E-Book, Englisch, 155 Seiten
Reihe: Comprehensive Owner's Guide
Cunliffe Brussels Griffon
1. Auflage 2012
ISBN: 978-1-59378-993-0
Verlag: CompanionHouse Books
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)
E-Book, Englisch, 155 Seiten
Reihe: Comprehensive Owner's Guide
ISBN: 978-1-59378-993-0
Verlag: CompanionHouse Books
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)
Juliette Cunliffe has owned sight hounds for 30 years. She judges competitions around the world and is a Kennel Club Accredited Trainer of Judges. Shw is the author of many successful dog books and lives in Shropshire, England.
Weitere Infos & Material
The history of the Brussels Griffon is clearly not a particularly old one in comparison with that of many other breeds, though no one seems to know quite how old it is. Many cynologists have claimed that paintings by Jan van Eyck dating back to 1434 depict the Griffon, but then other dog historians claim that the dogs in those pictures are representatives of other breeds.
The breeds involved in the make-up of the Brussels Griffon we know today also vary according to the source. Count Henry Bylandt considered the breed to be the result of a ruby English Toy Spaniel (also known as the King Charles Spaniel) crossed with an Affenpinscher. Others are convinced that the blood of the Yorkshire Terrier as well as the Irish Terrier flows in the veins of the Brussels Griffon. As we shall discover later, the Pug also made its mark on this enchanting breed.
Mrs. Parker Rhodes, of Partridge Hill Kennels, was an early and successful exponent of the breed, and in her opinion the breed existed on the Continent from the 16th century, although there was no firm evidence of the Griffon’s being introduced to England until 1885.
However, we do know that the dog Tom (also sometimes recorded as Vom), who had won at the Brussels Show in 1880, was bought by an Englishman and brought to Britain. Before leaving Belgium, Tom was used at stud and produced a dog called Fox. This male was to become a prominent stud, and is the sire of the very first British champion. There is, though, no record of this import in The Kennel Club Stud Books.
Four Griffons from the 1930s, rendered by the great dog painter Maud Earl. From left to right, these are Park Place Presto, Park Place Pinkie, Eng. Ch. Park Place Paristan and Esperance, all owned by Miss Hall.
A German Affenpinscher, illustrated in the late 19th century.
EARLY DAYS IN BELGIUM
In Brussels it appears that Griffons, or at least dogs very similar to them, wandered the streets, for they were the favorites of the city’s coachmen. They called them “Stable E’curie” and “little street urchins,” and they were kept in the stables to work as rat catchers. These dogs are reported to have traveled in the coaches, and, because of their cheeky expressions, became popular with the ladies as well as with the “cabbies!”
Mr. George Jamison’s Sport, an Irish Terrier from 1875, a feisty, go-to-ground sort likely behind the early Griffons.
The Club du Griffon Bruxellois was formed in Belgium in 1880, following which a breed standard was compiled. At a dog show, the first breed classes were held at the Club in 1883. In 1888 Griffon and Schipperke enthusiasts joined together to form a joint club for their two breeds, and in 1892 a Brussels Griffon gained its crown, becoming Belgium’s first champion in the breed. In the early 20th century Griffons were judged in classes according to weight, up to 3 kgs (6.5 lbs) and 3–4.5 kgs (6.5–10 lbs).
The Irish Terrier, one of the possible founders of the Griffon, was Mr. S. Wilson’s Eng. Ch. Bolton Woods Mixer, who won 2,000 prizes at the turn of the 20th century.
This Griffon appeared in the 1930s with Mme. Landing of France. The original caption which accompanied this photo stated, “These dogs need plucking to give them the coat and appearance so much desired. They were first introduced into England about 1894. This dog is said to be the most extravagant dog in the world.”
LADY HANDLEY SPICER
Shortly following the turn of the 20th century Mrs. H. Handley Spicer, later to become Lady Handley Spicer of the well-known Copthorne affix, wrote extensively on the breed. She talked of the miners in Yorkshire and the Midlands who owned “wiry-coated and wiry-dispositioned red dogs.” These dogs accompanied their masters to work and were stowed away in their overcoat pockets until the “dinner” hour, when they were brought out to share their masters’ meals, with an opportunity to catch the occasional rat between times!
In the late 1920s, Griffons were popularized by many of England’s most prominent families. This photograph of Mrs. Parker Rhodes, from 1928, shows the lady with her most attractive Griffons.
