
The Karelian Bear Dog (KBD) is a Finnish or Karelian breed of dog. In its home country, it is regarded as a national treasure. KBD will hunt a variety of animals. Its quick reflexes and fearless nature have made it very popular for hunting aggressive game, including bears, moose, and wild boar. It was the breed’s ability to hunt and offer protection against a bear that earned the breed its name.
History
According to archaeological records, dogs very similar to the modern Russo-European Laika and the Karelian Bear Dog existed in northeastern Europe and Scandinavia since Neolithic times. The breed standard for KBDs and Laikas today calls for a black-and-white marked dog, but originally the breed included individuals with coats of wolf gray of various shades, red coats like the standard spitz, and black-and-tan specimens as well.
The Karelian Bear Dog was used mainly for hunting small fur-bearing animals, such as squirrels and marten. Like the Norwegian Elkhound, the Karelian Bear Dog was also used in hunting moose, lynx, wolf and, as its name would suggest, hunting the Eurasian brown bear. In hunting bear, at least a pair of Bear Dogs would be used to harry the animal, barking loudly, in order to distract the bear while the human hunter came in for the kill.
Karelian Bear Dogs have been used for bear control at Yosemite and Glacier national parks, and with the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife.[1]
Appearance
Males stand 54–60 cm (21–24 in) at the withers; females are shorter, at 49–55 cm (19–22 in). Both sexes weigh 20–23 kg (44.1–50.7 lbs).
The breed has a coat of straight, stiff guard hairs and a fine, soft, thick undercoat. There should be no curl in the hair at all. The colour must be black with white markings. Often the jet black hair is slightly tinted with brownish highlights on the ends giving it an iridescent quality. Preferably the color percentage is around 70% black and 30% white. The bushy tail curls in a circle over the back in a ring and has a white tip. It falls gently onto the dog’s back or to one side. Purebred KBD have tails that curve into a circle rather than a sickle.
Temperament
They are silent but tenacious hunters and alert only when they have the prey at bay. They will keep prey cornered there by barking in a very high, fast bark and running back and forth or around the animal until their handler comes and dispatches it. Karelian Bear Dogs have been known to hold an animal at bay for a very long time. If a bear tries to leave, the dog will nip at it on the backside and aggravate it to keep it from running away.
They don’t always have to hunt with their master, as they can be trained to work with other people. However, they are prone to separation anxiety due to their very social nature. It is very unusual for a KBD to bite a human but it may kill another animal if it feels threatened.
They are very social hunting dogs that prefer an outdoor environment, and need plenty of space to run free and get lots of exercise. In addition, they need a lot of mental and physical stimulation, as this breed is used to having a job to do. These traits tend to prevent the breed from becoming popular companion dogs.
Karelian Bear Dogs are very territorial and will alert their handler to the presence of any strangers or other animals nearby that they do not know. (Wikipedia)
A list of all the dog breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club:
A
- Affenpinscher
- Afghan hound
- Airedale terrier
- Akita
- Alaskan malamute
- American English coonhound
- American eskimo dog
- American foxhound
- American hairless terrier
- American leopard hound
- American Staffordshire terrier
- American water spaniel
- Anatolian shepherd dog
- Appenzeller sennenhunde
- Australian cattle dog
- Australian shepherd
- Australian terrier
- Azawakh
B
- Barbet
- Basenji
- Basset fauve de Bretagne
