AHC/WI: 50 Dog Breeds of America

Number 22. The Tennessee Collie/Cumberland Collie

When people began to spread into Tennessee from the American colonies, they brought with them dogs from across Europe. To colonists living on the Cumberland Plateau, a dog that could hunt, guard, and herd was needed, so using mainly Rough Collie and Irish Setters, they set off to make a breed that could do both. It wasn't until after Tennessee became a state that the breed was truely formalized, with the addition of German Shepherds to the mix. It was around 1815 that the breed as we know it today came into existence. It became known as the Tennessee Collie, for its home state, however some within the state wanted it to be known as the Cumberland Collie, t further distinguish it. However, this name never really caught on outside of the Nashville area.

One famous Tennessee Collie owner was Andrew Jackson, a President from the state. He brought two of them with him to the White House; Washington and LaFayette. Throughout the years the Tennessee Collie has been one of the country's more popular dogs, due to their levels of intelligence and activeness. They are commonly used in TV shows and movies, such as the show Lassie, which involved a Tennessee Collie saving the day in the midwest. They are also used by the police force, since, like their Shepherd ancestors, they are fast and strong with a tough nose. However, unlike the Shepherd, they never found the same levels of use as attack dogs.

The Tennessee Collie was highly unregulated, up until it was recognized by the AKC in 1899. Since then, there has been strict regulations on the breed, including the color of their fur, with is brown with black woven in and large white patches on the chest, legs, and top of the muzzle; a well as on tail length and muzzle shape. This has led to much inbreeding, and fairly high levels of hip dysplasia and other afflictions. Outside of those, they are relatively healthy, and very active, dogs that can live up to 14 years. They tend to have fairly decent dispositions, and can make great family pets for active families with no young children, whom they have a tendency to try and herd.

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(Sorry that picture is so big, but its exactly what I was aiming for.)
 
(Sorry for the double post, but inspiration struck while messing with my step-sister's chihuahua.)

Number 23. The New Mexican Lapdog


Originally bred at the turn of the century, the New Mexican Lapdog was originally bred by ranchers to be a companion for young children. Active and playful enough to keep up with them, while small enough to not do any of the harm a ranching dog could. They started by breeding the native mexican dog the chihuahua with the Chicago Terrier. They then added in Jack Russell for good measure. A few generations later, voila, the New Mexican Lapdog, also sometimes called the New Mexican Terrier.

They are actives dogs, who get larges surges of energy before crashing for several hours, making them perfect playmates for young children. They also have an even temperament to match. Recognized by the AKC in 1945, the New Mexican Lapdog has even gone on to become the official state dog of that state, and the living mascot for the professional hockey team, the New Mexico Scorpions, up until their fold in 2009. Since then, University of New Mexico has adopted the line of dogs from the Scorpions.


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Just a quick note: Yes, this thread is still active, albeit a little slow. I have just finished the artwork for the Saint Louis Longcoat Dachshund and I will write the description of it within the next couple of days.
 
Same for the dog breed that I have in mind for the state of Maine. In between school, working full time, and writing a new TL, I have been quite busy.
 
Connecticut Whale Dog I want especially since it would of been bread mostly in my area of the state the Mystic-Groton-New London area.
 
Mexican Traildog

The Mexican Traildog has it's origins with the hairless dog breeds used by many Central American and Caribbean peoples. When the conquistador's arrived, they continued their tradition of using vicious wardogs, but adopted these hairless dogs instead, breeding them for size and loyalty. Attempts to breed them as fighters failed, but they were still favoured by explorers as their keen senses and loyalty made them good sentries and trackers. They found their way into Spanish California and then into the west coast American colonies, where they were adopted as general purpose working dogs in the great basin. Today, it is being looked into by the U.S military as a working dog due to frequent deployments in desert environments, continuing a 400 year old tradition. There is also a large breeding community, although many animal welfare groups are concerned about inbreeding causing birth defects.

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24: Saint Louis Longcoat Dachshund

State: Missouri
AKA: American Dachshund, Gunslinger Dachshund, Dustercoat, Lodendackel (German)



History: Okay, the Saint Louis Longcoat Dachshund does not really have a long coat. Rather it has a distinct black or dark brown spot covering its back that makes it look like the dog is wearing a longcoat, riding coat or 'duster'. As the longcoat was also a very popular item for horsemen, in particular rangers and cowboys, the dog was nicknamed 'gunslinger' pretty much from the start.





The typical 'longcoat' pattern first emerged quite randomly among the dachshunds that the German, mostly Bavarian, settlers brought with them to the Missouri valley as badger- and other vermin chasers. By the time the first German breweries began to appear in Saint Louis, owners had already begun to deliberately breed the pattern into their dogs and before long the longcoat dachshunds had surpassed the original German one-color dachshunds in popularity among the Saint Louis citizenry. Somehow dachshunds, beer and German-ness just seemed to fit together and in Saint Louis the Longcoat gave the whole a nice local, American twist.


