Bastard

"A bastard". In the front right three boar males who cannot cope with the wild boar on their own, in the middle Saupacker (mastiffs) who try to pull the animal down. Drawing by Ridinger , around 1750.

Sauhunde refers to a historical group of hunting dogs that - until the 19th century - were used to hunt wild boars .

use

In the wild boar hunt , only freshmen and deserters were easy prey. The hunt for adult animals, especially strong boars, represented a life-threatening test of courage for the hunters. They needed a large number of trained dogs in order to be able to keep an adult animal. A quantity of two pounds of dog to one pound of sow was considered the standard ( Rudolf Friess ).

As countless paintings and handicrafts show, wild boar hunting with horses and hunting dogs was a common form of hunting . For example, at the beginning of the 17th century , the Fürstenhof in Württemberg kept 900 large hunting dogs that were used to hunt wild boar. The task of the dogs was to chase the boar and keep it in a place that the hunter would kill it from close range. In this small feinnasige hounds were usually as Saufinder used jagdtriebige dogs boarhound called, of mostly medium-sized and large heavy hounds Saupacker . The finders were small, agile dogs that tracked down the wild boar and barked. Then the larger dogs, the males , drove them out. Primarily the strong packers then pulled the sow down until the hunter or hunters killed her with the boar pen. Great Danes imported from England, the English dogs , were used especially for pulling down when hunting wild boar in Germany . These Sauhatzen often people, horses and dogs were badly by attacking wild boar and sometimes fatally injured. The more valuable dogs were protected against the tusks of the wild boars with wide collars and mailers.

Types of bastards

Already in early history there was a large number of different dog types in the area of today's Germany, as has been determined by archaeological findings. Mostly these were medium-sized dogs between 50 and 70 cm shoulder height as well as much smaller dogs but also molossar-like types. For Roman provincial areas, a variety of forms is even assumed that is "hardly inferior to that of today's dogs."

The following is an overview of the bastards that are described in written sources from the 17th to the first half of the 19th century.

The classification in the sources is inconsistent with regard to some aspects and not always free of contradictions. Apart from the fact that in the course of time there has been a development of these dog types through selection, it can be assumed that these dog types often merged into one another in reality; partly because regionally differently pronounced strikes existed, and partly because different types were deliberately mated in order to combine their advantages in one dog.

In the historical sources, different, mostly traditional types were basically distinguished from one another. Great Danes, bull biters, boar dogs and (sow) finding dogs appear continuously as different types. One was not yet fully aware of the mode of action of selection. For example, some authors make the suitability of the dogs to be bred dependent on factors of the parent animals, the relevance of which sounds less obvious from today's point of view (younger bitches would produce wilder hounding dogs; for the quality of the mating result of two types it is important which particular type is in each case Dog or bitch are etc.). However, it is conceivable that more recent findings, for example in epigenetics, can also confirm some of these ideas. Among the early zoologists of the 18th and early 19th centuries it was also disputed whether the domestic dog was one species (Haller) or whether it should be divided into several species or subspecies (Fitzinger). In terms of the latter way of thinking, the mating of the various (main) types was often understood as a cross between “species” or “subspecies”. Although the aforementioned types were obviously crossed very often, this idea runs through most sources, sometimes more, sometimes less. The results of a conscious mating of different dog types were predominantly referred to as blinding dogs .

Hunter uses a boar pen to kill a wild boar that has been caught by a hunt of bastards, engraving from the 16th century

Light hound dogs
- Greyhounds
- Courshunde, also Curonian dogs or Pürschhunde ^A6
- sometimes an Irish dog is also mentioned

Real bastards:

Heavy hound dogs (Saupacker)
- English mastiff, english dog, mastiff ^A1
- Bullenbeisser, also bear dog or bearbiter ^A2
- Pomeranian Saurüde, also Pommer or Wolfdog ^A3b
- English blended ^A4
- Pomeranian Blendling ^A4

Medium Hetzhunde (medium dogs, the sow males)
- Saurüden, Males (general; different classification) ^A3a
- Pomeranian Blendling (different classification) ^A4
- Danish Blendling ^A4
- Large farm ^{dog A3c}

Dogs for hunting game
- Saufinder or Saubeller ^A5

Great Danes

Hunting dog armor from the 17th century, in the armory of the Wartburg .

^A1English mastiff, english dog, mastiff

Both earlier authors, around 1700, and later authors, after 1800, consistently portray these as the largest dog type; Information on shoulder height: "some over 3 feet ", so about 90 cm; 30 inches , i.e. about 76 cm, for the Saxon mastiffs. In the 16th and 17th centuries they were also used as prestige dogs for representation purposes. Nobles were portrayed with these "body and chamber dogs" - often together with other representative symbols such as armor , sceptres , chamber moors, etc. By providing a particularly beautiful dog, even noble rulers, such as Johann Georg I of Saxony , could be voted in a career-promoting manner.

