A
AffenpinscherAfghan Hound
Africanis
Aidi
Airedale Terrier
Akbash Dog
Akita Inu
Alangu Mastiff
Alano Español
Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog
Alaskan Husky
Alaskan Klee Kai
Alaskan Malamute
Alaunt
Alopekis
Alpine Dachsbracke
Alsatian Shepalute
American Akita
American Bulldog
American Cocker Spaniel
American Eskimo Dog
American Foxhound
American Hairless Terrier
American Mastiff
American Staffordshire Terrier
American Water Spaniel
Anatolian Shepherd Dog
Anglo-Français de Petite Vénerie
Appenzeller Sennenhund
Argentine Dogo
Ariege Pointer
Ariegeois
Armant
Artois Hound
Australian Bulldog
Australian Cattle Dog
Australian Kelpie
Australian Shepherd
Australian Silky Terrier
Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog
Australian Terrier
Austrian Black and Tan Hound
Austrian Pinscher
Azawakh
B
Bakharwal DogBandog
Barbet
Basenji
Basque Shepherd Dog
Basset Artésien Normand
Basset Bleu de Gascogne
Basset Fauve de Bretagne
Bavarian Mountain Hound
Beagle
Beagle-Harrier
Bearded Collie
Beauceron
Bedlington Terrier
Belgian Shepherd Dog
Belgian Shepherd Dog (Groenendael)
Belgian Shepherd Dog (Laekenois)
Belgian Shepherd Dog (Malinois)
Belgian Shepherd Tervuren
Bergamasco Shepherd
Berger Blanc Suisse
Berger Picard
Berner Laufhund
Bernese Mountain Dog
Bichon Frisé
Billy
Bisben
Black Norwegian Elkhound
Black Russian Terrier
Black and Tan Coonhound
Black and Tan Virginia Foxhound
Blackmouth Cur
Bloodhound
Blue Lacy
Blue Paul Terrier
Bluetick Coonhound
Boerboel
Bohemian Shepherd
Bolognese
Border Collie
Border Terrier
Borzoi
Bosnian Coarse-Haired Hound
Boston Terrier
Bouvier des Ardennes
Bouvier des Flandres
Boxer
Boykin Spaniel
Bracco Italiano
Braque Francais
Braque Saint-Germain
Braque d'Auvergne
Braque du Bourbonnais
Braque du Puy
Brazilian Terrier
Briard
Briquet Griffon Vendéen
Brittany
Broholmer
Bruno Jura Hound
Bucovina Shepherd Dog
Bull Terrier
Bull Terrier (Miniature)
Bull and Terrier
Bullmastiff
Bully Kutta
C
Cairn TerrierCanaan Dog
Canadian Eskimo Dog
Canadian Pointer
Cane Corso
Cardigan Welsh Corgi
Carolina Dog
Carpathian Shepherd Dog
Catahoula Cur
Catalan Sheepdog
Caucasian Shepherd Dog
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Central Asian Shepherd Dog
Cesky Fousek
Cesky Terrier
Chesapeake Bay Retriever
Chien Français Blanc et Noir
Chien Français Blanc et Orange
Chien Français Tricolore
Chihuahua
Chilean Fox Terrier
Chinese Chongqing Dog
Chinese Crested Dog
Chinese Imperial Dog
Chinook
Chippiparai
Chow Chow
Cimarrón Uruguayo
Cirneco dell'Etna
Clumber Spaniel
Combai
Cordoba Fighting Dog
Coton de Tulear
Cretan Hound
Croatian Sheepdog
Curly Coated Retriever
Czechoslovakian Wolfdog
Cão Fila de São Miguel
Cão da Serra de Aires
Cão de Castro Laboreiro
D
DachshundDalmatian
Dandie Dinmont Terrier
Danish Swedish Farmdog
Dingo
Doberman Pinscher
Dogo Cubano
Dogo Guatemalteco
Dogo Sardesco
Dogue de Bordeaux
Drentse Patrijshond
Drever
Dunker
Dutch Shepherd Dog
Dutch Smoushond
E
East Siberian LaikaEast-European Shepherd
