Names mean something

[hedgehog]

English sheepdog

irish wolfhound

terrier

grey hound

collie

German shepherd

poodle

spaniel

setter

retriever

Pomeranian

beagle

pit bull

[BlueJazz]

1. I'm rather partial to Big Dog

[timdog44]

18. I'm rather partial to

timdog

[Drale]

2. Are you trying to say the Pitbulls are evil and dangerous because

of their names? Names are important but they can also be misnomers, Guinea Pig's are not Pigs, Sea Lions are not lions, and Hedgehogs neither live in Hedges or are Hogs.

[dipsydoodle]

3. And

toads don't have tools.

[pinboy3niner]

4. And don't even get me started on...

...Jumbo Shrimp.

[dipsydoodle]

7. Quite aside from

moth balls.

[pinboy3niner]

9. FTW!

[99Forever]

10. Nice strawman you beat up there.

Considering the OP said nothing close to what you railed on about.

There is in fact, a reason that there is a breed known as Pit Bulldogs, whether you care to acknowledge it or not. Most have a fairly good idea where that particular name came from, pretending it isn't so, is both dishonest and idiotic.

[olddots]

20. Grits ain't grocerys

[Recursion]

5. Yes, but those are not all the same category

Some are defined breeds with specific standards. Others are classes of breed. Others are just casual terms for certain kinds of breeds without being specific classes.

[hedgehog]

11. I think the case can be made that most of those names describe a specific

ability or function for the breed or type of dog.

[BainsBane]

6. there is no actual breed called a pit bull

That is a vernacular term. The breed typically associated with pit bulls is the American Staffordshire Terrier.

[hedgehog]

8. But the American Staffordshire terrier is not nicknamed

Oochie-woochie cuddles!

[BainsBane]

12. Nor is any breed

particularly not the German Shepard, Rotweiler, Doberman, Golden Retriever, etc, and the most irritating of all--the Chihuahua.
Give me a nice calm big dog any day over those little yappy dogs that run around and bark constantly.

[olddots]

22. hey we own a Chihuahua !

don't forget their breath smells ,they shed all over the place and have Napoleon complexes -our other dog is a Jack Daniels terrier ,she is 8 and may mellow out in 15 years .

[BainsBane]

24. that's cool

I certainly have no desire to exterminate them like some advocate for the pit bull. I just prefer bigger dogs, and the Napoleon complex is exactly why. I've sure you love your little dog and vice versa, and that's what matters.

[janlyn]

33. Actually...

My staffie could have been called Oochie-woochie cuddles! A giant baby who LOVED other dogs,kids,and cats!!! was afraid of squirrels crows and thunderstorms!!! The owner MAKES the dog!!! Each breed requires its own differences in how you raise,discipline and love them!!

Have I known some vicious pits??? yes but every single one was either constantly chained,not allowed to socialize or deliberately baited to make them mean by some wimp who thought if he could make his dog mean it increased HIS manhood!!!

[Paul E Ester]

13. Offtopic in a pitbull thread, the history of the irish wolfhound is pretty interesting.

Only allowed to be owned by nobility. The subtext to me was they were used as a weapons/tool against the Irish population.

"There are many stories of the bravery and ferocity of the hounds in battle, such as the one fought by Donald Yellowlocks of Ulster to avenge the killing of his son by Fergus of Ireland, in which the Ulster hounds were “with ardour destroying and beheading each warrior”. One bitch sprang into Fergus’s chariot, which was unable to stand the added weight and promptly collapsed, and seized the charioteer by the neck and tore his head from his body. After this, being unable to find Fergus, who had jumped out of the wreck of the chariot, she killed the horses."

[hedgehog]

14. I think what we call wolf hounds today were rebuilt as a breed in the late 19th century.

I have never seen them with a wolf, but the ones I have seen seem to be pretty gentle and laid back. It would be interesting to know if they were selected for a friendly temperament.

My guess would be that ownership of the hounds was confined to the nobility as an extension of limited hunting rights. A dog like that could take down a wolf or a deer. My grandfather tended to hunt (poach?) rabbits.

