Norwegian Elkhound

Norwegian Elkhound

A Norwegian Elkhound, showing the standard tightly curled tail – photographed on 29 August 2003.
Other names Norsk Elghund
Grå Norsk Elghund
Gray Norwegian Elkhound
Small Grey Elk Dog
Norwegian Moose Dog
Harmaa norjanhirvikoira
Origin Norway
Classification / standards
FCI Group 5, Section 2 Nordic Hunting Dogs #242 standard
AKC Hound standard
ANKC Group 4 (Hounds) standard
CKC Group 2 - Hounds standard
KC (UK) Hound standard
NZKC Hounds standard
UKC Northern Breed standard
Notes The FCI divides this into two breeds,
Grey (242) and Black (268).
Domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris)

The Norwegian Elkhound is one of the ancient Northern Spitz-type breed of dog and is the National Dog of Norway. The Elkhound has served as a hunter, guardian, herder, and defender. It is known for its courage in tracking and hunting moose (or elk) and other large game, such as bears or wolves. The Norwegian Elkhound was first presented at a dog exhibition in Norway in 1877. It is one of the oldest dog breeds, and Elkhounds have been found buried in Viking burial grounds. They make excellent family pets.

The AKC breed name "Norwegian Elkhound" is a direct translation from its original Norwegian name Norsk Elghund, meaning "Norwegian moose dog." The breed's object in the hunt is to independently track down and hold the moose at bay—jumping in and out toward the moose, distracting its attention, while signaling to the hunters by barking very loudly—until the hunter who follows the sound can arrive to shoot it. The dog will only bark while the moose is stationary, but it can also slowly drive the moose towards shooters lying in wait. The Norwegian Elkhound is also used on a leash. In this mode of hunting, the dog leads the hunter in the direction of the moose while keeping quiet.

Lineage

The breed falls under the mitochondrial DNA sub-clade referred to as d1 that is only found in northern Scandinavia. It is the result of a female wolf-male dog hybridization that occurred post-domestication.[1][2] Subclade d1 originated 480-3,000 years ago and is found in all Sami-related breeds: Finnish Lapphund, Swedish Lapphund, Lapponian Herder, Jamthund, Norwegian Elkhound and Hällefors Elkhound. The maternal wolf sequence that contributed to these breeds has not been matched across Eurasia[3] and its branch on the phylogenetic tree is rooted in the same sequence as the 33,000 year-old Altai dog (not a direct ancestor).[4]

Refer: Ancient dog-wolf hybridization

Description

Appearance

Norwegian Elkhound appearance
Build: medium, sturdy and squarely built
Weight: 44-51 lbs (20–23 kg)
Height: 19.5–20.5 inches (50–52 cm)
Coat: Coarse, straight, with soft undercoat
Color: Black and white coloring, often noted as grey or silver
Head: Broad and wedge-shaped with a defined stop
Teeth: Scissors bite
Eyes: Dark brown with a keen, friendly expression
Ears: Pointed, erect
Tail: Rolled tightly over back
Limbs: Straight and parallel
Life span: 14–16 years
Norsk elghund, Norwegian Elkhound

According to The Kennel Club breed standard ideally the dog stands about 19.5–20.5 inches (50–52 cm) high and weighs up to 23 kilograms (51 lb).[5] Its grey, white, and black coat is made up of two layers: an underlying dense smooth coat ranging from black at the muzzle, ears, and tip of its tail; to silvery grey on its legs, tail, and underbody; and an overlying black-tipped protective guard coat. An ideal Elkhound has a tightly curled tail, as the dog shown in the photograph on this page. The Elkhound is a medium-sized dog and extremely hardy.

Temperament

Adult Norwegian Elkhound displaying characteristic friendly expression.

Norwegian Elkhounds are bred for hunting large game, such as wolf, bear and moose. Although the breed is strong and hardy, the dogs typically have an inseparable bond with their masters and are quite loyal. All Elkhounds have a sharp loud bark which makes them suitable as watchdogs.

Norwegian Elkhounds are loyal to their "pack" and make excellent family dogs given proper attention. They are bold, playful, independent, alert, extremely intelligent, and, at times, a bit boisterous. They rank 36th in Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs, being of above average working/obedience intelligence.

A Norwegian Elkhound being shown off at the Scandinavian Festival hosted by California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, CA

Health

Norwegian Elkhounds sometimes carry a genetic predisposition to suffer from progressive retinal atrophy, or, like many medium and large breeds, hip dysplasia, renal problems, and cysts, particularly in later life; they are also prone to thyroid problems. Overall, however, they are a hardy breed with few health problems.

Elkhounds are prone to rapid weight gain and must not be overfed.

They have a lifespan of 12–16 years. There have been reports of elkhounds living to be 18 years old and older.

History

In Medieval times it was known as a dyrehund, meaning "animal-dog" in Norwegian, and was highly prized as a hunting dog but rarely seen or bred outside of Norway.

At the end of the 19th century the breed came to England, and in 1901 The Kennel Club officially recognized it.

Famous Norwegian Elkhounds

Cultural references

Literature

Television

See also

References

  1. ↑ Pang, J.-F.; Kluetsch, C.; Zou, X.-J.; Zhang, A.-b.; Luo, L.-Y.; Angleby, H.; Ardalan, A.; Ekstrom, C.; Skollermo, A.; Lundeberg, J.; Matsumura, S.; Leitner, T.; Zhang, Y.-P.; Savolainen, P. (2009). "MtDNA Data Indicate a Single Origin for Dogs South of Yangtze River, Less Than 16,300 Years Ago, from Numerous Wolves". Molecular Biology and Evolution. 26 (12): 2849–64. doi:10.1093/molbev/msp195. PMC 2775109Freely accessible. PMID 19723671.
  2. ↑ Duleba, Anna; Skonieczna, Katarzyna; Bogdanowicz, Wiesław; Malyarchuk, Boris; Grzybowski, Tomasz (2015). "Complete mitochondrial genome database and standardized classification system for Canis lupus familiaris". Forensic Science International: Genetics. 19: 123–129. doi:10.1016/j.fsigen.2015.06.014.
  3. ↑ Klütsch, C.F.C.; Savolainen, Peter (2011). "Regional occurrence, high frequency, but low diversity of mitochondrial dna haplogroup d1 suggests a recent dog-wolf hybridization in scandinavia". Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research. 6: 85. doi:10.1016/j.jveb.2010.08.035.
  4. ↑ Thalmann, O.; Shapiro, B.; Cui, P.; Schuenemann, V. J.; Sawyer, S. K.; Greenfield, D. L.; Germonpre, M. B.; Sablin, M. V.; Lopez-Giraldez, F.; Domingo-Roura, X.; Napierala, H.; Uerpmann, H.-P.; Loponte, D. M.; Acosta, A. A.; Giemsch, L.; Schmitz, R. W.; Worthington, B.; Buikstra, J. E.; Druzhkova, A.; Graphodatsky, A. S.; Ovodov, N. D.; Wahlberg, N.; Freedman, A. H.; Schweizer, R. M.; Koepfli, K.- P.; Leonard, J. A.; Meyer, M.; Krause, J.; Paabo, S.; et al. (2013). "Complete Mitochondrial Genomes of Ancient Canids Suggest a European Origin of Domestic Dogs". Science. 342 (6160): 871–4. doi:10.1126/science.1243650. PMID 24233726.
  5. ↑ "Breed standard". The Kennel Club. Retrieved 3 June 2015.

Further reading

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