Bull biters

^A2Bullenbeisser, also bear dog, bearbiter or boll-biter

In 1689, Johann Täntzer considers them to be “hermaphrodites” of English and common, smaller dogs. In 1719 , Johann Friedrich von Flemming knew both the real type of bullbiter and Täntzer's “hermaphrodite”, which is used “in the absence of the previously mentioned”, “although between those […] And the bast species is a big difference. ”Due to the constant mention in other sources, the bullbiter as a separate type - divided into the smaller» Brabanter «and the larger» Danziger «- can be regarded as certain.

According to Flemming's description, it had a short and thick head, the shape of the snout was over- bite-like ; In terms of body shape, "fat to walk with difficulty and with ease". In terms of color, it is classified as having a black mouth, as well as yellow-light or brown-striped. This is not entirely the case in the attached drawings, as the Gdańsk is shown spotted white and black; the Brabant, on the other hand, is shown brindle , as in the text . Apart from the size, which around 1800 is usually higher than other types, later descriptions hardly differ.

They are regularly praised as good saupackers. "This dog is characterized by its strength and bravery from all hunted dogs, and attacks everything that it is chased at like furiously." Occasionally, however, contradicting statements are also found, for example that they are not to be used for sow hunt due to excessive ferocity or naughtiness. Bear hunting was her “specialty”.

Acid males

"The sow males are shaggy and biting dogs"

^A3a Acid males

In the earlier depictions, boar males were mainly dogs, which were collected from the rural population, especially from shepherds, but also from butchers and skinners, for the purpose of big boobs. So it is said of Landgrave Phillipp von Hessen (1504–1567): “[...] so we order that you have each of our subjects, such as sheep and a pen, for our sake and command that he has a strong Rodden, the we like to use for pig-hunting, hold [...] ”. In some places, namely in Württemberg, a system was introduced with which suitable dogs were employed among the rural population. This hiring of dogs seems to have been introduced in Hessen from the end of the 17th century and still existed in isolated cases in the middle of the 19th century.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, between 200 and 1000 such dogs were called up in each of the various German territorial states to join the rulers. Most of them were herd guard dogs, which were otherwise - until about the beginning of the 18th century - used to protect cattle from predatory game, also called male sheep. It can be assumed that the double use of this type as sheep and boar males had a very long tradition, since around 1800 they were referred to as the dogs originally - before the introduction of the English - used for boar hunting. In these hunts, however, they were often literally burned as cannon fodder by being driven into the thicket to drive the sows out. Special training - such as training them not to tackle the sows from the front - was not considered necessary for them, so that many young dogs did not survive their first mission. For this purpose, the associated proverb read “If you want pigs 'heads , you have to give them dogs' heads.” Occasionally, bells were tied around them to make the sows flee before they met and thus to reduce losses, writes Flemming.

In addition, he also counts the offspring of English mastiffs who have “run into” boar males among the boar males. This is reminiscent of the so-called adjustment procedure and will probably have corresponded to what was later called the Pomeranian Blendlingen.

^A3bPomeranian Saurüde, also Pomeranian or Wolfhound

Pomeranian boar dogs had a special reputation for boar hunting; from the middle of the 18th century they were assigned to the heavy hound dogs. Fleming already emphasizes them - among the (common) boar males - in particular. They came from Pomerania and Kashubia , where they defended flocks of sheep against wolves and were from Johann Georg, III. was particularly valued by Saxony (1647–1691). In later sources, the place of origin is limited to Western Pomerania. It would be conceivable that the descent from Western Pomerania was an attribution of origin. This could have become common after the wolf had been largely exterminated in inner areas of Germany and newer hat types in the form of the old German shepherd dogs (herding dogs) were used there in place of the herd protection dog-like male sheep , so that the origin of the dogs was still used Hunting used boar dogs moved entirely to Pomerania. This is supported by the fact that, although less often, they were said to have originated in western France, where wolves were still to be found. On the other hand, their frequent mentioning makes it seem more likely that the Pomeranian boar males were a special and heavier breed, different from "general boar males".