- Basset hound
- Beagle
- Bearded collie
- Beauceron
- Bedlington terrier
- Belgian malinois
- Belgian shepherd
- Belgian tervuren
- Bergamasco
- Berger picard
- Bernese mountain dog
- Bichon frise
- Biewer terrier
- Black and tan coonhound
- Black Russian terrier
- Bloodhound
- Bluetick coonhound
- Boerboel
- Bolognese
- Border collie
- Border terrier
- Borzoi
- Boston terrier
- Bouvier des Flandres
- Boxer
- Boykin spaniel
- Bracco italiano
- Braque du Bourbonnais
- Braque Francais Pyrenean
- Briard
- Brittany
- Broholmer
- Brussels griffon
- Bull terrier
- Bulldog
- Bullmastiff
C
- Cairn Terrier
- Canaan dog
- Cane Corso
- Cardigan welsh corgi
- Catahoula leopard dog
- Caucasian ovcharka
- Cavalier king Charles spaniel
- Central Asian shepherd dog
- Cesky terrier
- Chesapeake bay retriever
- Chihuahua
- Chinese crested
- Chinese shar-pei
- Chinook
- Chow chow
- Cirneco dell’etna
- Clumber spaniel
- Cocker spaniel
- Collie
- Coton de Tulear
- Curly-coated retriever
- Czechoslovakian vlcak
D
- Dachshund
- Dalmatian
- Dandie dinmont terrier
- Danish-swedish farmdog
- Deutscher wachtelhund
- Doberman pinscher
- Dogo argentino
- Dogue de bordeaux
- Drentsche patrijshond
- Drever
- Dutch shepherd
E
- English cocker spaniel
- English foxhound
- English setter
- English springer spaniel
- English toy spaniel
- Entlebucher mountain dog
- Estrela mountain dog
- Eurasier
F
G
- German longhaired pointer
- German pinscher
- German shepherd
- German shorthaired pointer
- German spitz
- German wirehaired pointer
- Giant schnauzer
- Glen of imaal terrier
- Golden retriever
- Gordon setter
- Grand bassett griffon vendeen
- Great dane
- Great pyrenees
- Greater swiss mountain dog
- Greyhound
H
I
- Ibizan hound
- Icelandic sheepdog
- Irish red and white setter
- Irish setter
- Irish water spaniel
- Irish wolfhound
- Italian greyhound
J
K
L
- Labrador retriever
- Lagotto Romagnolo
- Lakeland terrier
- Lancashire heeler
- Leonberger
- Lhasa apso
- Lowchen
M
- Maltese
- Manchester terrier
- Mastiff
- Miniature American shepherd
- Miniature bull terrier
- Miniature pinscher
- Miniature schanuzer
- Mudi
N
- Neapolitan mastiff
- Nederlandse kooikerhondje
- Newfoundland
- Norfolk terrier
- Norrbottenspets
- Norwegian buhund
- Norwegian elkhound
- Norwegian lundehund
- Norwich terrier
- Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever
O
P
- Papillon
- Parson russell terrier
- Pekingese
- Pembroke Welsh corgi
- Perro de presa canario
- Peruvian Inca orchid
- Petit bassett griffon vendeen
- Pharoah hound
- Plott
- Pointer
- Polish lowland sheepdog
- Pomeranian
- Poodle
- Portuguese podengo
- Portuguese pointer
- Portuguese sheepdog
- Portuguese water dog
- Pudelpointer
- Pug
- Puli
- Pumi
- Pyrenean mastiff
- Pyrenean shepherd
R
- Rafeiro do alentejo
- Rat terrier
- Redbone coonhound
- Rhodesian ridgeback
- Rottweiler
- (Jack) Russell terrier
- Russian toy
- Russian tsvetnaya bolonka
S
- Saluki
- Samoyed
- Schapendoes
- Schipperke
- Scottish deerhound
- Scottish terrier
- Sealyham terrier
- Shetland sheepdog
- Shiba inu
- Shih tzu
- Shikoku
- Siberian husky
- Silky terrier
- Skye terrier
- Sloughi
- Slovensky cuvac
- Slovensky kopov
- Small munsterlander pointer
- Smooth fox terrier
- Soft-coated wheaten terrier
- Spanish mastiff
- Spanish water dog
- Spinone Italiano
- St. Bernard
- Stabyhoun
- Staffordshire bull terrier
- Standard schnauzer
- Sussex spaniel
- Swedish lapphund
- Swedish vallhund
T
- Teddy Roosevelt terrier
- Tibetan mastiff
- Tibetan spaniel
- Tibetan terrier
- Tornjak
- Tosa
- Toy fox terrier
- Transylvanian hound
- Treeing Tennessee brindle
- Treeing walker coonhound
V
W
- Weimaraner
- Welsh springer spaniel
- Welsh terrier
- West highland white terrier
- Whippet
- Wire fox terrier
- Wirehaired pointing griffon
- Wirehaired vizsla
- Working kelpie
X
Y
-4L
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