crossing several different breeds of dogs, to find the characteristics that Doberman was looking for. This included … Read more
Back to 2200 B.C., drawings of a dog similar to the Canaan Dog were found on graves, but this dog was first bred in the 1930's in Israel from wild dogs. The Canaan dog is well-adapted to the rough conditions of the deserts. This breed is still used by Bedouins to guard and herd sheep, … Read more
The Beauceron dog breed originates and has been a known dog type for centuries in France and Western Europe, but to this day is still virtually unknown to the western world. Their history is long and believed to date back to 1578. Pierre Megnin founded the breed by distinguishing two sheepdog breeds with short and … Read more
The Belgian Malinois is named after the Belgian city of Malines. This dog is one of the four Belgian sheepdog breeds (the Malinois, the Laekenois, the Groenendael and the Tervuren). Those four breeds are considered, in most parts of the world, as the same breed, but have been recognized (except for the Laekenois) in America … Read more
The Belgian Sheepdog, also known as the Groenendael or Belgian Shepherd dog, is one of the four Belgian Sheepdog breeds. In some parts of the world the four breeds (Groenendael, Laekenois, Malinois and Tervuren) are considered as the same breed, but the AKC recognized in 1959 the Groenendael, the Malinois and the Tervuren as separated … Read more
