Dog Breeds: Old vs New, Working vs Show- with many pictures

[HeritageGoose13]

What a great interesting thread! May add the Airedale Terrier? I've had them for close to 20 years. Such a divide between show and working dog breeders in this breed. Here's the historic working Airedale.

Here's the current "show type, about 40-50 lbs, less than 23"

Here's my working Airedale that would get scorned in a show ring for her size. 75 lbs of smart wonderful dog.

Interesting, and thanks for the pics. Please add as much as you like on Airedales or any other breed.

 

[Mutt Farm]

Interesting, and thanks for the pics. Please add as much as you like on Airedales or any other breed.

Oh thank you! I love so much about this breed. Airedale's are known as the King of Terriers. They originated in the British Isles to combat vermin of all sizes. They needed a bigger all purpose dog that could forge rivers. The now extinct black and Tan Terrier was crossed with an English Bull Terrier, the offspring were bred to an Otterhound. (below)

Some were small, some were big. The two camps divided, started breeding for type and temperament. They still don't agree! Large Airedales are often used for hunting large game like mountain Lions, bear, boar. And to ward off other predators like raccoon, coyote, etc.



They are used as police dogs personal protection dogs ranch dogs and service dogs. Most of all, as great family pets. They are notorious for being a natural guardian of children. Known for discretion, being very slow to anger, but tenacious and unrelenting when forced to fight. The working utility Airedale was used as a messenger dog and to find wounded soldiers during WWI. Teddy Roosevelt loved Airedales as hunting dogs. John Wayne took his nickname "Duke" from his Airedale.


There's my spiel on working Airedales. I always have 2. I love the breed.

 

[HeritageGoose13]

Thanks for the little history lesson!

 

[collie1470]

Ah! A good friend of mine has a few Airedales. They chase off the coyotes and mountain lions. Those are some seriously tough pooches....but they really are sweet with people.

 

[Mutt Farm]

Ah! A good friend of mine has a few Airedales. They chase off the coyotes and mountain lions. Those are some seriously tough pooches....but they really are sweet with people.

Yes! They are tough pooches! Thank you for commenting! I just got chickens, so I don't trust mine not to snack on them yet, but boy, me and my critters are safe from intruders! They just know what belongs and what doesn't. They are as sweet as sweet gets until. Coyotes are a serious problem here and the occasional rogue mountain lion. I'm not in the boonies. We have 1.5 acre lots. Coyote packs routinely eat dogs and such. They have no fear. I've seen my sweet 'Dales charge the fence. I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end. Here in So Cal, we have another destructive predator. Mix breed, slouchy pants, sometimes with a gun. 2 distinct types, thugs and drug addicts. They prey on the vulnerable. They don't like my Airedales.

 

[TytoAlba]

I'm late to this thread, but I find this topic very interesting and I'm glad to hear some people who agree with me. I hate how show breeders of dogs and cats, but particularly dogs, have mutated some breeds. I have never understood the desire to breed so stringently for some aspect of physical appearance. It inherently involves a lack of genetic diversity that usually ends up causing health problems. (I understand breeding for increased production in livestock animals to meet human needs, but that is another discussion. As a hobbyist and not a commercial producer I have the luxury of not needing to do that. It causes health problems for individual animals too but I guess seven billion people need to eat.) But breeding for a physical appearance that is "best" is so subjective and restricting for certain colors is the worst. That's why I've become interested in Icelandic chickens because they're not bred to some artificial color standard and according to what I've read seemed to have retained a lot of genetic diversity. I suppose it could be argued that since their importation into the United States they're working from limited genetic stock, but at least they haven't been intentionally bred just for a certain color or other appearance. For my own pets, I've preferred the "mutts". I think they're probably healthier. Or in the case of dogs, I gravitate to breeds that have been developed for a working task and particularly I've become interested in English shepherds which I understand were "general" working farm dogs in the United States. I'm no genetics expert and I suppose working breeds have more limited genetic diversity than a wild or feral population, but I would guess they still retain more genetic diversity and fewer health problems than all of these breeds developed for some certain physical appearance alone.

 

[collie1470]

More dogs will be good workers than will look exactly like a standard, so I'd think they would have a bit larger of a gene pool than the show dogs.

Restricting size, weight, coat type, coat color, eye color, exact body and face shape, straightness of teeth, tail type, temperment, health etc would cut out far more dogs than just basing breeding on workability, temperment and health..

 

[Mutt Farm]

For fun, how about a Caucasian Shepherd Dog. Originally bred as a LGD. BIG DOG! I only know what I've read, but MAN! If I lived in Alaska...

 

[collie1470]

They're too independent for my taste. I want a dog that works with me, not by itself.

 

[HeritageGoose13]

I've heard Caucasian Shepherd Dogs are the most aggressive dog breed in the world. If a strange human gets on their side of the fence... from what someone told me, the dog won't bark or chase you, it'll just kill you right then and there.