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Since there is not a proper thread on here about Dals, I thought I'd start one. All of my information comes from research and observation at shows. The only Dal I ever had was a rescue we had for 5 months when I was 9 years old.
The true history of the dal is unknown and that is all that can be said for certain until about 1700. After researching, and in particular carefully reading Alfred and Esmeralda Treen’s collected index of all mentions of the breed throughout history, I wrote what I perceived as a fair analysis of history.
The history of the Dalmatian is ancient and very jumbled. Different sources will send you through a new story each time. In writing this piece, I have used as many versions as I could get my hands on. I am most keen to believe those individuals who have done the most research, including travels to personally talk with locals and historians of the regions key to the development of the breed. There is evidence of pointer shaped, spotted dogs throughout Europe before and especially during the middle ages. They have a strong tie to the gypsies, who were quick to grab the flashy animals as an addition to their street performances. Since the gypsies were nomadic, the dal was quickly dispersed throughout eastern and western Europe. When the keeping of dogs regained popularity they were used as sight hounds, scent hounds, bird dogs, and guard dogs for the carriages and horses from roadmen and thieves. Whatever they were used for, they have always had an affinity with horses. Type varied greatly throughout this time, and there is usually no mention of color. They were known first as the “Bengal Harrier†and were said to have come out of India from cross between a tiger and a dog. At that time, (16th and 17th centuries) spotted dogs used for hunting were quite common. Weather the dal originated from setters and spaniels of roan or Belton marking is not verified, however, evidence points toward it. The first use of the name Dalmatian is in a 1700s translation of the French book Natural History. It is not until later thorough British write-ups that we see a connection to the color liver. Tricolor was also prominent. Although many people still try to connect the breed to the Dalmatian coast of Yugoslavia, there is no information whatever of spotted dogs of any kind being indigenous to the region. One 16th century traveler to the region wrote of the mastiff and molloser dogs used for pulling carts, guarding, and sport, but he did not mention any spotted dogs. One would think if there were any spotted dogs such as an early Dalmatian, he would have commented on the eccentricity. It is unknown how it gained its name, perhaps by chance or by mistake. A man in Serbia, although originally from Dalmatia, who was known as Jurij Dalmatin imported some dogs and bred them, although no mention of color or spots is mentioned. Dalmatians were used as a symbol of the Roman Catholic Church for year, so there is proof that the breed was already alive and well in Italy in the 14th and 16th centuries. In its early years as a recognized breed of dog it much resembled a pointer. In the 1800s, they were discovered widely in England and it became fashionable to have one or usually two of these flashy dogs running underneath your coach just after the first axel. In those days it was tradition to crop the entire leather of the ears. England is the birthplace of the current type of the Dalmatian as we know them today. Dals have been in the United States as long as the time of General and President George Washington, who kept them himself. They were also kept by the fire departments as mascots and to run out in front of the horses and act as a modern day siren might, clearing the way, and also to calm and ease the horses during all the chaos. As automobiles were created, they went on to become circus performers, and companions, but their connections to the fire department remained.
Now for the part more pertinent to today, health. There are a lot of rumours and some of them are actually true.
Do Dals have a higher instance of deaf dogs than the average breed? Yes. Until recently, it was very difficult to tell weather a dog had hearing in one ear (unilateral, or uni) or both. (Bilateral, or Bi) Uni dogs were frequently bred, and thus passed the defect on. Today all responsible breeders have their puppies BAER hearing tested before going to new homes. Some breeders euthanize both Unis and Bi’s, some simply spay or neuter them. The Dalmatian Club of America recommends euthanasia for both. Whether or not that is ethical is another whole topic. BAER stands for Brainstem Auditory Evoked Response, and tests for the brain’s response to sound. By not breeding Bi or Uni dogs, we are lessening the instance of deafness.
Health-What are the major health problems of the breed?
Do Dals have urinary or bladder stone problems? Yes, most do. All Dalmatians, except those part of the Outcross Project cannot process a vitamin called purine. This leads to high acidic levels, which leads to easily crystallizing urine, aka urinary and bladder stones. The Backcross project is a DCA supported project in which a Dalmatian was bred with a single pointer in1973 to obtain normal purine processing. The resulting offspring, many generations later look and act like any other dal, and are able to receive full registration.
To avoid repeating the entire website, you can read in depth here, The DCA’s Low Uric Acid Descendants website.
Dalmatians are usually tested for their hips and eyes, but complications in those areas are rare.
For more information about Dalmatian health, visit http://thedca.org
Shorthaired dogs don’t really shed or require much grooming, right? Wrong. Dals are probably one of the highest shedding breed, and their hair tends to get stuck in everything. Daily brushings and a rub down with a town to remove loose hair are best. Frequent trimming of the nails is essential in dals in order to keep tight, compact feet.
That's my novel for now, and I don't even have a dal of my own! Are there any dals on Chaz? Feel free to post pictures of them.
