History of Guardian & Working Breeds

11/09/2026

Its a very popular Breed, so feel free to assit please. History from Britanncia.

Shetland Sheepdog, small herding dog developed to control the small sheep, poultry, and ponies of Scotland’s Shetland Islands, the northernmost point of the United Kingdom. Shelties, as they are frequently called, resemble a miniature version of the rough-coated Collie, but it is inaccurate to call them Miniature Collies, for Shelties descend from several breeds and are different from Collies in more ways than just size. For example, the head is shorter with a blunter muzzle, and they only come in a long-haired version. Shelties can also be more careful and cautious around strangers compared to Collies.
The Sheltie’s small size was a response to the Shetland Islands’ harsh, cold, rocky landscape, which produced sparse vegetation. With food scarce, Collies and other breeds brought to the islands were intentionally bred smaller so the resulting breed would need less to eat than larger herding dogs. This diverse genetic history makes the Sheltie, as the American Kennel Club explains, “difficult to breed true to type.” The early Shelties were smaller than today’s breed, standing only 8–10 inches, and called “Toonie dogs” (Shetland dialect for farm dogs).

Sturdy, agile, intelligent, and alert, the Sheltie is noted for its herding ability and affectionate nature. The long straight coat is predominantly sable (brownish gold to mahogany), black, or blue merle (blue-gray with black mottling), often with bi- or tri-color markings of tan and white.
Britannica..

11/09/2026

Jackals crossed with huskies are being used in Russia as sniffer dogs. The result of a programme by Russian scientists to breed the ultimate sniffer dogs. Russian scientists have let the wild dogs out by mating jackals with domesticated dogs to create a canine with a heightened sense of smell that can sniff out bombs, drugs and other threats to flight safety. (video in comments?)

The hybrids have been bred to combine the keen nose of the howling scavenger with the temperament of man's best friend. Scientists say the dogs, which are a quarter jackal, can recognise a person's individual scent. They are being used at airports to detect explosives and drugs, and to catch criminals. They say jackals have a better sense of smell than their domestic cousins.

After years of cosseting, pet dogs have lost many of the skills they would need to survive in the wild. Pure jackals would be bad sniffer dogs because they have little trust in humans and are not obedient. More at home roaming the plains of Africa, they would not be able to tolerate the cold Russian winters. Now, scientists at Russia's DS Likhachev Scientific Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Environmental Protection think they have the perfect combination.

After a breeding programme started in 1975, they produced hybrids that are a quarter jackal and three-quarters husky. Northern dogs have a better sense of smell than all other dog breeds as huskies are used under severe conditions of arctic cold, said research leader Klim Sulimov. Substances become non-volatile under low temperatures; that is why a keener sense of smell becomes more important.

Twenty-five of the dogs(2002) are now being used at Sheremetyevo Airport, Moscow, to inspect planes, search for explosives and drugs, and to catch thieves. Ten more work at the forensic criminology examination department nearby.
---MY question is, if you start crossing a jackal or a wolf or anything with a domestic dog, will there be implications about whether it's a domestic or a wild animal??

10/09/2026

(A) Cesky Fousek; (B) Deutsch Drahthaar; (C) German Wirehaired Pointer; (D) individual of Bohemian Wirehaired Pointing Griffon Club of America; (E) Wirehaired Pointing Griffon; (F) German Shorthaired Pointer. Tail docking is allowed for hunting breeds in the countries of origin for these animals which were: Czech Republic (A; F), Germany (B; C) and USA (D; E).

10/09/2026

The Wirehaired Vizsla is a dog breed originating in Hungary.
Known as excellent hunting dogs, and also have a level personality making them suited for families. A versatile, natural hunter endowed with an excellent nose and an above average trainability.

The less usual Wirehaired Vizsla is a completely separate breed from its more commonly seen smooth-coated cousin. Developed in the 1930s, initially by Vasas Jozsef, owner of the Csabai vizsla kennel along with Gresznarik Laszlo, who owned the de Selle German Wirehaired Pointer kennel. Their aim was to produce a dog that combined the color of the Vizsla with a heavier coat, and a more substantial frame, better suited for working in
cold weather and retrieving from icy water.

Two Vizsla bi***es (Zsuzsi and Csibi), both of whom combined excellent pedigrees with good working ability, were selected to breed with a totally liver colored German Wirehaired Pointer sire (Astor von Potat). Zsuzsiʼs sire was known to have offspring with longer coats. The best of Zsuzsiʼs and Csibiʼs offspring were selected and bred together and Dia de Selle, the first WHV to be exhibited, was born. She had the same body as the shorthaired vizsla, but her head was the shape of the German Wirehaired Pointer. While her coat was not rough and thick enough, she was the promising beginning of the creation of the new breed.

Anecdotal history suggests the added infusion of Pudelpointer, Bloodhound and Irish Setter blood during the period of the Second World War when many other Hungarian kennels became involved in the development of the breed.
It has also previously, but incorrectly been suggested that the breed was created by backbreeding of smooth Vizsla's most heavily coated offspring (Gottlieb,idem).

09/09/2026

The Griffon Fauve de Bretagne is one of the oldest French dog breeds. Its origins date back to the 14th century in Brittany, where it was used for hunting wolves and large game. In the 19th century, the breed nearly disappeared as wolves became scarce.
Fortunately, enthusiasts such as Marcel Pambrun, founder of the Club du Fauve de Bretagne in 1949, worked to preserve it. In the 1980s, Bernard Vallée helped revive the breed, restoring its place among French scent hounds.

09/09/2026

Borzoi hunting dogs and their handlers from the renowned Pershina estate hunt in Imperial Russia, as featured in a 1904 issue of the hunting magazine Psovaia i ruzheinaia okhota.

09/09/2026

08/09/2026

Tellus v. Freudenthal, a well known German Shorthaired Pointer (known in German as a kurzhaariger Vorstehhund) from the late 19th century wearing an elaborate collar decorated with numerous exhibition medals

08/09/2026

Spanish Mastin, 1930
Source: Pablo Antonio Táboas Pereira

08/09/2026

This photograph appears to show a classic, working-type Neapolitan Mastiff being evaluated by judges at an outdoor conformation show or breed survey.
Though there’s no book etc I can find to 100% confirm the explanation with the photo.