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by Scottie Westfall

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Farley Mowat DID try to save the St. John’s water dog!

May 27, 2009 by retrieverman

st. john's water dog with long-hair

I knew it!

Farley Mowat did breed Albert.  Albert, it turns out, was a very rare find in Newfoundland of those days.

Mowat bred Albert to a Labrador, which is the closest thing to a St. John’s Labrador. He hoped the pups would have the big white spot on the chest that Albert possessed. Unfortunately, the pups were all solid black in color.

It also turns out that Farley Mowat was in contact with the early Portuguese water dog fanciers in North America. It turns out that Mowat had actually researched the breed’s origin all the way back to the Portuguese water dog through to that Russian (which I think is really Central Asian) herding dog landrace. He also traced the Portuguese Water dog’s origins through Turkey, which is why the dogs were called “Turkish dogs” in Spain and Portugal.

I wish Farley Mowat had pursued this more. He could have saved a Newfoundland icon, and it would have made a hell of a good book!

If Farley Mowat found one St. John’s water dog during that time period, there had to have been at least a couple of dozen of them in Newfoundland. That would be enough to recreate the breed using the more diverse retriever breeds as outcrosses. Even the Portuguese water dog and the poodle could have been used, for they are also part of this retriever/water dog family.

Now, if Mowat traced these dogs to Russia, then maybe a close relative is the strange “Russian retriever” that appears in Hugh Dalziel’s British Dogs. I thought this breed was a Russian water dog similar to the poodle. (There was a Russian poodle, but it was more gracile in its build and smaller in size.)

It’s a very interesting find. I wonder why Mowat didn’t pursue his attempt at breed preservation further. I think if he could have gotten several interested breeders together they would have save this breed from extinction, and then I could say the Labrador retriever and all other retrievers descends from a dog that still walks this earth, sniffing the earth and wagging its otter-like tail, and not some extinct animal from the annals of history.

Interestingly, the two dog pups in the litter Albert sired went to Prime Minister Trudeau and Soviet Premier Kosygin. Now, the latter I find interesting.

Former Russian president Vladimir Putin has a Labrador named Koni. Koni is descended froma  Labrador owned by Leonid Brezhnev. I don’t know if his dog descended from Kosygin’s Labrador, but it’s possible. And if she does, then she’s got a little Albert in her. (I don’t know how we’re suppose to take this, but Koni is rumored to be named after Condoleeza Rice.)

I would love it if Koni was a descendant of Albert.

One can only hope, although I don’t think it’s very likely.

So Farley Mowat may have tried to save the “black water dogs,” and there was definitely a story to tell.

See earlier post.

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Posted in St. John's Water Dog | Tagged Albert the St. John's water dog, farley mowat, St. John's Water Dog | 8 Comments

8 Responses

  1. on July 30, 2009 at 6:37 pm Yuri Frantsuzov

    I had a dog coming form Kosygin’s dog. Kosygin’s dog name was Red Star. And my dog was third generation after him (grand-grand-son). He came to me (1990) with the translated letter written by Farley Mowet to Kosygin with the story of recovery of the breed at Newfoundland and instructions on how to deal with puppy. Such it happen that two sons of Red Star used to live close to me and I learned and loved them and decided to get exactly the same kind dog.
    My dog was also outstanding. He died in 2004 and since that time I was looking for the similar quality, but failed. Now I have another lovely black lab, coming from Red Star, but it’s already very different.

    It’s first time when I see published the story well know to me for many years.
    If retrieverman knows more details and has the copy of this letter of Farley Mowet to Kosygin, I’d appreciate he contacts me and copy it (I lost the hard copy over the years).
    Also, I’m pretty interested to know if some one has same quality dogs in US or Canada (maintaining same behaviors and outlook as Albert and Red Star were).
    George


    • on July 30, 2009 at 6:43 pm retrieverman

      Wow.

      That’s amazing.

      I’m sorry that I don’t have the letter.

      I don’t have the letter, but I found a record of a planned book about Albert that Mowat planned to write.

      I’ve not had any experience with Russian/Soviet lines of Labrador, so I have no idea what they are like.

      Do any of these dogs show white on them? Mowat abandoned the project when the four puppies had no white on them, and the two bitch pups died.


      • on July 30, 2009 at 7:16 pm Yuri Frantsuzov

        In 1989 we saw all labradors from former USSR (50) at the exhibition when we were looking for the future parents of our dog (only from Kosygin’s dogs). That time in USSR we had only black and NO white on them. // We red in some books that small white on the chest was allowed, but this was sort disadvantage in Russian standard of that time. Another problem was that Russian standard, which was pursued that time, assumed UK standard and because of that we were waiting “unplanned by club” pair of the dogs, which we loved as the parents of our future puppy//
        Today we don’t see any white on chest at all.
        Please, any info related to this story linking Farley Mowet and Labs is very welcome.
        George


  2. on September 10, 2009 at 10:30 pm Bridget K.

    Wow.


  3. on September 25, 2009 at 1:04 pm I’m now a source on Wikipedia « Retrieverman's Weblog

    […] 2. Farley Mowat DID try to save the St. John’s water dog. […]


  4. on April 14, 2010 at 10:53 am The answer to that dog question from a while ago « Retrieverman's Weblog

    […] Farley Mowat DID try to save the St. John’s water dog! […]


  5. on March 25, 2011 at 11:25 am Claudia Mellstreing

    Hey there! my name is Claudia Mellstreing, from Paraguay, I have seen a lot here crossbreed dogs or mixed dog that really looks like a Saint John’s Dog, I help some how an organization that helps and rescues animals in danger, and I have seen many puppies a adult dog looking like a Saint John’s, is possible that here we still have them? I will send to you some pics.


  6. on April 20, 2012 at 12:51 pm Teasing apart the history of the Newfoundland dog, the St. John’s water dog, and the retrievers « The Retriever, Dog, & Wildlife Blog

    […] that was free of modern Labrador retriever blood, there was at least one attempt to save them. Farley Mowat tried to save them through breeding his “pure” dog Albert to a Labrador bitch named Victoria (get it?!). […]



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