From Treytor.
Sorry, but this is a small goldendoodle named “Waffle.” This goldendoodle, though, has some throwback features that are really similar to the Tweed water dog or Tweed water spaniel.
Except for the shaggy hair on her muzzle, her coat is really quite like a Tweed water dog’s. It’s wavy to rather curly, but it’s not as long as a golden retriever or Irish water spaniel.
The reasons for this dog exhibiting such throwback features is quite simple.
Poodles are a “refined” version of the old European water dogs. There were once dozens of different strains.
In Britain, the regional strain was the rough water dog or “water rug.” This dog got absorbed into the water spaniels through regularly outcrossing. In fact, a water spaniel is descended from the rough water dog crossed with either a spaniel or setter. Some individuals developed smoother coats throw the backcrosses, while others developed smooth hair on the muzzle and tail only (like the Irish water spaniel. I have seen a goldendoodle with the same basic coat length patterns as an Irish water spaniel, except for the “rat tail.”)
The water spaniels were then largely absorbed into the retrievers, which also included the St. John’s water dog, setters, and collies as parts of their gene pool.
This little golden-poodle cross is a throwback to these older strains, both of which descend from the old European water dogs.
An article about the golden’s ancestors and water spaniels with pics; in a German dogmagazine: http://www.wuff.at/artikel.php?artikel_id=966
In his book about British (show) dogs (1903), W.D. Drury writes:
“When I first commenced to keep Irish water spaniels, many years ago, there were three strains, or rather varieties – one was known as the Tweed spaniel, having its origin in the neighbourhood of the river of that name. They were very light liver colour, so close in curl as to give me the idea that they had originally been a cross from a smooth-haired dog; they were long in tail, ears heavy in flesh and hard like a hound’s, but only slightly feathered – fore legs feathered behind, hind legs smooth, head conical, lips more pendulous than M’Carthy’s strain. The one I owned, which was considered to be one of the best of them – - -”
According to that, the Tweed Spaniel was a strain of the Irish spaniel. The color was of TS was “very light liver colour”, not golden, as the puppy in the video. Tho’ she really look likes one of those older breeds.
“Light-liver” in the nineteenth century = gold.
The first goldens were a cross between a yellow wavy-coat named Nous and a “light-liver” Tweed water spaniel named Belle. All the puppies were yellow in color, and yellow is recessive to liver (although crosses between the two colors are often black.)
http://www.darkstarretrievers.com/images/origin2.jpg
This is one of the first goldens from that Nous X Belle breeding.
Here’s what Nous looked like: http://retrieverman.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/nous20r.jpg
One can glean that Belle had a shorter coat than Nous and was of a lighter yellow color from looking at Ada. In fact, I think the lighter colors in goldens come from this breed, not the wavy-coats that came in yellow or red.
I think I gave the author of that book (and the p-year) all wrong. I think the right is Dalziel and the y. 1897.
I think the light liver color is something very common in cockers, but is quite a hazy definition. One is here (not a spaniel):
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3546/3534262924_3584deee9e.jpg
I have linked to Dalziel’s book on many occasions.
I wandered into your blog as I was looking for references to a favorite short story: the Erne from the Coast. I have greatly enjoyed reading several of your articles here. Well done & thank you… from a life long lover of dogs!
Marnie