Nothing can be inferred from the German-language sources for the thesis that such or comparable dogs were imported in large numbers from the Balkans and crossed into the bastard types common in Germany. This thesis is probably based largely on Charles Hamilton Smith's description of how very large dogs were captured in the Turkish wars and also given to high nobility, such as the King of Naples. These prey dogs are traced back to an ancient Suliot Dog by Smith . Presumably, these were herd guard dogs from the Balkans or Anatolia, such as today's Greek , Carpathian or Anatolian sheepdogs. Smith gave this description the heading "The Boarhound of Germany" but only dealt with the boar dogs in Germany in the last paragraph. Even if they were similar types with some similarities, their equation was ultimately incorrect. Later, the aforementioned translation of the boar dog was supposed to lead to confusion in the English-language literature, as another pig dog in the Saupacker category, namely the mastiff, was also translated as “boarhound” - and they both were too. That Smith did not want to mislead his readers can be seen from the fact that he refers at this point to Ridinger's illustration of sow males and refers to the mastiff as "Mastiff of the Continent" at the right place in his chapter on Molossians.

description

Around 1700, the boar males are mostly described as medium-sized, "strong and shaggy" dogs, "high on legs"; the Pomeranians after Fleming a little stronger.

By contrast, around 1800 they are mainly assigned to the heavy hound dogs; Here they are often called Pomeranian boar dogs or Pomeranian or wolfhounds. Hartig describes the pig like this: “His head is long and strong, the forehead is somewhat flat, the muzzle pointed, the ears bad, usually only half overhanging; the body somewhat drawn up, the legs strong and high, and the hanging rod mostly curved into half a circle. These dogs are for the most part peg-haired, and are either wolf-gray, yellowish, or black in color. or they are white with yellow. brown or black spots, and are often of considerable size. "

use

The descriptions of the use correspond to this: “You can rely on attempting a strong attack, always one on top of the other and stand by each other as long as the big dogs come to their aid and help pull them down. there, in order to cheer up their bravery all the more, they blow and scream with male horns. ”Flemming writes in 1719. Hartig, on the other hand, mentions in 1832 the chasing of wounded deer and strong sows as their tasks and also writes that sows found outdoors are caught , so used more as a packer than as a middle dog.

^A3c Large farm dog Only occasionally mentioned as a special type; an origin from the wolf regions of southern France is ascribed to him.

Dazzlers

^A4

So-called blendlings were also known as crossbreeds of other solidified dog types. In the context of boar hunting, especially around 1800, the following are mentioned.

An English Blendling is said to have been a cross between the English mastiff and bullbiter. This resulted in very large dogs that even grabbed horses. They were considered naughty.

A Pomeranian Blendling was a cross between an English mastiff and (Pomeranian) boar male. These dogs are more often praised as the best bastard dogs. It is reasonable to assume that the large number of dogs required for big bats were often bred by mating a bitch of the boar dog type with a mastiff. In the English-language literature this dog is also referred to as the "Rough Boar-Hound".

A Danish Blendling was understood to mean certain results of crossing a greyhound (greyhound) with a so-called Danish dog (pre-form of the Dalmatian) or, in the absence of such, an ordinary dog - but which had to be "with straight hair". Because then a “good species, whether a bit lower, but stronger by Halß, Kopff and Schenckeln." to have owned such a "Dähnische Blendling". They were also kept as favorites or body dogs. Furthermore, it pointed it as a water dog to retrieve off because they were "quite Ranck and lauffen comfortable," and taught them tricks.

Around 1800 this name was used for a cross between English mastiff and greyhound. This is likely to be the origin of the term "Danish mastiff" for the lighter variety of mastiffs of the 19th century.

Drinking indians

^A5 Saufinder or Saubeller

These dogs are named throughout. However, they weren't a special type. The terms Saufinder and Saubeller are descriptive names that show their function. They were often recruited from the same group as the boar males.

So it was often those of the German shepherd type of the time, mostly medium-sized and above all agile dogs, that the sows could not beat so quickly. Her hair was mostly shaggy. Brown and black were preferred.

According to their task, they had to have a good nose and a good ringing bell: “The Saufinder or Saubeller [...] has the purpose: to seek out the sows and bark or catch them until the sneaking hunter shoots a shot or the hounds shoot can. "

Courshounds

^A6Courshunde or Curshunde, also Curonian dogs or Pürschhunde

They are said to come from Kurland - from which the name is supposed to come from. East Prussia and Lithuania are also mentioned as places of origin . Sometimes dogs were deliberately referred to as Courshunde, with which the former were to be imitated, and were produced by crossbreeding between greyhound and mastiff. (Remarkably, there is a similarity of terms and meanings with respect to the US “ Cur ” dog.) After 1800, they are mentioned less often; Hartig, for example, no longer cites them separately.

The real ones from Kurland are described by Flemming in 1719 as a "kind of greyhound, [...] of immense size", which are even taller than English dogs and which have long withered heads - like a piece of game.