Here is my partially finished website I made back when I was a Sophomore in High School. Longfellow Dalmatians. There is more on my oppinions and plans for breeding in the future.
The true history of the dal is unknown and that is all that can be said for certain until about 1700. After researching, and in particular carefully reading Alfred and Esmeralda Treen’s collected index of all mentions of the breed throughout history, I wrote what I perceived as a fair analysis of history.
The history of the Dalmatian is ancient and very jumbled. Different sources will send you through a new story each time. In writing this piece, I have used as many versions as I could get my hands on. I am most keen to believe those individuals who have done the most research, including travels to personally talk with locals and historians of the regions key to the development of the breed. There is evidence of pointer shaped, spotted dogs throughout Europe before and especially during the middle ages. They have a strong tie to the gypsies, who were quick to grab the flashy animals as an addition to their street performances. Since the gypsies were nomadic, the dal was quickly dispersed throughout eastern and western Europe. When the keeping of dogs regained popularity they were used as sight hounds, scent hounds, bird dogs, and guard dogs for the carriages and horses from roadmen and thieves. Whatever they were used for, they have always had an affinity with horses. Type varied greatly throughout this time, and there is usually no mention of color. They were known first as the “Bengal Harrier†and were said to have come out of India from cross between a tiger and a dog. At that time, (16th and 17th centuries) spotted dogs used for hunting were quite common. Weather the dal originated from setters and spaniels of roan or Belton marking is not verified, however, evidence points toward it. The first use of the name Dalmatian is in a 1700s translation of the French book Natural History. It is not until later thorough British write-ups that we see a connection to the color liver. Tricolor was also prominent. Although many people still try to connect the breed to the Dalmatian coast of Yugoslavia, there is no information whatever of spotted dogs of any kind being indigenous to the region. One 16th century traveler to the region wrote of the mastiff and molloser dogs used for pulling carts, guarding, and sport, but he did not mention any spotted dogs. One would think if there were any spotted dogs such as an early Dalmatian, he would have commented on the eccentricity. It is unknown how it gained its name, perhaps by chance or by mistake. A man in Serbia, although originally from Dalmatia, who was known as Jurij Dalmatin imported some dogs and bred them, although no mention of color or spots is mentioned. Dalmatians were used as a symbol of the Roman Catholic Church for year, so there is proof that the breed was already alive and well in Italy in the 14th and 16th centuries. In its early years as a recognized breed of dog it much resembled a pointer. In the 1800s, they were discovered widely in England and it became fashionable to have one or usually two of these flashy dogs running underneath your coach just after the first axel. In those days it was tradition to crop the entire leather of the ears. England is the birthplace of the current type of the Dalmatian as we know them today. Dals have been in the United States as long as the time of General and President George Washington, who kept them himself. They were also kept by the fire departments as mascots and to run out in front of the horses and act as a modern day siren might, clearing the way, and also to calm and ease the horses during all the chaos. As automobiles were created, they went on to become circus performers, and companions, but their connections to the fire department remained.
Now for the part more pertinent to today, health. There are a lot of rumours and some of them are actually true.
Do Dals have a higher instance of deaf dogs than the average breed? Yes. Until recently, it was very difficult to tell weather a dog had hearing in one ear (unilateral, or uni) or both. (Bilateral, or Bi) Uni dogs were frequently bred, and thus passed the defect on. Today all responsible breeders have their puppies BAER hearing tested before going to new homes. Some breeders euthanize both Unis and Bi’s, some simply spay or neuter them. The Dalmatian Club of America recommends euthanasia for both. Whether or not that is ethical is another whole topic. BAER stands for Brainstem Auditory Evoked Response, and tests for the brain’s response to sound. By not breeding Bi or Uni dogs, we are lessening the instance of deafness.
Health-What are the major health problems of the breed?
Do Dals have urinary or bladder stone problems? Yes, most do. All Dalmatians, except those part of the Outcross Project cannot process a vitamin called purine. This leads to high acidic levels, which leads to easily crystallizing urine, aka urinary and bladder stones. The Backcross project is a DCA supported project in which a Dalmatian was bred with a single pointer in1973 to obtain normal purine processing. The resulting offspring, many generations later look and act like any other dal, and are able to receive full registration.
To avoid repeating the entire website, you can read in depth here, The DCA’s Low Uric Acid Descendants website.
Dalmatians are usually tested for their hips and eyes, but complications in those areas are rare.
For more information about Dalmatian health, visit http://thedca.org
Shorthaired dogs don’t really shed or require much grooming, right? Wrong. Dals are probably one of the highest shedding breed, and their hair tends to get stuck in everything. Daily brushings and a rub down with a town to remove loose hair are best. Frequent trimming of the nails is essential in dals in order to keep tight, compact feet.
That's my novel for now, and I don't even have a dal of my own! Are there any dals on Chaz? Feel free to post pictures of them.
Here is my partially finished website I made back when I was a Sophomore in High School. Longfellow Dalmatians. There is more on my oppinions and plans for breeding in the future.
