Hawaiian Poi Dog
| Hawaiian Poi Dog (†) | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Not from the FCI recognized | ||
| Origin : |
Hawaii (USA) |
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| Withers height: |
36 cm |
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| Weight: |
11-16 kg |
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| List of domestic dogs | ||
The Hawaiian Poi Dog is an extinct breed of dog from Hawaii, USA.
Origin and history
When the Polynesian colonization of Hawaii around 1000 years ago, the immigrants also brought their dogs, which were under the care of the women. The dogs served both as a source of food and as a good luck charm : when a child was born, it was given a puppy. If the child died before the dog, the dog was killed and buried with it. If the dog died first, a necklace was made from its teeth to further protect the child. The dogs were fed exclusively vegetarian and fattened with poi , a paste made from baked taro root .
Even James Cook described in one of his travel reports in 1779: "The poi dogs rarely bark, appear in many colors and are kept together with the pigs (who also play the double role: playmate and meat supplier)". The writer Elinor DeWire reported that it was not uncommon for a dog to be a playmate in the morning but to be slaughtered and eaten in the evening.
At the beginning of the 19th century there were interbreeding with other dogs, there were hardly any purebred specimens left. An attempt was made to reconstruct the breed at the Honolulu Zoo , but the attempt was discontinued after 12 years.
The dogs are described as lethargic and not very intelligent. Meanwhile, the term Poi dog in Hawaii stands for mixed breed dogs rather than a breed of dog. However, there are also authors who assume that Poi dogs were never a breed, but were characterized by their keeping (mast with Poi) and use: “The term 'poi dog', according to Kinney and Pukui, did not mean any special breed of dog, but a dog fattened for chiefs and favorites with poi to improve the taste. "
Individual evidence
- ^ Bonnie Wilcox, Chris Walkowicz: Kynos-Atlas dog breeds of the world . German translation: Helga and Dieter Fleig . tape 1 . Kynos Verlag , Mürlenbach / Eifel 1993, ISBN 3-924008-93-0 , Hawaiian Poi Dog, p. 494-495 .
- ^ Susan Scott: Plants and Animals of Hawai'i . Bess Press, Honolulu HI 1991, ISBN 0-935848-93-2 , pp. 123 ( online ).
- ^ Margaret Titcomb: Dog and Man in the ancient Pacific with special Attention to Hawaii (= Bernice P. Bishop Museum. Special Publication. Vol. 59, ISSN 0067-6179 ). With the Collaboration of Mary Kawena Pukui. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu HI 1969, p. 2.