(This beer is my master's... Saint Louis about 1895...)

It helped that the Anheuser Brewery adopted the longcoat very early on as part of their advertising and thus the dog was spared from the association with Germany that plagued all other Dachshund breeds in the Anti-German backlash following WWI.

Features:
The Longcoat is a typical dachshund in appearance: long snout, long back and short legs. The 'coat' or 'duster' ranges in color from reddish brown to black and covers the neck, back and typically the top half of the front and back feet. Snout and belly are usually light brown or grey. Overall the fur is short haired.

The front feet are short but muscular and very well adapted to digging. Unlike the regular shorthair dachshund, the tail has a distinctive 'wedel' or 'fan' of long hair.




Behavior: From his origins as a burrowing dog used to flush out badgers and other underground vermin from their nests, the Longcoat retained his keen sense of smell and occasionally can be used as a drug-sniffing dog. However due to going into holes and burrows on its own, the dog also has large streak of autonomy and often will refuse orders that go against its own better judgement. It is said that a longcoat is 'managed' rather then trained or that he is the perfect dog for cat people...

Another trait associated with its ancestry is its love for burrowing: blankets, linnen baskets or teddy bear collections: a longcoat that can cover itself in it is a happy longcoat and longcoat owners quickly learn not to leave their work clothes on the bed but to immediately put them in a dirty clothes bin that has a lid on it.

Popularity: Being essentially an American dog, the Longcoat Dachshund is about equal in popularity with the regular shorthaired and wire-haired dachshund in the US and Canada. The dog being featured in Anheuser beer advertisements, even today, does of course help in no small part. Popularity however differs by region: In Saint Louis and in general on the whole upper Mississippi and Missouri river area almost every dachshund is a longcoat. The breed is also very popular in Minnesota, both Dakotas and for some reason the Napa region in California. It is virtually inexistent in New York, Boston and the Gulf Coast.



Outside of the North American continent, the Longcoat still remains a curiosity, nowhere in numbers comparable to the 'traditional' dachshunds. One exception however is Germany where the 'longcoat' recently gained a solid fan base. Most famously German actor Götz George owns a longcoat dachshund named 'Shimanski' after his character of the same name, a tough-as-nail detective wearing a trenchcoat. As there exists in southern Germany a traditional coat called a Lodenmantel, comparable to a duster or longcoat, the dog is semi-officially named 'Lodendachshund' or in short: 'Lodendackel'.

In other countries the breed is mostly referred to as the 'American Dachshund'.
 
This thread is too adorable to die. Maybe me pushing it to the halfway point will encourageothers to get this finished ;)

25. Oregon -- The Cascadian Bear Dog

The Cascadian Bear Dog's origins trace to the dogs bred by the Tahltan people of British Columbia and the southern Yukon. Despite their small size, which allowed them to move lightly over snow that slowed down their larger prey, these dogs were tenacious hunters. They were able to harass or confuse a bear into a submission through their high-pitched yips.
Bred solely for their hunting value, the appearance between these dogs could widely vary from one individual to another. Most were noted to easily switch gaits as they moved through different terrain or heavy brush, making them versatile hunters. Also noted were their fox-like appearance and the short and bushy tails they carried erect.

By the time the Tahltan Bear Dog was recognized as a unique breed in the 1930s, it was nearly on the verge of extinction. Quite a few breeders were interested in these bold little dogs and all had their own plans on how to save and perfect the breed.

One breeder in particular moved his breeding stock back to his home state of Oregon. He introduced other breeds to expand his bloodlines, particularly spitz types such the Swedish Lapphund and Norrbottenspets (a Scandanavian breed he saw as quite similar to the Tahltan dogs.) He ran his best dogs through the wilderness of the Cascade Mountains to ensure they never lost their tenaciousness.

Due to the introduction of several larger breeds to their gene pool, the modern Cascadian Bear Dog has some variance in their accepted size, but a dog must never be above twenty inches at the shoulder. A number of colors are acceptable. Their ears are large and erect and their muzzle refined and pointed. All members must possess the characteristic "whisk broom" tail of their Tahltan ancestors. They also retain the yodels and yaps that allowed their ancestors to keep a bear at bay.

The Cascadian Bear Dog has a reputation as a small and feisty breed. Their gentle nature with their families make them popular pets. Quite a few members of the breed remain working dogs. Most famous are the dogs used in Yellowstone National Park to help track down and trap problem bears for study or relocation.

