Introduction
The Dogue de Bordeaux is characterised by the largest, most magnificent
head in the dog world and layered wrinkles on its face and hefty
exaggerated paws he trudges into the heart of people all over
the world. Originally used for cattle droving and guarding the
vineyards in Bordeaux. This breed has survived within a hair of
extinction one national revolution, two world wars and a Hollywood
adventure Turner & Hooch...
It is also referred to as the French Mastiff,
Bordeaux Bulldog, or just "DdB", Dogue de Bordeaux.
The Bordeaux is an extremely cooperative, intelligent, and fearless
giant. Since the 1400s the DdB has had many jobs: Herding cattle,
flock guarding, animal baiting etc. Powerful and surprisingly
athletic, the Dogue de Bordeaux makes an excellent guardian. Beneath
all that toughness, exists a sweet, sincere, slobbering loveable
character that makes a wonderful companion.
History & Background
The Dogue de Bordeaux falls into a group of dogs classified as
molosser, descendants of the molossus, a dog that lived approximately
700 BC. Based on ancient carvings and paintings, it appears the
molossus were kept as guard and hunting dogs by the Assyrians.
The first record of a molosser type dog is in a letter dated 326
BC that mentions large, strong dogs with short broad teeth. Bones
of these big dogs have been found amongst other artefacts in
archaeological
expeditions throughout the world in places such as Tibet, China
and India. These dogs were included in the army of Alexander the
Great, and journeyed from Mesopotamia to Epirus in various wars.
In Epirus there was a mythical king ruling over the area of Molossus
who took care of the dogs. From there they journeyed to Rome,
Gaulle and other lands including Spain and France. There are contradicting
reports that this large dog first existed in Spain as the Alano,
an extinct dog whose description resembles today's Dogue de Bordeaux.
The Alano was supposedly brought to Europe by the Alans, an Oriental
tribe. The Alan Vautre was described in the fourteenth century
by Gaston Phoebus (or Febus), Count of Foix, in his Livre de Chasse.
There are also accounts that the molosser developed from the Molossoids,
a Greco-Roman canine that existed during Julius Caesar's time
and was used in war.
Development of a Dogue
The word "Dogue" first appeared at the end of the fourteenth
century. Before nineteenth century, these dogs didn't have a standard
but were very similar in looks and usage. Eventually, the molosser
developed into a variety of mastiffs including today's Tibetan
Mastiff, Spanish Mastiff, Mastino Italiano (Neapolitan Mastiff),
and Bullmastiff, to name a few. One type of dog in France was
called the Dogues or Doguin d'Aquitaine, a breed based on the
French Molossus, which existed in the early fourteenth century
and was bred for fighting other big animals (bears, boars etc)
There were several variations of the Doguin d'Aquitaine, depending
on the region and the jobs they needed to accomplish. As a result,
their general appearance was inconsistent. There were various
colours and varieties of coat, different jaw/bite patterns (undershot
and overshot), and other slight variations. For the most part,
however, these dogs were similar in body structure, weight and
size. Eventually one type emerged as the preferred dog, "the
Butcher's dog" that were used to protect the meat shops and
were highly coveted by the French noblemen and wealthy families
as guardians. The first reference to "Dogue de Bordeaux"
occurred in 1863 at the first canine exhibition at the Jardin
d'Acclimatation in Paris, France. The winner of the exhibition
was a bitch named Magentas who was identified according to the
capital of its region of origin, that's why Dogue de Bordeaux.
The first standard of the Bordeaux was presented in 1896 by the
veterinarian Pierre Meguin in his magazine L'Eleveur. He formalised
a standard from a combination of the best DdBs shown since Magentas
captured top dog honours at Jardin d' Acclimatation. There were
much controversy over the Dogue type, and diversity in breed type
persisted. Head and body size fluctuated according to particular
breeders; both scissors and undershot bites were found; and mask
colour was extremely varied. During this time there were three
types of Dogue;
Toulouse
Paris
Bordeaux