[Paul E Ester]

17. They look gentle and maybe a little dumb.

I had to look around to find a ferocious looking picture. Holy cow with ripping heads off in days of yor.

[hedgehog]

19. The only ones I've ever seen were family pets or

dogs brought out to Irish American events. My grand-uncle's dogs got along well with my aunt's Siamese cats.

[datasuspect]

21. what a great beast!

wow.

[BainsBane]

25. I LOVE them

almost as much as Great Danes. I so want a Great Dane!

[Paul E Ester]

26. Big dogs are neat but I sure don't want pooper scooper duty.

[smokey nj]

28. I used to see what I think was an old Irish wolfhound when I walked some of my clients.

He was the most mellow dog ever. He just lumbered along the waterfront like a big Muppet dog. One of my clients, a French bulldog named Petey, was completely in awe of him. Petey looked at the wolfhound as if his God just walked by. I haven't seen the wolfhound or his owner in a while. I have the sad feeling he may have crossed the rainbow bridge.

[redqueen]

32. We had one when I was little, a lovely gentle dog.

Never seen one looking ferocious before. Holy crap.

[snooper2]

15. Coronet: A coronet is a small crown consisting of ornaments fixed on a metal ring.

Do names really mean anything

[HereSince1628]

16. Names mean nohthing NOT-hing... German shepherds A.K.A. Alsatians Wolf Dogs

for decades and then they gave them to Sgt Schultz!

Ja Vol Mien Commandant!

[Paul E Ester]

23. The tax collector dog - a crazy collection of parent breeds

Doberman Pinschers were first bred in the town of Apolda, in the German state of Thuringia around 1890, following the Franco-Prussian War by Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann. Dobermann served in the dangerous role of local tax collector, and ran the Apolda dog pound. With access to dogs of many breeds, he aimed to create a breed that would be ideal for protecting him during his collections. He set out to breed a new type of dog that, in his opinion, would be the perfect combination of strength, speed, endurance, loyalty, intelligence, and ferocity.

The breed is believed to have been created from several different breeds of dogs that had the characteristics that Dobermann was looking for, including the German Pinscher, the Beauceron, the Rottweiler, the Thuringian Sylvan Dog, the Greyhound, the Great Dane, the Weimaraner, the German Shorthaired Pointer, the Manchester Terrier the Old German Shepherd Dog, the American Pit Bull Terrier . The exact ratios of mixing, and even the exact breeds that were used, remain uncertain to this day, although many experts believe that the Doberman Pinscher is a combination of at least four of these breeds. The single exception is the documented crossing with the Greyhound and Manchester Terrier. It is also widely believed that the old German Shepherd gene pool was the single largest contributor to the Doberman breed.

[hedgehog]

29. German Shepherds are an interesting breed -

I suspect that their temperament varies widely and wildly depending on the particular line. There is actually a line of German shepherds bred from the original Rin -Tin-Tin found on a WWI battlefield -

http://susanorlean.com/books/rin-tin-tin.php

[Shrike47]

27. Names can determine your destiney.

In my state some years ago, several murders were committed by a young man named Girley Crum.
Can you imagine what elementary school was like for him?

[baldguy]

30. And no matter what job they were originally bred for

they ALL - WITHOUT EXCEPTION - were developed with desire to please their human masters and to live in human society.

German Shepherd dogs were developed to herd sheep, but most people who own GSDs don't herd sheep. They have the dog as a family member & companion. Small Terriers were developed to kill mice & rats, but most people who have small Terriers don't let them chase & kill rats. They have the dog as a family member & companion. Bull Dogs were developed to kill bulls for sport, but most people who have Bull Dogs don't engage in bull-baiting with the dog, they have the dog as a family member & companion.

And most people who have dogs which are descended from the original "pit bulls" don't engage in dog fighting, they have the dog as a family member & companion.

BTW:



Her name is Orchid. It doesn't mean she always smells sweet.

[janlyn]

35. thanks Baldguy

My staffie's name was chance and he was my sweet baby!!! Still miss him!!!

[Nye Bevan]

31. So a "terrier" should instill terror (nt)

[talkingmime]

34. "Fuzzball" sort of works too.