Elo
English Cocker Spaniel
English Coonhound
English Foxhound
English Mastiff
English Setter
English Shepherd
English Springer Spaniel
English Toy Terrier (Black & Tan)
English White Terrier
Entlebucher Mountain Dog
Estonian Hound
Estrela Mountain Dog
Eurasier
F
Field SpanielFila Brasileiro
Finnish Hound
Finnish Lapphund
Finnish Spitz
Flat-Coated Retriever
Formosan Mountain Dog
Fox Terrier (Smooth)
French Brittany
French Bulldog
French Spaniel
G
Galgo EspañolGerman Longhaired Pointer
German Pinscher
German Shepherd Dog
German Shorthaired Pointer
German Spaniel
German Spitz
German Wirehaired Pointer
Giant Schnauzer
Giant Schnauzer
Glen of Imaal Terrier
Golden Retriever
Gordon Setter
Gran Mastín de Borínquen
Grand Anglo-Français Blanc et Noir
Grand Anglo-Français Blanc et Orange
Grand Anglo-Français Tricolore
Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen
Grand Bleu de Gascogne
Grand Griffon Vendéen
Great Dane
Great Pyrenees
Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
Greenland Dog
Greyhound
Griffon Bleu de Gascogne
Griffon Bruxellois
Griffon Fauve de Bretagne
Griffon Nivernais
Gull Dong
Gull Terr
H
HamiltonstövareHanover Hound
Hare Indian Dog
Harrier
Havanese
Hawaiian Poi Dog
Himalayan Sheepdog
Hokkaido
Hortaya Borzaya
Hovawart
Hungarian Hound
Hygenhund
I
Ibizan HoundIcelandic Sheepdog
Indian Spitz
Irish Bull Terrier
Irish Red and White Setter
Irish Setter
Irish Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Irish Terrier
Irish Water Spaniel
Irish Wolfhound
Istrian coarse-haired Hound
Istrian short-haired Hound
Italian Greyhound
J
Jack Russell TerrierJagdterrier
Japanese Chin
Japanese Spitz
Japanese Terrier
Jonangi
Jämthund
K
Kai KenKaikadi
Kangal Dog
Kanni
Karakachan Dog
Karelian Bear Dog
Karst Shepherd
Keeshond
Kerry Beagle
Kerry Blue Terrier
King Charles Spaniel
King Shepherd
Kintamani
Kishu
Komondor
Kooikerhondje
Koolie
Korean Jindo Dog
Korean Mastiff
Kromfohrländer
Kunming Wolf-dog
Kuvasz
Kyi-Leo
L
Labrador HuskyLabrador Retriever
Lagotto Romagnolo
Lakeland Terrier
Lancashire Heeler
Landseer
Lapponian Herder
Large Münsterländer
Leonberger
Lhasa Apso
Lithuanian Hound
Longhaired Whippet
Lottatore Brindisino
Lurcher
Löwchen
M
Magyar AgárMajestic Tree Hound
Maltese
Manchester Terrier
Maremma Sheepdog
McNab
Mexican Hairless Dog
Miniature Australian Shepherd
Miniature Fox Terrier
Miniature Pinscher
Miniature Schnauzer
Miniature Schnauzer
Miniature Siberian Husky
Mioritic
Mongrel / Mixed
Montenegrin Mountain Hound
Moscow Watchdog
Mountain Cur
Mountain View Cur
Mucuchies
Mudhol Hound
Mudi
Murray River Curly Coated Retriever
N
Neapolitan MastiffNew Guinea Singing Dog
New Zealand Huntaway
Newfoundland
Norfolk Terrier
Norrbottenspets
Northern Inuit Dog
Norwegian Buhund
Norwegian Elkhound
Norwegian Lundehund
Norwich Terrier
Nova Scotia Duck-Tolling Retriever
O
Old Croatian SighthoundOld Danish Pointer
Old English Bulldog
Old English Sheepdog
Old English Terrier
Old German Shepherd Dog
Olde English Bulldogge
Otterhound
