Here's an odd one for you! Does anyone know (or know where I could find out about) what sort of pets, if any, Anglo-Saxons would have kept? I'm thinking more along the lines of dogs. (maybe used as working/hunting dogs). I know, in respect to animals, they kept the usual livestock and horses etc. - it's the pet thing I'm interested in.

Cheers,

Nik.

Hi Nik,

had a quick search for you (if you hadn't guessed i'm diverting myself from my own writing)

search on:
"Out of Oblivion: A Landscape through time".

this has an Anglo-Saxon story about The Grey Dog called Bonecruncher, who was 'the pride of the village' for fighting off wolves.



search on:
"As a lion is to a cat, So is a mastiff compared to dog".

this talks of the importance of mastiffs in history (mentions anglo saxon) as fighting dogs and tiedogs(tied during the day, loose at night) - again, for A/S times mentions fighting off wolves.

Casey

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I don't imagine the concept of a 'pet' was much known then, but undoubtedly an anglo-saxon would have become fond of a good hunter/fighter, IMO.

That's good enough for me! Cheers Casey. And a Mastiff would work. German shepherd'd be better though, or a Pincher. On with the research! Thanks again.

Nik.



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Probably being a tad dense here, but is there a difference between a Mastiff and a Bull Mastiff, do you know? I know, I know, I'm shirking research - but if anyone knows i'd be rather grateful.



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What's the difference between a Mastiff and a Bullmastiff?

The Mastiff is an ancient British breed and its history can be traced back over 2,000 years. The Bullmastiff is a relatively recent breed developed from crossing Mastiff (60%) and Bulldog (40%) stock. The Bullmastiff's shorter, more compact, more muscular look; shorter muzzle; higher energy level and greater stubbornness are derived from the Bulldog part of the Bullmastiff's ancestry.

The most noticeable differences are temperament, the conformation of the heads and overall size of the dogs.

Mastiffs have a mellower, more relaxed temperament, compared to the pushier, more active temperament of the typical Bullmastiff.

The Mastiff's forehead should be slightly curved and the stop (indentation between the eyes) well marked but not too abrupt while the Bullmastiff's forehead should be flat and the stop moderate.

Mastiff males should be at least 30" at the shoulder and females 27 1/2" at the shoulder, with no upper limit for height. Bullmastiff males should be between 25-27" at the shoulder and females 24-26" at the shoulder.

Weight ranges differ significantly between the breeds, with the Bullmastiff being smaller as well as more compact. The Bullmastiff Standard lists 110-130 pounds for males, 100-120 pounds for females. While the Mastiff Standard specifies no weight ranges, males weights usually run 160 pounds and up, females 120 pounds and up.



Got it!

I think keeping pets would have been very rare, and confined to the wealthiest families. They would have had deerhound style dogs for hunting, and lurcher types for catching rabbits and keeping the rat population under control. German Shepherds and Pinschers originated in the same part of Europe as Saxons – have you tried googling the breed websites, or the Kennel Club, for details of the breeds’ history?

Would they have had birds? Hawks for hunting small animals? I could imagine they would become very fond of a good hawk.

Dee


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NIk, I love Mastiffs. They are superb dogs.

Cheers Dee. Good suggestions there. I'm assuming that they'd have 'working' animals. Hawks yes (I think - I know Vikings had them and they were only a couple of centuries after) and hunting dogs. I just need a scary dog (or pack), one that would be loyal to a tribe/person, that'd have no issues ripping a person to bits.

I might need to pick your brains again soon Dee (if I continue with this. There's going to be a strong Pagan theme in it...

Thanks again.

Nik.

Lurchers'd work too...

Just found this. Don't look if you're squeemish. It's about deer poaching. Bastards.

http://www.deer-uk.com/A%20Bit%20Of%20An%20Odd%20Month.htm

I might need to pick your brains again soon Dee

You’re welcome.

Is this a children’s story? I can imagine Saxon children playing with puppies and making pets of them until they (both children and pups) were old enough to work.

Think I'll pass on the deer poaching link!

Dee

Sadly not children's fic., no.

that'd have no issues ripping a person to bits

That's actually going to happen. Not in a gory way, tahnk goodness.

Here's the link to the first 500 words, if you fancy a gander.

http://www.writewords.org.uk/archive/15447.asp

Nik

I think there's less distinction between an animal that's a pet and one that isn't when the animals tend to share the living space anyway, as they would have. Working animals work by being trained to have a relationship with their owner, after all. They'd acquire names to distinguish them as cattle would, and I'm sure you'd mind when they died. (Cats, on the other hand don't need to be social though I bet the children would play with them.) As well as mastiffs (which are unbelievably enormous - a local toyshop, of all places, had one, and it towered over the average 3yr old, with bulk to match) for fighting and defence, perhaps wolf- , even elk- and deerhounds for hunting, but also some terrier-types for ratting and rabitting? Hawking is an incredibly ancient sport - the Assyrians did it - and falconry and going after game with bow-and-arrow work much better if you have a dog to retrieve for you, too, so something in the labrador or spaniel mould that would do that? There are spaniels in Shakespeare, usually as a metaphor for fawning, which definitely suggests pet-like habits. For anything that needs herding - sheep, goats, cows - there'd be collie types. And in a world before central heating, lapdogs went perhaps further down the social scale than you might imagine - a luxury, yes, but one with a purpose, and even if they're mostly meant for keeping the mice down it might be worth having cats who were willing to sit on your lap in the winter too.

But the game laws were very fierce, not just for deer as in Robin Hood, but with strict rules about what rank could fly what kind of bird, and so on.

House-training was a foreign concept, though, at least to some extent: royal households had paid minions whose job it was to go round the palace cleaning up the shit.

Emma

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How about boarhounds? They're pretty enormous, and very fierce, as wild boar are very, very scary things to go after. Also has a nice historical feel to it, as you wouldn't get them nowadays.