THE TRUTH OF THE SPANISH ALAUNT
Although there are
some enthusiastic of Spanish Alaunt in the times of
nowadays, that affirm that this breed is not extinguished and affirm that dogs
of this breed are reproducing on the basis of the supposed “Alaunt
recovery” that they mention, from the International Federation we affirmed that
true and pure breed Spanish Alaunt, is extinct for
more than 90 years.
By the part that
touches to us of this breed, the Spanish Alaunt, to
say that like direct parent of our American Pit Bull Terrier, Mariano Peinado in his investigations realised for the origins of
the American Pit Bull Terrier in the decade of the 80, found news articles in
some encyclopedia and old magazines that on the
matter said the following thing about the Spanish Alaunt;
“The President of
the French Dogo Bordeaux Club Mr. Delanda,
declared in an article published in the French canine magazine “L´ Eleveur” in 1925, that after having been realising an
intensive search of the Spanish Alaunt by the Spanish
and Portuguese provinces, after consulting to the highest canine authorities of
Spain and Portugal, like to the most serious and representative fans of this
breed dog in both countries, always they secured the same answer; Of the
Spanish Alaunt we haven´t
news for several years, is extinct”.
Spanish Alaunt in the middle of the century
XIX, moments before a bullfight in
Reasons for
which the Alaunt was extinguished.
In 1880, with the prohibition of the
luck of “dogs to the bull”, in the spanish
bullrings stopped maintaining the dogs that destined to that aim. In addition,
changes in modality of hunting, leaving to practice “hunting in round”, that
took step monterías that today they are realised, in
which it does not interest that the head of cattle fall taken hold by the dogs,
but arrive at the positions where the hunter is bet, caused that rehalas undid of the Alaunts that
they had.
Painting of Goya
In addition, the entrance in disuse
of the extensive cattle ranch in many zones of Spanish geography and the
selection of more docile breeds of cattle, as well as the modernization of the
work in the cattle ranches and slaughter houses with sleeves and shunting
lines, did that the work of Alaunt the no longer
outside so useful one. Formerly, the dogs stayed by the work that realised, and
at the moment at which “it stopped having work”, the Alaunt
backed down in number at a vertiginous speed until arriving at the extinction.
Collaborators of the
recovery of the Spanish Alaunt of the Community of
Madrid (CAM), talked
themselves with Mariano Peinado in 1994 and where themselves
recognized the extinction of the Spanish Alaunt, and
they proposed to him the use of some of his American Pit Bull Terrier stud dogs,
to develop the Alaunt recovery. Mariano refused
completely, considering, that if the Spanish Alaunt
is extinct is no possible to recover it, and less even, using in the “Alaunt” selection breeding, other breed dogs, although
these descend from the Alaunt.
Mariano proposed to
help to the CAM in the “Alaunt” recovery, as long as
and in honor to the truth, they made a
differentiation in the name of the dogs that would leave in the attempt of this
“recovery”, like for example calling it “Alaunt 2”.
This way confusions and controversies between the fans would be avoided, with the
original Alaunt either extinct and “Alaunt 2” recovered through the cross planned by dogs of
descending breeds of the original Alaunt.
The CAM nonacceptance, since the CAM wanted to make pass the result
of that amount of racially mixed dogs like pure Alaunts,
as unfortunately for the truth finally it did, since they wished
to do his project
ahead at all costs, since the Alaunt was a Spanish
native breed and this is the reason that why doing that.
Notes of interest in some books referring to the
Spanish Alaunt
The existence of Alaunts in
Diverse theories exist
about their origin. One of them aims at a possible Iberian origin, defending
its introduction in the
Also its character was
clear defined around its function of dog of takes hold; "
not taking by hunger nor by prize, but by right nature that God gave
him”; (disposition to realise prey).
The first event in the line
of bull-baiting historically accepted, goes back to
the 1209. Historian of Stamford, explains that a good day the Lord of the city
taking a walk by the walls of his castle to enjoy the primaveral
sun, had the occasion to see in a meadow two bulls fighting by the same female,
until the dogs of a local butcher sent themselves against one of the bulls and
they gave death him, after a ferocious fight. The vision of such spectacle
liked so much to Lord that gave to the union of butchers the meadow where the
fight had taken place, with the condition of which every year the spectacle was
repeated.
