Those that were useful were kept around and allowed to reproduce, while those that weren’t useful were likely culled. This is reminiscent of the way in which terriers are still used today in Germany once larger dogs have a boar at bay.Įarly North American dogs were not selectively bred in the same way that we produce “breeds” today, but circumstances certainly led to the selection of dogs with certain characteristics and abilities. Many of the stories share similar characteristics, such as small dogs being used to distract the quarry from the approaching hunter. Tales abound of tribes using dogs to pursue everything from polar bear in the far north to otters and fish in the most southern reaches of South America. It’s believed that these dogs aided in hunts and likely provided guardian assistance around camp, too. These dogs were descended from wolves but were partially domesticated. LISTEN on Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcherįossil and DNA evidence suggests that dogs arrived in North America about 5,000 years after the first humans arrived. We’ll continue our exploration of North American hunting dog history in the next episode. This episode brings us right up to the end of the pre-colonial era in the fifteenth century. We begin in North America, starting with the earliest evidence of domesticated dogs from about 10,000 years ago. This season of Hunting Dog Confidential will explore the history of hunting dogs as a function of place and time. The origins of hunting dogs in North America from indigenous peoples through the end of the pre-colonial era New England Grouse Shooting, by William Harnden Foster.

The Upland Shooting Life, by George Bird Evans.

A Dog's History of America by Mark Derr