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The Icelandic Sheepdog
The
Icelandic Sheepdog is Iceland´s only native dog. It was brought over to Iceland
by the original Viking settlers who first arrived around year 874 AD and has
adapted to the local terrain, farming methods and the hard struggle for survival
of the Icelandic people over the centuries. The dog assisted with guarding and
herding sheep, cattle and horses.
Appearance
The Icelandic Sheepdog
is a herding spitz, slightly under medium size with pricked ears and a curled
tail, often with double dew-claws on the hind legs. The breed comes in many
colours but fawn in all nuances are most common. Other predominant colours are
black (tricolour) or chocolate. Self-coloured dogs are not wanted and white
always accompanies the main colour. The coat can vary in length, either long or
short, but always thick and weatherproof.
History
Not much is known about
dogs in the first centuries Iceland was inhabited. Around year 990 there was a
great famine in Iceland and because of scarcity of food it was suggested that
most or all dogs in country would be killed in order to save human lives. During
the Middle Ages Icelandic Sheepdog were often exported from Iceland, especially
to Great Britain where they became popular pets for people of high society.
Thomas Brown wrote around 1650 that Icelandic Sheepdog are not only imported to
Great Britain as family pets but they were also coveted by English sheep
farmers.
In
1590, Oddur Einarsson describes four types of dogs in Iceland, i.e. farm- and
watchdogs, sheepdogs, pets or show dog and huntingdogs that were used for
foxhunting. Oddur states that the sheepdogs were agile workers when herding the
sheep.
In
1755, Count de Buffon wrote about known dogbreeds in the world and the Icelandic
Sheepdog is one of the 30 breed of dogs he meantion. A painting from 1763
features an Icelandic Sheepdog born in Dantzig in Poland in 1759.
Eggert
Ólafsson and Bjarni Pálsson give a detailed account of the Icelandic Sheepdog
in their book but they travelled around Iceland in the years 1752-1757. They
describe three different dog breeds in Iceland and describe the sheepdogs having
a thick, long and sometimes extra long coat. The sheepdog did not only herd but
also had other duties, such as retrieve puffins from their underground burrows.
Eggert and Bjarni described the working methods of the sheepdogs, and say the
dogs bring the flock to the shepherd.
In
most travel chronicles written about Iceland in that time and until the 20th
century some accounts of the Icelandic Sheepdog can be found. The descriptions
vary somewhat but never the less it is clear that a distinct dog breed is being
described. The dogs were said to be found in the countryside, they guard the
fields, herd the sheep and horses and find sheep lost in snow.
Population
Fluctuations
In
earlier times several dogs were kept at each farm. The dogs were important help
in herding the livestock, for example to drive sheep to grazing fields in the
morning and home at night. Or for longer trips like driving the flock to the
highland of Iceland in early summer, to find it again back in the fall and drive
it back to the farm. In 1869 it is estimated that about 24.000 dogs total were
in Iceland. But few years later, by 1883-1887, the population had dropped to
only 10.000 dogs. The explanation for this dramatic decline is an 1869 low,
which required a high tax on all dogs except for a limited number of sheepdogs
in each farm. This law was enacted because dogs are the intermediate hosts of
tapeworm that causes intestinal infections in humans and infections in the head
of sheep. Though it has to be noted that today it is known that the main cause
of tapeworm infections was a general lack of hygiene among the public but not
the dogs.
Foreign
dog breeds were imported to Iceland during the 19th and early 20th century and
around 1900 the number of pure Icelandic Sheepdog had fallen dramatically.
Christian Schierbeck travelled around Iceland in those years and meantioned that
pure Icelandic Sheepdogs could only be found on remote farms. In 2 years of
travelling in Iceland he only managed to locate about 20 dogs with the distinct
features of the breed, in addition to the one he had himself. Schierbeck held
the Icelandic Sheepdog in high regard, stating that the breed had a strong
spatial orientation and is especially well-suited to driving herds of sheep from
the mountains in the fall. He maintained that the dogs recognize every sheep in
the flock and are a great necessity for every farmer. He meantioned that after
the different panademics and distemper in the last part of the 19th century that
killed more than ¾ of the entire population the prize of a single dog could be
up to equal to the prize of a horse and two sheep. In 1901, Iceland enacted a
law banning import of all dog.
In
the last part of the 19th century the Danish army experimented with using
Icelandic Sheepdog in the field. The dogs were trained to carry orders between
different group of the army and although the dogs performed their duties
successfully these experiments were discontinued and the dogs transferrred to
different owners.
Icelandic
Sheepdogs were first exhibited at a dogshow at the Tivoli in Copenhagen in 1907.
In 1898 the Icelandic Sheepdog was recognized as a breed in Denmark and the
English Kennel Club recognized the breed in 1905. At the same time, the club
published a breed standard that had been translated from Danish. The Icelandic
Sheepdog was rarely shown in England but in 1960 an Icelandic Sheepdog advanced
to “Best in Show” competition at the Crufts Dog Show.
Mark
Watson
The Icelandic
enthusiast Mark Watson travelled quite a lot around Iceland. During his first
trips, around 1930, he saw several Icelandic Sheepdogs in the countryside but in
his later trips, around 1950, the Icelandic Sheepdog was almost nowhere to be
seen except in remote locations. It is clear that during this time the breed was
in grave danger of becoming extinct. Watson decided to export few dogs to
California for breeding. Páll A. Pálsson, the chief veterinary officer in
Iceland at the time, helped Watson export the dogs, but he also kept one a bitch
for himself. Soon after the dogs arrived in California, they were stricken with
distemper but those that lived were breed. Later Watson moved back to England
but over time English enthusiasts began breeding according to their own desires,
the dogs became shorter, more compact and smaller-boned.
