Our Indian Dog Breeds
Hundreds of years ago, there lived on this incredible sub-continent, canine species, magnificent in form and breed.These were companions and hunters for the royal families. They were saught after by kings and patronized by emperors.They ruled the domain alongside their royal masters.....till time began to change the rules....
The following are just a few breed names of these near forgotten creatures:
The Chippiparai is a sight hound breed of dog from the south of India Bred by royal families in Chippiparai near Madurai district Tamil Nadu, it was kept as a symbol of royalty and dignity in tirunelveli and madurai rulers.
The Mudhol Hound .The Mudhol/Caravan is an ancient breed, native to the Deccan Plateau of western India.
The Jonangi is a native dog breed of India, found all along the east coast of India, from Bengal to Kanyakumari
Combai is a very ancient breed of of dog, used in hunting as early as the 9th century BC.This breed was kept by the Maravar kings.
The Kanni is found around the south of India
The Rajapalayam Hound was used during the Carnatic wars.
The Indian Pariah Dog or the Indian native dog is not derogatory in the canine context and refers to a class of primitive dog of a specific appearance known as the "long term pariah morph", now days referred to as INDog.
In the words of Mrs.Menaka Gandhi..."These Indian dogs whom you regard as junglies were once kept by the royal families and Mughals who ruled this country. When the British came, they trashed many of our customs and royalty. They made us feel that nothing Indian was good, it had to be foreign to be of any value. So Indian cow breeds disappeared , Indian cheetahs were shot to extinction, Indian parakeets gave way to foreign parrots and the Indian dog was thrown out into the road, to be beaten , starved, abused and killed while smugglers brought in poodles, mastiffs and cocker spaniels to become status symbols.
The great granddaughter of the last Mughal king lives in the waiting room of a railway station. The same thing has happened to our dogs.. "
India now had new 'masters'.As the British 'Raj' overtook the fate of India, rulers lost their power, influence and possessions....they were forced to give up royal comforts and old habits had to be readjusted, to fit the changing times.During this process, even royal companions were replaced.Officers of the 'Raj', were often accompanied by their own companion animals,which were breeds alien to our country and climate.The 'Sahib's' dogs were now, quite obviously the new symbol of social status, as was wearing trousers , boots, or the skillful use of cutlery at a dining table.
Somewhere in the midst of this metamorphic process, the 'Mudhol' lost its magnificance, gone was the regal 'Rajapalayam' and the 'Combai', a rarity to come by.
While all of this was going on, the 'Sahib's' pedigrees may have been getting friendly with abandoned, ' native dogs',....soon a new breed appeared on Indian soil, the most unfortunate of its kind, cursed to an eternity of being homeless, shunned, neglected ,starved and abused....the very last rung of the 'canine social ladder'........our very own, mongrel...the 'Desi'...'junglikutta'...
These now roam our streets,dwell in our gutters and feed at our garbage dumps.
The situation screams out for change in the mindset of people.We are the ones responsible for creating this mess...too late to clean it up but at least we can try to set things right by accepting certain facts about these beautiful creatures;
a) They are gentle by nature.
b) They make great companion dogs
c) They are highly intelligent.
d) They are instinctively responsive to the slightest signs of danger and make excellent guard dogs.
e) It costs NOTHING to get one, they hardly ever get ill and do not need the kind of care one needs to give to a pedigreed animal.
f) Most of all they give you the same amount of love(actually more)as any other dog.They need to be loved and given the respect due to them.None deserves it more.
WHY do we make distinctions between breeds?Love the pedigree and shun the Pariah.... Is that not just another form of class distinction, in other words, racism.....let us leave the animals out of our prejudices and see beauty, beyond breeds....
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Distressed-Animal-Relief-Endeavour/438721599504573
The great granddaughter of the last Mughal king lives in the waiting room of a railway station. The same thing has happened to our dogs.. "
India now had new 'masters'.As the British 'Raj' overtook the fate of India, rulers lost their power, influence and possessions....they were forced to give up royal comforts and old habits had to be readjusted, to fit the changing times.During this process, even royal companions were replaced.Officers of the 'Raj', were often accompanied by their own companion animals,which were breeds alien to our country and climate.The 'Sahib's' dogs were now, quite obviously the new symbol of social status, as was wearing trousers , boots, or the skillful use of cutlery at a dining table.
Somewhere in the midst of this metamorphic process, the 'Mudhol' lost its magnificance, gone was the regal 'Rajapalayam' and the 'Combai', a rarity to come by.
While all of this was going on, the 'Sahib's' pedigrees may have been getting friendly with abandoned, ' native dogs',....soon a new breed appeared on Indian soil, the most unfortunate of its kind, cursed to an eternity of being homeless, shunned, neglected ,starved and abused....the very last rung of the 'canine social ladder'........our very own, mongrel...the 'Desi'...'junglikutta'...
These now roam our streets,dwell in our gutters and feed at our garbage dumps.
The situation screams out for change in the mindset of people.We are the ones responsible for creating this mess...too late to clean it up but at least we can try to set things right by accepting certain facts about these beautiful creatures;
a) They are gentle by nature.
b) They make great companion dogs
c) They are highly intelligent.
d) They are instinctively responsive to the slightest signs of danger and make excellent guard dogs.
e) It costs NOTHING to get one, they hardly ever get ill and do not need the kind of care one needs to give to a pedigreed animal.
f) Most of all they give you the same amount of love(actually more)as any other dog.They need to be loved and given the respect due to them.None deserves it more.
WHY do we make distinctions between breeds?Love the pedigree and shun the Pariah.... Is that not just another form of class distinction, in other words, racism.....let us leave the animals out of our prejudices and see beauty, beyond breeds....
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Distressed-Animal-Relief-Endeavour/438721599504573
PETA's Be Indian Bark Indian campaign encourages Indians to become the proud owners of 100% asli Indian dogs. The best people have Desi dogs.
Maneka Gandhi has 17 rescued dogs in her home, Navtej Johar has 6, Pritish Nandy has 2. Om Puri had an Indian dog that lived for 14 years, Shatrughan Sinha's family has only Indian dogs.
Aamir Khan has adopted one from a village near where he was shooting while nephew Imran has taken in an abandoned pet.
Having an Indian dog is perhaps the best social statement you can make as it proclaims you to be bright, generous and self confident. In fact, almost as purty as your poochhttp://goodtimes.ndtv.com/blog_more_comment.aspx?blog_id=202
Maneka Gandhi has 17 rescued dogs in her home, Navtej Johar has 6, Pritish Nandy has 2. Om Puri had an Indian dog that lived for 14 years, Shatrughan Sinha's family has only Indian dogs.
Aamir Khan has adopted one from a village near where he was shooting while nephew Imran has taken in an abandoned pet.
Having an Indian dog is perhaps the best social statement you can make as it proclaims you to be bright, generous and self confident. In fact, almost as purty as your poochhttp://goodtimes.ndtv.com/blog_more_comment.aspx?blog_id=202
DO YOU REALLY NEED A REASON TO LOVE??