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(IOTL the Tahltan Bear Dog went extinct in the 60s and 70s, with no known genetic descendants. People ITTL seem to love dogs too much to let any of them go extinct :p Here the Tahltan Bear Dog survives in several breeds that claim to be 'the' Tahltan Bear Dog. The bit about Cascadian Bear Dogs being used in Yellowstone was inspired by Karelian Bear Dogs that are used for similar research/relocation purposes.)
 
A refreshingly different thread, well done everyone..:D

One of the things that I like about these splendid canines is that they could turn up in other threads and timelines. Want to flesh out your ACW character and make him more meaningful - give him one of these dogs?

Or would that count as plagiarism and be discouraged?
 
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To be fair, most of my breeds were inspired by breeds/landraces of dogs that went extinct IOTL that I wanted to save in some form. It would make perfect sense for, say, a TL with a strong emphasis on native Americans to have breeds like the hare Indian dog (which inspired the Chippewa dog), the tahltan dog (which inspired the cascadian bear dog), or the Salish wool dog. It would be up goths other creators to decide of their breeds should be used in any capacity.
 
The breeds that I had listed weren't extinct but more so just an idea I had at the time. Only one of them actually is a real dog in form but not in name or history.
 
Something else. Does anyone have a tally of the states that are already covered and the ones that are still available for dog breeds? I might try a second dog breed if I find a nice state to brainstorm over.
 
I've been keeping track of the states that have had dog breeds actually written for them. I do recall a few other people asking to reserve states quite a few weeks back. I'm not sure on the acceptable wait time should be before those states should come up for grabs again.

1. Delaware -- The Nanticoke River King
2. Pennsylvania -- The Allegheny Mountain Dog
3. New Jersey -- The South Jersey Shepherd
4. Georgia -- The Georgian Yellow Hound
5. Connecticut -- The Connecticut Whale Dog
6. Utah -- The Deseret Bishop Dog
7. Wyoming -- The Crosshorn Ranch Dog
8. Texas -- The Captain Blazer
9. Louisiana -- The Cajun Bayou Hound
10. Colorado -- The Rocky Mountain Dog
11. Virginia -- The Appomattox River Dog
12. Illinois -- The Chicago Terrier
13. Maryland -- The Chesapeake Bay Water Dog
14. Rhode Island -- The Portsmouth Terrier
15. West Virginia -- The Appalachian Coonhound
16. Hawaii -- The Hawaiian Poi Dog
17. Massachusetts -- Douglas' Dog/The Shenandoah Dog
18. Montana -- The Blackfoot Traildog
19. Alaska -- The Alaskan Ovcharka
20. Washington -- The Salish Wool Dog
21. Minnesota -- The Chippewa Dog
22. Tennessee -- The Tennessee Collie/The Cumberland Collie
23. New Mexico -- The New Mexican Lapdog
24. Missouri -- Saint Louis Longcoat Daschund/Gunslinger Dachshund
25. Oregon -- The Cascadian Bear Dog
 
I've been keeping track of the states that have had dog breeds actually written for them. I do recall a few other people asking to reserve states quite a few weeks back. I'm not sure on the acceptable wait time should be before those states should come up for grabs again.

1. Delaware -- The Nanticoke River King
2. Pennsylvania -- The Allegheny Mountain Dog
3. New Jersey -- The South Jersey Shepherd
4. Georgia -- The Georgian Yellow Hound
5. Connecticut -- The Connecticut Whale Dog
6. Utah -- The Deseret Bishop Dog
7. Wyoming -- The Crosshorn Ranch Dog
8. Texas -- The Captain Blazer
9. Louisiana -- The Cajun Bayou Hound
10. Colorado -- The Rocky Mountain Dog
11. Virginia -- The Appomattox River Dog
12. Illinois -- The Chicago Terrier
13. Maryland -- The Chesapeake Bay Water Dog
14. Rhode Island -- The Portsmouth Terrier
15. West Virginia -- The Appalachian Coonhound
16. Hawaii -- The Hawaiian Poi Dog
17. Massachusetts -- Douglas' Dog/The Shenandoah Dog
18. Montana -- The Blackfoot Traildog
19. Alaska -- The Alaskan Ovcharka
20. Washington -- The Salish Wool Dog
21. Minnesota -- The Chippewa Dog
22. Tennessee -- The Tennessee Collie/The Cumberland Collie
23. New Mexico -- The New Mexican Lapdog
24. Missouri -- Saint Louis Longcoat Daschund/Gunslinger Dachshund
25. Oregon -- The Cascadian Bear Dog

As the thread creator, I think all reservations are fair game unless someone re reserves it and then give them 24 hours to post before said reservation is void
 
No California yet? I thought this would be the first state to have an official breed, I mean between Beverly Hills, Hollywood and surfer culture... Not even mentioning Silicon Valley.... Potential enough for some interesting breeds.
 
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