P
Pachon NavarroPapillon
Parson Russell Terrier
Patterdale Terrier
Pekingese
Pembroke Welsh Corgi
Perro de Presa Canario
Perro de Presa Mallorquin
Peruvian Hairless Dog
Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen
Petit Bleu de Gascogne
Phalène
Pharaoh Hound
Picardy Spaniel
Plott Hound
Podenco Canario
Pointer (dog breed)
Polish Greyhound
Polish Hound
Polish Hunting Dog
Polish Lowland Sheepdog
Polish Tatra Sheepdog
Pomeranian
Pont-Audemer Spaniel
Poodle
Porcelaine
Portuguese Podengo
Portuguese Pointer
Portuguese Water Dog
Pražský Krysařík
Pudelpointer
Pug
Puli
Pumi
Pungsan Dog
Pyrenean Mastiff
Pyrenean Shepherd
R
Rafeiro do AlentejoRampur Greyhound
Rat Terrier
Ratonero Bodeguero Andaluz
Redbone Coonhound
Rhodesian Ridgeback
Rottweiler
Rough Collie
Russell Terrier
Russian Spaniel
Russkiy Toy
Russo-European Laika
S
SaarlooswolfhondSabueso Español
Sage Koochee
Sakhalin Husky
Saluki
Samoyed
Sapsali
Schapendoes
Schillerstövare
Schipperke
Schweizer Laufhund
Schweizerischer Niederlaufhund
Scotch Collie
Scottish Deerhound
Scottish Terrier
Sealyham Terrier
Segugio Italiano
Seppala Siberian Sleddog
Serbian Hound
Serbian Tricolour Hound
Shar Pei
Shetland Sheepdog
Shiba Inu
Shih Tzu
Shikoku
Shiloh Shepherd Dog
Siberian Husky
Silken Windhound
Sinhala Hound
Skye Terrier
Sloughi
Slovak Cuvac
Slovakian Rough Haired Pointer
Slovenský Kopov
Small Greek Domestic Dog
Small Münsterländer
Smooth Collie
Smålandsstövare
Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier
South Russian Ovcharka
Southern Hound
Spanish Mastiff
Spanish Water Dog
Spinone Italiano
Sporting Lucas Terrier
St. Bernard
St. John's Water Dog
Stabyhoun
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Standard Schnauzer
Stephens Cur
Styrian Coarse Haired Hound
Sussex Spaniel
Swedish Beagle
Swedish Lapphund
Swedish Vallhund
T
Tahltan Bear DogTaigan
Tamaskan Dog
Teddy Roosevelt Terrier
Telomian
Tenterfield Terrier
Thai Bangkaew Dog
Thai Ridgeback
Tibetan Mastiff
Tibetan Spaniel
Tibetan Terrier
Tornjak
Tosa
Toy Bulldog
Toy Fox Terrier
Toy Manchester Terrier
Treeing Cur
Treeing Walker Coonhound
Tyrolean Hound
U
UtonaganV
VizslaVolpino Italiano
W
WeimaranerWelsh Sheepdog
Welsh Springer Spaniel
Welsh Terrier
West Highland White Terrier
West Siberian Laika
Westphalian Dachsbracke
Wetterhoun
Whippet
White English Bulldog
White Shepherd Dog
Wire Fox Terrier
Wire-haired Vizsla
Wirehaired Pointing Griffon
Y
Yorkshire TerrierÉ
Épagneul Bleu de PicardieŠ
ŠarplaninacAlaunt
A number of modern dog breeds are believed directly descended from the Alaunt. The original Alaunt is thought to have resembled a Caucasian Shepherd Dog. They were large, short coated dogs of varying type. The Alaunt was bred by the Alani tribes, the nomads of Indo-European Sarmatian ancestry who spoke an Indo-Iranian language. The Alans were known as superb warriors, herdsmen, and breeders of horses and dogs. The Alans bred their dogs for work and had developed different strains within the breed for specific duties.
