NORWEGIAN BUHUNDS
I hope you all had a lovely Easter Holiday and that the weather was kind to in any activities you had planned.
One of my best subjects at school all those years ago was history and it still fascinates me, so I was very interested in an article I read which was about when dogs started to be companions to humans.
The discovery of a 14,300-year-old jawbone of a dog found in Gough’s Cave Cheddar Gorge Somerset, has been a significant breakthrough in understanding the relationship between humans and dogs. This jawbone has been identified as one of the earliest known domestic dogs, it predates the domestication of farm animals and cats by thousands of years. The finding pushes back the time line of dog evolution from wild wolves by about 5,000 years, indicating a close relationship between humans and dogs, this finding has transformed our understanding of the history of domestication as the role of dogs in the lives of our ancestors in Britian at that time when humans were hunter gathers and agriculture had not yet emerged
I was also interested in an article published by the Norwegian Kennel Club, which discusses the breeding of Buhunds in Norway. Their Code of Ethics is much the same as ours with the dogs needing to be hip scored,although they have a different scoring system using letters with only those with A,B or C hips can be bred from .No dogs with Hereditary Cataracts should be bred from and if the dog has PNK it should be mated to a dog clear of PNK, of course as we have found, dogs do not go blind with the condition,but the worry is where it might lead if no action was taken. Of course, like us I am sure they have the same problem in that some dogs can develop cataracts later in life when they have been bred from, which is of course one of the reasons that testing before mating is so important, to try where possible never to breed from an HC dog which might have the condition later in life. On the temperament side no anxious or aggressive dog should be bred from but I am sure that goes without saying. It is also pointed out that inbreeding causes a decrease in litter size which I think we all know but I was interested to see that they recommend going back using a five-generation pedigree They say no male dog should have no more than one litter before the age of 2yrs, and no more than 25 before the age of 4yrs and no more 45 in a lifetime. Their Buhund club supports ongoing research into cataracts in the Buhund as of course does our club, they collect DNA samples on Buhund’s National Day every year, but as we know the cataract is specific to Buhunds and finding a DNA test is very difficult. They like us say how important genetic diversity is and they work to spread the breeding among as many dogs as possible, with good health and temperament. One very interesting fact is that the club keeps a list of male dogs on the club’s website which lists male dogs that have not bred litters, the owners list the dogs themselves showing that they are willing for the dog to be used at stud, which is hoped helps the genetic diversity with a wider selection of dogs being available, and prevents some males being used too frequently. The NKK Buhund club also have a sperm storage project where sperm from various male dogs is frozen and preserved for the future. This acts as a genetic reservoir which can reintroduce genetic diversity, there is a focus on a wide range of the population of good dogs that have not had many offspring while they were alive. In the health summary the Buhund was considered to be healthy breed with 96%owners of Buhunds being very satisfied with their dog’s health, and with the number of times a dog goes to the vet being on a par with the average dog and with the same type of ailments as most dogs.
I finish with the sad news that Ch/Ir Ch Arnscroft Di To Be A Sailor Ir J Ch (Sirius) by Ch /Am Ch Vision’s Dino Of Trollheimen IMP USA x Arnscroft Di Sing On Ice, has travelled over the Rainbow Bridge to play with his friends. Bred by Di Stirling he was one of a litter of four, three of which became Champions the other two being Lillian Rumsey’s Ch Arnscroft Di Nah May and Jenny Shorer-Wheeler’s Ch Arnscroft Di Na Mo Farrah (named as they were born during the Olympics.) He was a prolific winner in the showring gaining 22CCs, group placings and was BIS at Working & Pastoral Breeds Ch show in 2016 under Jeff Luscott. He lived his whole life with Di but was co-owned by the late Shirley & Alf Dobson who were our club Patrons at the time, Sue Cale and Nancy Evans. He sired 6 litters the first being 5th November 2014 and the last 28th Jan 2018. In a litter born to Ch Arnscroft Di or Comply on 15th March 2016 was Sarah Stonton’s Ch Arnscroft In Di Ana Jack who has 13CCs. He has now been retired from showing and is having a very successful career competing in Scentwork. Also in the litter was Arncroft Be A Sailors Son Di (Skipper) who travelled across the pond to live with Amie McLaughlin, mated to her MBIS MRBIS MBISS GCHP Jotunn Bella Binna, from her second litter with him was MBIS MRBIS MNBSS GCHG Cloudpointe Ringside Gossip (Buzz), who had a fantastic show career which included being 3rd in the Herding Group at Westminster Kenel Club Dog Show in 2025.On the 14th May 2017 Maddie Norman’s Ch Arnscroft Delilah At Veekay was born, she is Jack’s younger sister and was BCC at Crufts in 2024 under Kevin Young and has 10 CCs.
Margaret Deuchar margaretdeuchar@gmail.com
Any views expressed in Margaret’s Breed Notes are hers and hers alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Norwegian Buhund Club of the UK