Karelian Bear Dog
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| Karelian Bear Dog | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Alternative names | ||
| Karjalankarhukoira Karelsk Björnhund |
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| Country of origin | ||
| Finland | ||
| Classification and breed standards | ||
| FCI: | Group 5 Section 2 #48 | Stds |
| CKC: | Group 3 - Working Dogs | Stds |
| UKC: | Northern Breeds | Stds |
The Karelian Bear Dog is a Finnish or Karelian breed of dog,where it is regarded as a national treasure. They were more often used for hunting moose, birds and rodents than bears (as its name would suggest) since not all individuals have the ability to properly challenge a bear. Bear and moose tests are conducted in Finland, Sweden and Norway to determine an individual's ability as a beardog and weighs heavily in the dogs breeding potential. This dog will put a bear to flight or attack it with great pugnacity and will sacrifice its own life for its master. Its quick reflexes and fearless nature has also made it very popular for hunting other aggressive game such as the wild boar. It was the breeds ability to offer protection against a bear that earned the breed its name
[edit] Appearance
The dog should be in excellent physical condition. Males stand 54 to 60 cm (22 to 24 inches) at the withers, while females stand significantly shorter at 49 to 55 cm (19 to 22 inches).
The breed has a striking coat of straight, stiff but soft guard hairs and a fine soft undercoat. The colour must be black with white markings. Often the jet black hair is slightly tinted with brown highlights on the ends giving it a iridescent quality. Preferably the color percentage is around 70% black and 30% white. The bushy tail curls over the back in a ring and has a white tip.
[edit] Temperament
The dog should be brave. Often they tend to be aggressive towards other dogs and cautious around strangers at first. They have been bred to be very independent and a good bear dog should be able to actively hunt for hours at a time without any contact with its master.
Proper socialization and training is necessary as these dogs demand proper authority and respect to work well with their master and other animals. Treating them harshly will cause them to mistrust so one must be firm but careful when working with them. They must have a trusting and obedient master/dog relationship for everyone's safety.
They must always hunt only with their master and it is best not to have more than 2 Karelians hunting together or they will either go off hunting on their own or fight. They are silent but tenacious hunters and only alert when they have gotten the prey at bay. They will keep it there by barking in a very high, fast bark and running back and forth or around the animal until the master comes and kills it. They have been known to hold an animal at bay a very long time. If a bear tries to leave the dog will bite it on the tail and aggravate it to keep it from running away.
They are extremely loyal to their master and love their people. For this reason, they must be around them. They also love children and love to play. It is very unusual for a KBD to bite a human but they will kill another animal if they feel threatened. If more than one lives together there is a hierarchy in the pack much like wolves. One will be the alpha dog or leader and the others will usually defer to him/her.
This is not a dog that can be tied to a lead outside, kept in an apartment or never worked with. They are very social, outside hunting dogs and they need plenty of space to run free and get lots of exercise. If they get bored they will dig up the yard or try to get out to go hunting. These traits tend to prevent the breed from becoming popular companion dogs.
They are very territorial and will alert to any strangers or other animals.
[edit] History
The official breeding of the Karelian beardog was started in 1936 in Finland in order to maintain the attributes of the original Karelian Laika which was a truly magnificent dog, prized for its stamina, intelligence and temperament. The origin of the Karelian Laika is considered to be the Komi dog which originates in the virgin forests of the Komi region of Russia.
The Karelian Beardog should not be confused with the Russian-European Laika. This close relative was bred by Russian hunters who wanted to distinguish their own Karelian Bear Laika from the Karelian Beardog, and introduced other strains of native Russian laikas in order to improve its already fearless and tenacious characteristics. Despite the erroneous information still out there, The Russian-European Laika is NOT a result of crossing the bear dog with a "Utchak sheep dog". There is no such dog and as far as anyone knows, there never has been.