History
As far as is known, the Alaunt's primary ancestors are working dogs such as the Armenian Gampr, the Sarmatian Mastiff from the Caucasus and the Alabai from Central Asia, but also the shorthaired hounds of South Asia, Persia, and Europe. However, the Ayran Flock Guardian or Sage Koochi steppe type that descends from the steppes of Asia, brought by the steppe nomads, used to domesticate the horse, control and defend large livestock far predates these breeds in working type, giving evidence of the genetic template of the Alaunt. The steppe nomads, including the "Kurgan Culture," introduced the use of the horse and chariot, as well as the Mastiff/Alaunt dogs of war.
In the 370s A.D., Hun invasions divided the Alani into the Eastern and Western Alans. The Eastern Alani tribes merged with the Ossetians and other nations, introducing their dogs into the bloodlines of many Balkan breeds, such as the Illyrian Mountain Dog, Metchkar, Qen Ghedje, Hellenikos Poimenikos and other Molossers of the region. Some believe that the white-coloured Alaunts were the direct ancestors of Greek and Albanian breeds, which in turn influenced all other white dogs in the Balkans. The Western Alans joined the Vandals on their raids through Europe and by the 410s A.D., their fierce dogs were influencing many breeds in France, Spain, Portugal, England and other countries, spreading the use of the "alaunt" name, which became synonymous with a type of a working dog, rather than a specific breed. Through breeding with various scenthounds and sighthounds, some alaunts became valued large game hunting dogs, existing in a variety of types, dictated by regional preferences. In 1500 A.D., Spain was known for breeding the best Alaunts and used them to conquer the New World.
In France, Alaunts were separated into three main categories, based on physical appearance and the duties they performed. The lightest type was the Alaunt Gentil, a greyhound-like dog, which eventually became assimilated into the local hunting breeds with the Alaunt Veantre. The original mastiff variety, known as the Alaunt de Boucherie, was crucial in the development of the fighting and baiting dogs of France. The Alaunt de Boucherie in France was known as the Alaunt Butchers in England and the Alano in Spain and Italy and were termed the original Bulldogs as they were used to control and defend herds of cattle. In Spain, the three categories were the Mastins, Alanos, and Lebrels further separated as the ayuda (defense types) and the presa (offense types) known as the Presa, Fila, and Cuban Bloodhound.
The long, broad, flat head of the Alaunt should never be confused with the modified brachycephalic breeds. The brachycephalic head type is wide in base, but short in length, typical of Mongolian man. While the preferred bite is reverse scissor, and may have been a trait introduced by the Mongolian breeds at some remote time in history, skull type and bite type are separate subjects of genetic traits. The dolichocephalic skull is narrow at base yet long in length, so the Alaunt could be referred to as a modified dolichocephalic breed, as mesocephalic is a balance of base to length. Moreover, the Alaunt or Mastiff must be separated from the Molossoides in head study, as this term does not separate the Mastiff from the Mountain Dogs or even the Pug. The Alaunt resembles the Caucasian man with a long broad head and a square jaw.
Only three known remnants of true ancient Alaunt type still exist worldwide: The original type Rustic Alano of Northern Spain, the White Kazbegi Shepherd Dog, and the original type White English Bulldog of the southeastern USA and recongignized by the WEBPS; said to be an algamation of mainly the Spanish Alano and the French and English Alaunts.
The original type Alaunt was a Butchers Dog aka Shepherd Dog of nomadic pastoralists of cattle that fought in battle from the grasslands north and west of the Caucasus. A number of Alans are still accounted for and are known today as the Ossetians. There is no plausible reason for the Alans/Ossetians to have stopped breeding the Alaunt, though the breed may be known today by other names. For example, in the area of Georgia of the Caucasus a Shepherd dog known as the White Kazbegi still assists cattle on cattle drives. In any case, the original Alaunt/Alano type is still found working in the obscurity of function as LGDs of cattle and farms including Spain's New World.
North of the Caucasus was a country known as Caucasian Iberia, as was Spain before the Celts arrived to form the Celtiberians. Iberians describe the people of both Caucasian Iberia, as well as those of the Iberian Peninsula When the Western Alans arrived in France and Spain in 406 A.D., they were perhaps either returning to an early outpost or simply returning home. Theories are supported by archaeological, anthropological and genetic evidence that the Iberians of Spain have origins in Caucasian Iberia. Interestingly, this theory has been around since at least 1050 A.D. and was a popular belief of Medieval Georgian Nobles, who referred to the Spanish or Western Iberians, as "Georgians of the West".
