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History of the Landseer

GOING BACK INTO HISTORY ...

... the Beothuck Indians were the first human beings appeared on the isle of Newfoundland. We can be sure they had no dogs in their ground possessions. This is certain because it is stated in many ship journals and descriptions from excursions effected throughout Newfoundland. One early ship journal reports that the Beothucks were very scared of the English Mastiffs, when they were shown them for the first time. Some other journals report the total absence of dogs on the island several times, being used to commonly see dogs with Indians, on the Labrador territories. Therefore, we can forget about the fairy-tale of Vikings whose would have left big black dogs on the island, as it is often reported on some English books by black Newfoundland authors. Facts do not give any evidence of that.

IN 1497 NEWFOUNDLAND WAS ...

... re-discovered by John Cabot who was soon followed by other pioneers. They all didn't report of dogs on Newfoundland, neither. In 1615 Captain Whitbourne wrote: we didn't find any dogs on Newfoundland, but instead two species of wolves; a tall, long coated one who hunts mostly alone, and a smaller one who hunts in pack....

At the end of the 17th century Captain Bligh and Sir Joseph Banks found a kind of dog who had a special admiration for water. We know now, that they meant these big white and black dogs, later on called Landseers. What did happen in between these two periods of time, then?

Basque fishermen, used to sail the whole sea world for fish, had found very large fish-packs around the Isle of Newfoundland coasts. Around the middle of the 17th century they installed their first fishing station on the Canadian east coast, at Rougnoust

.

A very fine Newfoundland Dog. Wood engraving.

This is the Dog,
Who whilst we’re asleep,
Is a guard to the house,
And from thieves does it keep.

AS EVIDENCED, ...

... we can be sure that those fishermen brought along with them from their home region, the Pyrenean Mountain dog, for protection and safety. Modern laboratory researches have highlighted that magnification of the hair structure of a Pyrenean Mountain dog is pretty much the same of the Landseer, thus proving their genetic relation, when the hair structure of black Newfoundland bred in purity is quite different than the Landseer one! However, there are unfortunately not enough proves to go into deeper details with the Landseer background.

Dogs from Labrador, who were spread over the whole country, had been crossed with the very isolated Pyrenean dog on Newfoundland basks settlements? Nobody knows, but it’s likely that some other early "breeds" as the Curly Dog or the tall English Butcher dog were involved. However, in the old Bask archives, we found the following description: "By disposition and profession, no better dog could have been chosen to assume the role of protector and friend of the early settlements of the Biscay fisher folk on Newfoundland Island.

BY 1662, ...

... when the first permanent colony at Rougnoust was made, it was the Great Pyrenees dog that had become companion of the people. Here he was crossed with the English retriever, brought in by the English settlers, and from this cross resulted the true white-black Newfoundland dog." In England these dogs were strongly bred and spread over whole Europe. Until 1876 the Landseer, or we might say the "white and black", was described as the one and only true dog of Newfoundland.

ALSO BLACK NEWFOUNDLAND AUTHORS AND ENTHUSIASTS ...

... do know that most of the blacks were imported afterwards, from 1850/1890 on. Henry Farquharson, a popular breeder of the time, in 1882 wrote: "it is very well known by Newfoundland owners, that most of the imported dogs from Newfoundland were white/brown or white/black only" The black ones still lived on Newfoundland but as to them, we cannot really speak of a real breed, because those dogs, not isolated and spread over the whole country, were crossed many times with the dogs of Labrador, who was there in many colours.

George Lawles, in a letter dated 1845, wrote: ".... two imports from Newfoundland, named Sailor and Centon; they seem to be from different breeds.... one was red the other one black, they were not tall, their hair not so long but thick..." It is clear that those dogs, 50 to 60 cm tall, could not be compared with the white/black dog, selected and bred to a higher level in England and tall about 80/85 cm.

THE STRONG GENETIC BACKGROUND ...

... from the Pyrenean dog in the white/black was clear, as the strong genetic background from the dog from Labrador in the "black" Newfoundland, too. Since there were not many white/black on the Island and almost all of them were profitably exported to England, fishermen could keep the smaller blacks with them. Around 1886, some English breeders used to cross these "black" dogs with the much taller white and blacks.

By doing that, they wished to make the black taller and with a longer coat. When we look at the pictures from that early time, we see dogs structured as the white/black but black or brown, often mismarked. The original type moved in features and colours. The old white/blacks as seen on the oldest pictures were forced to its background.

THE GLITTERING STAR THE WHITE/BLACK USED TO BE ...

... gone almost to an end. When in 1891 the first breeding standard for the black was issued, breeders had the crossed type in mind.

For the old, pure white/black, nothing could be done, except being referred to as "colour other than black". Over that period of time, English judges and breeders didn't like the pure Landseer to be used with their "new dog of Newfoundland" well knowing that type and coat structure did differ and would show again and again, proving the white/black being a different breed.

OUR BEAUTIFUL BREED ...

... had sadly to loose his proper name: "Newfoundland", mixing things upside down. That's what happened.

But, no question about it, for more than 80 years, the pure white/black was the one and only "Newfoundland dog." Luckily, some English breeders kept up breeding pure Landseers. A handful of them was exported to the continent, as we can find backwards in the old Kennel Club Stud Books.

One of the most important was Kettering Scout (Major). He had a big influence on the breed, as well in England as in the continent later on. On the continent Prof. Heim did a major work for the breed.

He stated that the Landseer was a separate breed from the black Newfoundland, with a different breeding standard.

SINCE THEN PURE LANDSEERS HAVE BEEN AND ARE BRED AGAIN ...

... allowing us the pleasure to look at the beautiful markings, the original Newfoundland type, the strong temperament, and compare features to the so-called (black) Newfoundland.