Lady Handley Spicer said that elderly gentlemen of her day remembered well these little “red tarriers,” saying that they were the originals of the Brussels Griffons of her day. The breed’s characteristic gameness was attributed to the sporting activities of the miners. In her opinion, one seldom saw any pictures from the 19th century bearing much resemblance to the breed as she knew it. The possible exception was the little dog in Sir Edwin Landseer’s Dignity and Impudence, but she thought it might with equal justice have been claimed as “a bad Yorkshire or a mongrel Skye Terrier.”
Lady Handley Spicer taking her Griffons for a morning walk, circa 1900.
Lady Handley Spicer was a highly respected authority on the breed throughout her life. She died in 1963, at 91 years of age.
This painting by Frances C. Fairman shows the four color varieties of the English Toy Spaniel as seen in the 1920s. The ruby (solid red) spaniel used in the Griffon’s creation is credited for the breed’s short face
THE NAVVY’S DOG
There is an interesting story about a type of dog in Yorkshire known as the “Navvy’s dog,” presumed to be a forerunner of the Yorkshire Terrier. Around 1873 this dog was sent by a Yorkshire dealer to Belgium. So great was the demand in Belgium that the dealer collected every similar dog he could find and sent them away. Later, in 1898, when interest in the imported Griffons had developed in Britain, this same dog dealer saw them and was convinced that they were nothing more or less than the “Navvy’s dog,” the offspring of the very dogs he had exported!
THE FIRST IMPORTS TO BRITAIN
Griffons Bruxellois, as the breed is known in the UK, were first imported into Britain from Belgium. Here this interesting little breed became immediately popular in the homes of the well-to-do, its bright and precocious appearance attracting a number of admirers. At that time the coat color was a paler red than is known today, and noses were somewhat longer. Ears were then cropped, to make them stand erect, though, of course, this is no longer allowed in Britain.
The first known importers in Britain were Mrs. Kingscote, Miss Adela Gordon, Mrs. Frank Pearce and a Mr. Fletcher, who kept a dog shop in London’s Regent Street. Lady Handley Spicer soon joined these other enthusiasts and it was at her house, in 1896, that the Griffon Bruxellois Club was first proposed, and later formed. The Griffon Bruxellois Club of London was later to become an offshoot of that club and, as Lady Handley Spicer put it, like many children, appeared to be more vigorous than its parent.
This charming photo appeared in 1927 and shows the Hon. Mrs. Ionides’s Griffons in three sizes, then called “normal, small and very small.” Breeders were trying to maintain the breed at the smallest size without spoiling the dog’s temperament.
A GRIFFON TO DYE FOR!
In the early days of the Griffon’s introduction to Britain, breeders profited highly from their sales. Those weighing under 6 lbs (2.8 kgs) and of rich color were the most highly sought after. Occasionally, unscrupulous dealers resorted to dyeing the dogs to obtain the highest prices!
“A LADY’S LITTLE DOG”
In the breed standard drawn up by the original breed club, the opening section, under the title “General Appearance,” reads, “A lady’s little dog—intelligent, sprightly, robust, of compact appearance—reminding one of a cob, and captivating the attention by a quasi-human expression.”
Two years later, in 1898, the breed was given official recognition by the English Kennel Club, with separate register status, and the first show at which they were judged separately from other breeds was the Ladies Kennel Association Show that same year. There were, though, only three Brussels Griffons registered with The Kennel Club in 1898, two of which were to become the first British champions, Bruno and Mousequetaire Rouge.
GRIFFONS AT EARLY SHOWS
Griffons made a good impression when they were first shown at Crufts Dog Show in February 1895. In the summer of that year, at the Ranelagh Show, a Griffon weighing 2.25 lbs was shown. She was called Princess Helene and had a shorter face than those previously seen; her eyes were round, but she did not have the “monkey face” that was later considered so attractive.
Despite the breed’s many admirers, progress up the ladder of popularity was not so swift as might have been expected. This was probably due in part to the fact that the breed was not uniform in type and also that often the name “Brussels Griffon” was given to a “mongrel Yorkshire Terrier,” which cast some doubt on whether or not people had actually purchased the true Belgian breed.
Breeders worked toward uniformity of type within the breed, and it was the British opinion that by the early 1900s the standard quality of Brussels Griffon on those shores was much higher than in the breed’s native land. The breed had become one that possessed an ever-changing expression and, above all, the special characteristic of wonderful eyes, which, compared with the eyes of many other toy breeds, appeared as a glass bead within a fathomless lake.
The Alexandra Palace Show was held in September 1900, and it was here that Copthorne Pasha and his son, Eng. Ch. Copthorne Top-o’-the-Tree, made their first appearance....