The Alans, like their relatives, the Sarmatians, Scythians, and Thracians were the warring nomadic pastoralists of the grasslands north and west of the Caucasus, that introduced the Mastiff proto-type that eventually became known as the Alaunt.
Pre-History
The Sumerians, a non-Semitic people that descended from the steppes, settled in Mesopotamia in the fifth millennium B.C., had artifacts by 2000 B.C. depicting the long bodied, long broad flat heads, and square muzzles typical of the Alaunt. The Sumerians supplemented animal husbandry with big game hunting.
Following were the Assyrians and their Mastiffs with the titles "Biter of the Foe" and "Catcher of the Enemy," on a number of artifacts denoting the dog's function as war-dogs.
The Molossus of the , descended into Epirus in about 1200 B.C., also from the north. However, their artifacts did not resemble the Mastiff proto-type, as they had a long nose of a narrow type, and a long mane. Varro, however, described a herding dog of Epirus which was white, large headed, and slightly undershot, used to defend sheep and goats.
The nomadic pastoralists migrations were presented by the Kurgan Theory/Kurgan Hypothesis in 1956 by Marija Gimbutas.
The titles "Biter of his Foe" and "Catcher of the Enemy," the supplemental use in big game hunting, and the tending of cattle and livestock describe the exact type dog brought by the Spanish Conquistadors and settlers to the Americas. The same functional titles of Assyrian Mastiffs were used to denote the Mastiff war-dogs of the Spanish Conquest as Perro de Ayuda and Perro de Presa, respectively.
Spain and north of the Caucasus were linked by the "Beaker Folk" who made articles of bronze and spread them widely through Europe starting around 2000 B.C. This era was said to be of sea-fearing more extensive than any until the 15th Century A.D. Thus, the earlier spread of Alaunts/Mastiffs throughout the Mediterranean, at least 900 years before the Phoenicians established their first colony on the Iberian Peninsula in 1100 B.C., is most plausible.
One can thus conclude the race of dogs known as the Alaunt originated with the race of people referred to as the Caucasians of Eurasian pastoral life, long advanced in domestication and not from the hunter/gatherer. Perhaps that's why the word "Mastiff" is said trace to Latin meaning 'domesticated'. In 550 B.C., the Alaunt given to Cyrus by the King of Albania was found meek when matched with a bull, however a fighter of lions and elephants.
The advancement of the nomadic herdsmen of the North-West Caucasian tribes appeared in the Late Stone Age, east of the Danube River. The Sumerians spoke a language reminiscent of Ural-Altaic. Kortlandt postulated a branch of Ural-Altaic was changed by a Caucasian substratum in the earliest Pre-Indo-European phase in the seventh millennium, north of the Caspian Sea, and this is supported by archaeological evidence.
The Alaunt, known as the light bodied Mastiff, developed in the grasslands along with the Pre-Indo-Europeans, north of the Caspian Sea. The Alans, like their anscestors, were nomadic pastoralists of the grasslands and therefore did not breed Mountain Dogs. However, the genetic template of the Alaunt proto-type has long been used in countless other breeds throughout Indo-Euro-Asia.
Modern relatives
Contemporary enthusiasts are developing new breeds based on Alaunt bloodlines, such as the New Alaunt, Antebellum Bulldog or Altamaha Plantation Dog, Dogo Belgrado, Abraxas bulldog and the American Alaunt. While its origins are strongly rooted in the ancient mountain dogs of the East, the Alaunt is regarded by some cynologists as the ancestor the original bulldog breeds.
The encyclopaedic content above is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License. A file containing the original Wikipedia content from which this page is derived is available here. Please note that any images above are seperately licensed and license terms are available by clicking on the image.
DODADOG © 2010 | Privacy | A Mindsizzlers LLP venture with Sorted Productions Ltd | Legals
Weather data courtesy of World Weather Online
