I saw the Norrbottenspets listed as a breed to help expand the gene pool of the Norwegian Lundehund and had to know more about it. The Norrbottenspets is another spitz breed from the region of Norrbotten and “spets” being the Swedish spelling of “spitz”. The other names this breed is known as are Norrbottenspitz, Nordic Spitz and the, wait for it, Pohjanpystykorva. This makes the Xoloitzcuintli name look less challenging which is really saying something! The Norrbottenspets is a small hunting dog that originated near Sweden and Finland and were vitally important to the native’s way of life to help hunt for furs and gather food. This breed is considered “just as traditional as the loue (a type of shelter), puukko (sheath knife), leuku (a wide and long knife similar in function to a machete) and kuksa) drinking cup carved from birch burl).” Owning one of these dogs symbolizes national pride and is widely felt as one of the last remaining links to the wilderness. Due to this link to the wilderness way of living the Norrbottenspets are used by hunters even to this day to hunt for black grouse, capercaillie, and hazel grouse and even “baying moose” which are humongous and scary in my opinion so these must be some bold dogs. These dogs not only are used for the natives to get back in touch with their ancestorial roots but they are also seen in agility and obedience trials. This was almost not possible though. In 1947/1948 the Swedish Kennel Club declared the breed extinct and it wouldn’t be until a decade or so later that some Norrbottenspets looking dogs were found near North Bothnia in Pajala which still practiced some Finnish hunting culture. After this find a new standard was written and the stud book was reopened in 1966. A call for founding stock was made and out of 100 inquires only 36 were accepted and over the next few years to finish out the decade only an additional 80-100 more were added. In 1973 the Swedish and Finnish Kennel Clubs joined together to find more Norrbottenspets specimens to diversify the genetics. Although the studbook in Sweden closed in 1980s the Finnish studbook is still open and continues to this day.

I have to admit that I would use these words interchangeably and not too long ago I decided to actually look into the definition of each word then of course looked into how that can be applied to dogs. So, like in previous posts let’s look at the definitions of each word: - Satiation: temporary, specific and physiological; a transient motivational state produced by overexposure to a particular reinforcer - Fulfillment: broader more enduring satisfaction; not of a specific drive but of innate functions, relational needs or life purposes Now that those are defined hopefully that makes the rest of what I am going to talk about easier to understand or perhaps it will happen the other way around. If not another way to think about the difference is that hunger is something that can be satiated while hunting behavior cannot. In order to reduce the desire to hunt for wildlife the desire needs to be fulfilled with safer outlets that mimic the desired behavior the dog would like to perform. This is because different parts of the brain are activated when a dog is hungry and when a dog is hunting. Satiation: When you feed a dog (especially to much) prior to training with a food reward this runs the risk of food losing its value as a reward. It is possible for the treat to be perceived as a punishment instead of a reward in the dog’s eyes. In turn you cannot feed the hunt out of the dog since, like mentioned above, different parts of the brain are active. If you were to try and satiate a dog into not chasing wildlife then this would just cause frustration. If you were to take the satiation route for Predation Substitute Training this would lead your dog’s drive into dormancy not fulfillment. This is due to the dog’s intrinsic needs not being met and are not able to express their natural functions. Fulfillment: When a dog is fulfilled they were able to satisfy their natural function and deep need, in this case, of the Predatory Motor Pattern that they wanted to perform but in a safe way. This is because your dog was able to have control over the event that took place which reduces stress and is essential for adaptive behavior.

The footage in this video is unedited outside of trimming out the parts of getting Káosz or Csili out of my car so you can see how I handled certain scenarios. Also this is my first time using this POV camera (it is by DJI) so please pardon some of the camera angles. The more I use it the better it will become. I had it on my shirt but I think next time I will try on a hat. In my opinion Káosz’s session is probably the most helpful since he is younger and therefore has much to learn. I will admit I have not done as much work with him as I would have liked to at this point in his life but also sheep aren’t a critter most people just come across especially very often. All things considered I would say he did not do to bad but there is room for improvement and he has demonstrated that he is capable of that. He just needs the opportunity. As usual a dog’s behavior 9/10 falls on the owner. Csili’s session is also helpful for those who have older/more mature dogs with higher toy drive. Always remember to keep sessions short. Don’t “one more” it. It is better to keep it short and end on a good note/goal met than keep going since it is going well. A dog’s impulse control is finite and needs “recharged”. You know your dog best but if any advice I give were to be taken it would be to have a goal in mind and once that goal is met then end the session. You can always come back later for more.

This week we are going to talk about one of the rarest, but apparently least popular on the AKC list of official breeds, the Norwegian Lundehund. This Norway native is also considered one the oldest and most primitive of the dog breeds in the world. There are various statements on how old the Norwegian Lundehund is as one source says there is archaeological evidence of skeletal remains that go back to the Viking Age and a lineage that goes back thousands. Another source states that the furthest back is mentions of a dog with such skill being written down as far back as the 1400s or the year 1591. Regardless of which one is correct it is clear that this dog has been around for a while. These dogs have quite the fun and unique job which caused them to evolve to have some fun and unique physical features. The Norwegian Lundehund can literally be translated to “Puffin Dog” as their job was to hunt puffins in Norway all along the steep cliffs. In order to adapt well to their job they were selectively bred to have 6 functioning toes on EACH paw, be able to have their legs fan out at 90º like an airplane, fold their ears shut forward or backward to protect against water and debris and be able to flex their head back onto their spine for quick about face maneuvers in small caves. They not only were responsible for finding and retrieving puffins but also they were watchdogs and helped herd small livestock where their unique capable stability comes into play again on the rocky terrain. Much like with other types of jobs the Norwegian Lundehund became obsolete once nets and other methods were introduced plus the Norwegian authorities had a dog tax which made having a dog made life more expensive and families often had multiple Norwegian Lundehund at this time. In the 1960s the Norwegian Lundehund had barely survived a wave of distemper only for another wave of distemper to come through and almost wipe out the breed again. This left the Norwegian Lundehund with 6 that were purebred where only 4 were used to repopulate the breed and those 4 were related. This “genetic bottleneck” as it is called in the sources was and is a concern for Norwegian Lundehund enthusiasts. This level of inbreeding has caused some health issues as one might imagine and this includes low fertility and something called intestinal lymphangiectasia which basically is a digestive disorder that does not allow your body to absorb the nutrients one needs from food. Essentially a dog with this disorder can starve to death no matter how much they eat.

Twice this week now the neighbors sheep have found their way through a hole in the fence. Today was the second day and the first group must have told their friends because it looked like the whole herd was on property this time! Both times I took each of my vizslas out for some PST exposure and it went well! I have footage from today but not day 1 and will be putting that together for another post. The camera angles on the footage for Káosz are a little wonky (I’m using a mounted POV camera) as it was my first time using it. What are some opportune moments you have come across with your dog when encountering wildlife or other things they have trouble with?