This type of spectacle
enjoyed a remarkable diffusion and success in all
Between years 1387-1388, in the ¨Hunting Book¨, Gastón
Fébus speaks about dogs ¨Alaunts able to cross other bloods, to which it cuts the
ears to them to the evenness to avoid to them wounded in the fight”.
Gastón Fébus Statue III (1331 – 1391)
Than doubt does not fit is
that these dogs were very extended, like proves its
appearance in works of the great painters, authentic writers of the reality of
the time. Thus, for example, the dogs are Alaunts
that Velazquez in the hunting of the hole shapes, that
is in the National Gallery of London; those that Goya in his capture of a bull
reflects; or those that appear in an engraving of the romantic Blanchard
French, or in works of Cervantes and Lope de Vega.
English, Germans and French
people, astonished by the aspect and the functions at the Spanish Alaunt, also called " Bulldog" and " Preydog" , they concerned to his countries, as they
demonstrate writings to it of the time, being outlined therefore the Bulldog
types (dog for the bull), Bullenbeiszer (takes hold
bulls) and Bulldog of Bordeaux, respectively. Breeds dogs that would make be
born others, in the British Islands (old Base of mastif
and bullmastif), in Germany (old Base of the Bóxer and German Dogo), in France
(Base of the old Bulldogs of Bordeaux), in Italy (known Base of Napolitan Mastiff and Cane Corso),
etc. all these present nations and their breed dogs come as well from the same
common, coincident trunk with the Spanish Alaunt.
In
In America the
denominations of Prey dogs or Dogs for the bull in Mexico, Brave dog in
Colombia, Bulldog of Cuba in the Caribbean, Cordovan Dog of Fight and Argentine
Bulldog in Argentina or Fila Brasileiro
in Brazil, are not more than the symbols of different original varieties all
from the Spanish Alaunt who took initially in the
American colonization.
The Spanish Alaunts
that the conquerors took to
In the stories of the
writers of the time, it was spoken of the Alaunts
that the Spanish explorers took to cross the virgin forests or to watch the campings. There was some of these
stories, in which they narrated infinity of anecdotes with respect to
intelligence, bravery and fidelity that owned the Alaunts.
The
Some Alaunts
deserved by their services that assigned one pays to them. Fernandez de Oviedo speaks
to us of a Alaunt called “Becerrillo", which always accompanied to the conqueror
Diego de Salazar. One said that ten soldiers with “Becerrillo",
were made fear more than one hundred soldiers without the dog. For that reason
it had its part in booties, and received one pays like the one soldier.
It had several scars of
slings, like a veteran, but its deserved good fame of
gained brave it without being bloodthirsty nor to show no mercy with the won
one, a dog just. The end of
“Becerrillo" was like of its son
" Leoncillo" , to die crossed to slings in
fight with the Indians.
" Leoncillo" it
was the dog of Núñez de Balboa, and therefore it was
the first European dog that saw the
The Alaunt called “Amadís”,
towards the 1570 accompanied to the spanish
colonists in its campaigns against the Chimilas indians. The life of “Amadís” was
not long, died to Indians arrow.
Thanks to the Alaunts that the Spanish colonists took, they could
discover footpaths without knowing the land. In the fight with the natives, the
Alaunts caused to as much astonishment and terror
between the Indians like the firearms.
In the book “the True
History of Conquest of the New Spain” of Mr. Bernal Diaz of the Castle, we can
observe in the first chapters as mentions on the expeditions of Mr. Francisco
Hernandez de Cordoba, who when they arrived at the coasts than at the moment it
is Champoton, Logwood, the Indians of this zone
fought strong to them and in this expedition he bring with himself several Alaunts males and females, and for to save his lives they
fled of that place quickly, leaving in that place the Alaunts
that they had for the offensive.
After all this wine the
second expedition by Captain Juan de Grijalva, and
says the author of the book (that this only does like commentary), that when
they arrived with the fleets at the coast from champoton,
entered an expedition inland to explore the land. The explorers (including the
author of the book), found the Alaunts and with them
to its descendants, the author said that these were smaller but more fierce
that the originals Alaunts. The author in another
commentary says that those descendants of the Alaunts
who had left years back, they were crossed witn dogs
of this place and the result they were those dogs. The author of this book, was a soldier who survived the three expeditions.
ORIGINS
OF THE AMERICAN PIT BULL TERRIER
http://www.fiapbt.net/origins.html
FIAPBT: www.fiapbt.net IADCRO:
www.iadcro.com
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