Organized
Breeding
Páll A. Pálsson was
among the first people to realize that the Icelandic Sheepdog was facing
extinction and he arranged to breed the female he had kept. The Ministery of
Agriculture also put money in breeding of Icelandic Sheepdogs in the town of
Hveragerði.
In
1967, Sigríður Pétursdóttir started a substantial breeding program at the
farm Ólafsvellir in Skeiðahreppur. Since Sigríður´s first dogs were too
related to continue breeding and very few pure Icelandic Sheepdogs were in
Iceland she obtained permission to import two puppies from Mark Watson in
England. With these few dogs Sigríður started her pioneering work in breeding
the Icelandic Sheepdog.
In
1969, the Icelandic Kennel Club (Hundaræktarfélag Íslands, HRFÍ) was
established but one of its goal is to protect and advance the breeding of the
Icelandic Sheepdog. Later the club became a member of the Fédération
Cynologique Internationale (FCI) and the Nordic Kennel Union (NKU). Today, the
Icelandic kennel Club is an umbrella organization for owners and amateur
breeders of many different breeds.
The
Icelandic Sheepdog Breed Club of Iceland, DÍF, was established in 1979. It´s
mission is the protection and advancement of the breed under the auspices of the
Icelandic Kennel Club. In 1996, the president of HRFÍ and chairman of DÍF at
that time, Guðrún R. Guðjohnsen initiated the foundation of the Icelandic
Sheepdog International Cooperation (ISIC) in order to encourage cooperation
among countries in preserving the Icelandic Sheepdog. In addition to Iceland,
the ISIC member countries are Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Canada
and the US.
Every
year, around 100 puppies are born in Iceland and a considerable number are
exported to Europe and North America.
Characteristics
The characteristics of
the Icelandic Sheepdog include his wide smile and confident and lively
temperament. The Icelandic Sheepdog is a tireless herding dog who barkes, a
trait that is very useful when herding the livestock. It is a happy dog and
sweet-tempered, full of curiosity and loves to work. The breed is useful for
many different chores but today most Icelandic Sheepdogs are kept as house pets.
Icelandic Sheepdogs have been trained to assist with search and rescue, both in
Iceland and abroad. The dogs have also been trained as companion dogs for
autistic children. Icelandic Sheepdogs are of course also still used for herding
and to search for sheep lost in snow. During bad weather when visibility is
limited the dogs sense of smell allows him to locate sheep when people are
unable to. The dogs nose is also very useful in collecting eggs and the
Icelandic Sheepdog has been trained to locate the eggs of distinct species of
birds.
The
popularity of the Icelandic Sheepdog has increased in recent years. The world
wide population is not big and its only few decades ago since the breed almost
became extinct. luckily it was possible to safe the breed but everyone
interested in this wonderful dog must work together and have the same standard
in breeding. Dogs from smaller familylines must be used in the breeding program,
the inbreeding coefficient must be kept low and single breeding animals must
never be overused. We must all do what we can to preserve these wonderful dogs
so future generation also can enjoy these wonderful dog!
Further
informations about the Icelandic Sheepdog can be found in the homepage of the
Icelandic Sheepdog Breed Club of Iceland, DÍF: http://www.dif.is.
References
Deild
íslenska fjárhundsins.
2007. Vefslóð: http://www.dif.is.
Eggert
Ólafsson. 1981. Ferðabók Eggert Ólafssonar
og Bjarna Pálssonar. Um ferðir þeirra á Íslandi árið 1752-1757. 1. bindi.
Jón Eiríksson og Gerhard Schöning bjuggu frumútgáfuna til prentunar.
Steindór Steindórsson þýddi árið 1942. Bókaútgáfan Örn & Örlygur,
Reykjavík.
Gísli
Pálsson. 1999. Íslenski fjárhundurinn.
Bókaútgáfan á Hofi.
Hundaræktarfélag
Íslands.
2007. Vefslóð: http://www.hrfi.is.
Icelandic
Sheepdog International Comittee.
2007s. Vefslóð: http://www.icelanddog.org/.
Palmer,
Joan. 1985. Stóra hundabók Fjölva. Íslensk
ritstjórn og meðhöfundur Þorsteinn Thorarensen. Fjölvaútgáfan, Reykjavík.
Stefán
Aðalsteinsson. 1981. Sauðkindin landið
og þjóðin. Bjallan, Reykjavík.
Stefán
Aðalsteinsson. 1998. „Uppruni íslenskra húsdýra“. Um
landnám á Íslandi. Fjórtán erindi. Ráðstefnurit V, bls. 73-80. Guðrún
Ása Grímsdóttir sá um útgáfuna. Vísindafélag Íslendinga, Reykjavík.
Stefán
Aðalsteinsson. 2005, 12. janúar. „Særtrekk hos islandske husdyr“. Nordisk
genbank husdyr. Vefslóð http://www.nordgen.org/nordenshusdyr/nordenshusdyr.htm.
Watson,
Mark. 1956. The Iceland dog. A Research on
the ICELAND DOG (also known as the Icelandic Sheepdog). Wensum Kennels,
Nicasio, California.