Patagonian Dog

[cúagusgiorraí 57]

I was reading this today and thought it was quite interesting. It is the observations of the 'Patagonian dog' made by Philip King and explorer with the HMS BEAGLE when on a five year exploration of the Strait of Magellan. The dogs were kept by the Tehuelches. The dogs went extinct around the same time as the people themselves, by the end of the century.

The dog of Patagonia is strong, about the size

of a large fox-hound; his coat is usually short but

wiry, though in some instances it is soft and long

like that of a Newfoundland dog; indeed I should

say, in general terms, that the dogs seen by us in

the southern part of Patagonia resembled lurchers

or shepherds' dogs, with a wild wolfish appearance,

not at all prepossessing; one of this kind I obtained

near the Otway water; his habits were savage

rather than domestic. These dogs hunt by sight,

and do not then give tongue; but they growl and

bark loudly when attacked or attacking. Their

colour is usually dark and nearly uniform, spotted

dogs being rare. The dogs of the Fuegian Indians,

who have no horses but move about in canoes, are

much smaller than those of Patagonia or the eastern

part of Tierra del Fuego; they resemble terriers, or

rather a mixture of fox, shepherd's dog, and terrier.

All that I examined had black roofs to their mouths,

but there was much variety in the colours and degrees

of coarseness of their coats. Not one dog, out

of the number which were brought to England,

could easily be prevented from indulging in the

most indiscriminate attacks upon poultry, young

pigs, &c. Many Fuegian dogs are spotted, and not

a few have fine short hair, but all resemble a fox

about the head, although there are among them

many varieties of size and colour, as well as of form

and hairy coat.One brought from Tierra del Fuego

was white, with one black spot, and very handsome ;

his size was about that of a terrier, his coat

short but fine, and his ears extremely delicate and

long, although erect; this is the case with all the

other breeds likewise, their muzzle also is long, and

they have the tail rough and drooping; they keep

most vigilant watch, and bark furiously at a stran-ger;

with them the natives guard their habitations,

hunt otters, and catch sleeping or wounded birds.

As they are never or seldom fed, they provide for

themselves at low water, by cunningly detaching

limpets from the rocks, or breaking muscle-shells

and eating the fish. "

In the eastern portion of Tierra del Fuego, where

the natives have neither horses nor canoes, the dog

is invaluable; no temptation would induce some

Indians, seen near the Strait of Le Maire, to part

with a fine dog of the size of a large setter, which

had, except about the head, an appearance like that

of a lion; behind the shoulders it was quite smooth

and short-haired, but from the shoulders forward it

had thick rough hair of a dark grey colour, lighter

beneath, and white on the belly and breast; the

ears were short but pointed, the tail smooth and

tapering, the fore quarters were very-strong, but

the hinder appeared weaker. It had a wolfish

appearance about the head, and looked extremely

savage. " None of the dogs in the southern part of South

America are mute; there are none in a wild state,

and there is a scarcity rather than an abundance of

those which live with the aboriginal natives. In

times of famine, so valuable are dogs to them, it is

well ascertained that the oldest women of the tribe

are sacrificed to the cannibal appetites of their countrymen

rather than destroy a single dog. ' Dogs,'

say they, ' catch otters; old women are good for

nothing.' "

 

[cúagusgiorraí 57]

hunt otters, and catch sleeping or wounded birds.

As they are never or seldom fed, they provide for

themselves at low water, by cunningly detaching

limpets from the rocks, or breaking muscle-shells

and eating the fish. "

 

I have heard of the Lundehund, which catches puffins on cliff faces, but picking limpets? I wonder if a dog could do it?

Edited December 12, 2007 by cúagusgiorraí