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THE BUSHY-TAILED HOUNDS – working to the Gun
By David Hancock

 Books, both on gundogs and hounds, often overlook the Nordic breeds, which can range from the Elkhounds of Scandinavia to the bear-dogs of Karelia. Somehow the appearance of such hounds, with their prick ears, thick coats and lavishly-curled tails, doesn’t immediately fit our mental image of either a scenthound or a gundog. The Finnish Spitz is already well known here, with 36 newly registered with the Kennel Club in 2010, but only 10 in 2011, and 16 in 2018. They have been grouped with the Hounds by the KC, but as a ‘bark-pointer’ should perhaps be allotted to the Gundog Group. This attractive little breed is a most unusual, for us, that is, hunting dog, in a style not utilised in Western Europe. The dog is used in heavily wooded areas where it uses sight, scent and unusually good hearing to locate feathered game, upland game such as grouse or capercaillie. This ‘point by bark’ has to be audible to the hunter, who may be some distance away, and more importantly to ‘freeze’ the bird. The Finnish Spitz has a rich rufous, almost red-gold coat, mobile ears and highly inquisitive nature. Just as this breed is the national dog of Finland, so too is the Elkhound that of Norway.

 Hounds like the Norwegian Elkhound have been used for centuries to hunt bear, elk, reindeer and the wolf, but it was not until 1877 that they were recognised as a breed there. Only those that qualify in hunting trials may be awarded the full title of champion. This surely has to be the way ahead for all sporting dogs if they are to be retained as such. The Elkhound hunts mainly by scent, working silently to locate its prey, which it then holds or drives towards the hunters.  Usually a shade of grey, with black tips, a black cousin is found in the Finnmark area, with a shorter coat, looking taller and lighter than the Norwegian breed. I saw some sixty years ago when exploring the Jaeggevarre ice-glacier region; the local hunters called them Sorte Dyrehund - they were leggy and thick-coated, hinting at great robustness and stamina.

   In Sweden, the Jamthund has the same function but is 4 inches taller. The Swedes also have the White Elkhound, not recognised until 1998, with around a thousand on the registry. Further east, the Russians have their own laika or point-barker hunting dog breeds, with regional differences between the West Siberian from the Northern Urals, the East Siberian, from the huge forests there and the Russo-European varieties. At World Dog Shows, especially the one held in Helsinki, I have been impressed by them and the imposing Karelian Bear Dog, a sturdy mainly black breed, used for hunting the bear, lynx and elk. Determined, fiercely-independent and immensely resolute, which is hardly surprising when you think of their quarry, they have a very acute sense of smell and superb long-sight, picking up movement at extreme distances. These hunting dogs have quite remarkable resistance to low temperatures and their past value to peasant hunters, especially before the arrival of firearms, must have been immense.

 Both the bear and the elk are formidable adversaries, with even the baying dogs being regularly killed by them. An elk, or moose in North America, is the largest living deer, about the size of a shire-horse; the bull can have antlers of up to 40 points. The use of dogs for elk-hunting in northern Europe has a long history. It took two forms: one with wide-ranging free-hunting small packs (loshund) and another with dogs on a long leash (lurhund or bandhund) following a trail. The latter demanded close cooperation between dog and handler, to make full use of the wind conditions and not to startle the quarry into hasty retreat. Hunting bears too was not a practice for the fainthearted in times when only primitive weapons were available. Canada had an equivalent to the Karelian Bear Dog, the Tahltan Bear Dog, used by the Tahltan Indians of British Columbia, south of the Yukon and flanked by Alaska. It was used in packs to hunt black and grizzly bears and the lynx. Sweden also boasts a small hunting dog, the Norbottenspets, used in hunting rabbits and hares. It is not always easy to identify these types as breeds, the climate and the conditions has shaped them and their similarity of form is understandable.

 The best-known spitz-hound in Britain is the Norwegian Elkhound, although its fortunes have varied. Ten years ago, 149 were newly registered with our KC; in 2010, just 33, in 2018 only 34. The Swedish Elkhound doesn’t feature here. The Elkhounds I have seen in Norway looked stockier and shorter-coupled than those I saw in the United States, where I was saddened to see them lighter and finer-boned – and expected to ‘gait’ at speed in the ring, rather like Siberian Huskies. I don’t think Norwegian elk-hunters would want their precious dogs to perform in such a way! It is worth pointing out how different in build the spitz sporting breeds are. They do not need the long backs of the sighthound, as speed is not their first hunting priority. They do not need either the stamina-packed musculature of the scenthounds. Their shorter backs lead to the tail curving over the spine towards the head; it is interesting to note that, following the ban on tail-docking, breeds like the Dobermann, the Airedale and the Rottweiler can feature a stubby forward-curving stump of a tail – almost as a protest at human changes of mind! When any breed has a physical limitation inflicted then subsequently lifted, it is hardly surprising to find undesired anatomical anomalies appearing – and not pleasingly!

 The Spitz hounds do however need a thickly-furred tail as part of their defence against the biting cold in their hunting grounds, rather like the Arctic fox. There is a distinct similarity to these Nordic dogs in the hunting dogs found in Northern Japan and the more mountainous hunting grounds there, spitz hounds with similar physiques and tails! The international kennel club, the FCI, recognises a number of Japanese hunting dogs: the Akita, the Ainu, the Kai, the Kishu and the Shiba, often named after the localities where they developed, with the Akita also named the Akita Matagi Inu or dog that hunts bears. The Ainu is also called the Hokkaido Dog, as it was favoured in the mountainous regions of Hokkaido Island. The black brindle Kai Dog was also called the Tiger Dog, because of its coat colour. The usually white Kishu was used as a hunting dog on the large island of Kyushu, with the Shiba Inu (or small dog) developed on Honshu Island, and now very popular in Britain. With over 200 a year being newly registered, (346 in 2018) the Shiba Inu seems well established but I know of no one using one as a hunting dog here. (There is a similar but slightly taller breed called the Shikoku, used to hunt deer, but not I believe known in Europe.)

  Quite a number of these breeds could so easily be confused with the Nordic equivalents, another sign that function decides form! It is a very long way from Lappland to Hokkaido and yet hunting dogs performing the same task come to resemble each other. This is how type developed in dog breeds, the function deciding how they shaped up. What a lesson for those who disregard breed type and introduce their own fads and fetishes! Any dog expected to hunt in Arctic or high mountain conditions needs the coat and the tail to afford protection from such climatic challenges. These features made these breeds and every show-ring fancier must ensure this vital breed attribute is perpetuated.