According to Flemming, they were used to search for and hunt down wounded game; also for chasing (light) brooks, deer and wolves in light wood. But they should be spared from chopping pigs because they are too good for that. They also belonged under the supervision of the "male servant in the English stable". Ridinger describes them as a kind of middle link between light and medium-sized hound dogs: “They are even useful because of the immense heat and fast running, but as the sow males they have to be supported by the docks and Bähr-biters because they spend more time driving and catching up than to stop. "

Great Danes jacketed for sow hunting, 1740
Danzig bear-biters after Flemming, 1729
Saufinder after Ridinger, 1738
Courshund after Ridinger, 1738
early Dähnischer Blendling after Flemming, 1719

aftermath

Especially in southern Germany , people are referred to as "bastards" to express a mixture between showing respect and rejecting the means chosen by the person in question.

Today's dog breeds

Dog breeds that can be traced back to Saupacker are for example:

Individual evidence

↑ See also the contemporary explanatory text by Johann Elias Ridingers in his copperplate engraving on "The Wild Pig or Pig", which is the model here.

↑ Jägermagazin ( Memento of the original from April 19, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 92 kB) @1@ 2

↑ H. Reichstein: Hund und Hundegräber - § 3. Zoological , in: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde , Volume 15, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin - New York 2000, pp. 217-219 ( limited preview on Google Books ).

↑ see also Urrassen theory for the 19th and 20th centuries

↑ especially those with rough hair are highlighted

↑ For a description of the picture, see the weapons in the Wartburg. P. 90 on Wikisource .

↑ Johann Täntzer in: The Diana high and low Jagdgeheimnüß , 1731 in Leipzig made edition, Weidmannsche, 3. Theil, S. 134 (the digitized (246 DS-S.) Austrian National Library )

↑ an "Irish mastiff" except Carl von Heppe in: Aufrichtiger Lehrprinz or Practical Treatise of the Lead Dog, as the foundation of the noble deer-friendly hunt. Augspurg, Johann J. Lotters sel. Erben, 1751, p. 10 (digitized from Google Books)

↑ Georg Ludwig Hartig in: Textbook for hunters and those who want to become one , Rötzl and Kaulfuss, 1812, Volume 1, p. 260 (digitized at Google Books)

^ ^A ^b Ludwig Julius, Friedrich Höpfner in: Deutsche Encyclopädie or General Real-Dictionary of all arts and sciences , Varrentrapp and Wenner, Volume 16, Frankfurt am Main 1791, p. 387 ( digitized from Google Books ).

^ ^A ^b Charles Hamilton Smith in: The Natural History of Dogs , Lizars, Edinburgh 1840, Volume II, p. 226 in the: Naturalist's Library, edited by William Jardine, there Volume X.

↑ Some images at:

Commons : Portraits with body dogs and chamber dogs - collection of images, videos and audio files

^ Karl August Müller in: Research in the field of modern history: Elector Johann Georg der Erste, (etc.), Dresden and Leipzig, Gerhard Fleischer, 1838, p. 30

↑ Johann Täntzer in: Der Dianen high and low hunting secret , edition produced in Leipzig in 1731, Weidmannsche, 3rd part, p. 137 (DS-p. 251) (digitized version of the Austrian National Library )

^ Johann Friedrich von Flemming in: The perfect teutsche Jäger , Leipzig, 1719, vol. 1, p. 170 (digitized version of the HAB Wolfenbüttel)

↑ ^a ^b Georg Ludwig Hartig in: Textbook for hunters and those who want to become one, Rötzl and Kaulfuss , Volume 1, Stuttgart and Tübingen 1812, p. 261 ( digitized version ).

↑ quoted from Georg Landau in: Contributions to the history of hunting and falconry in Germany. The history of hunting and falconry in both Hessen. Theodor Fischer, Kassel 1849, p. 177 who cites other similar examples from the Hessian area

^ Georg Landau in: Contributions to the history of hunting and falconry in Germany. The history of hunting and falconry in both Hessen. Theodor Fischer, Kassel 1849, p. 177 (digitized from Google Books)

↑ Wording slightly varying: "But if you want to have pigs-heads, you have to turn dog-heads" - Johann Friedrich von Flemming in: The perfect teutsche Jäger , Leipzig, 1719, vol. 1, p. 305 ; “But if you want to eat pork heads, you have to dare dog heads” - Heinrich Wilhelm Döbel : Opened Jäger-Practica, or The well-trained and experienced hunter ... , p. 78 , published by Johann Samuel Heinsius, Leipzig 1746.